RANCHI: Jharkhand Health Minister Dr Irfan Ansari on Friday announced that the state government plans to establish medical colleges in every districts. Ansari said that the government has already started initiating works in this regard, on the the directions of Chief Minister Hemant Soren.
He was responding to a question raised by Simdega MLA, Bhushan Bara, during the Question Hour of the Budget Session of Jharkhand Assembly. MLA Bhushan pointed out that patients are frequently referred to RIMS (Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences) even for minor ailments—a practice that, he argued, should not be allowed to continue.
Bara questioned why doctors at the Simdega Sadar Hospital resort to referring patients elsewhere. Referring to the issue of lack of adequate medical facilities in Simdega, Bara demanded the establishment of a branch of RIMS in the area.
“There are no provisions for the treatment of patients suffering from serious ailments in Simdega, Gumla, Kolebira, Lohardaga, and Latehar, he said. Patients are referred to Ranchi, a process during which they frequently succumb to their illnesses on the way itself,” Bara said.
In his response, Minister Irfan stated that a specific protocol is currently being formulated to address this issue. The minister further noted that patients' attendants often create a commotion over every minor detail, placing doctors under immense pressure—despite the fact that Simdega currently has an adequate number of doctors.
He added, "Being the MLA of the district, honourable member wishes to have a hospital in Simdega on the lines of Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS). Definitely, our Chief Minister has also said that we will establish a medical college in each of the districts in Jharkhand. This is our thought, on which we have already started working on."
He assured Bara that a medical college will definitely be established in Simdega in the near future. Acknowledging the fact that the state is facing a shortage of doctors, the minister informed the House that efforts are being made actively to fill these vacancies.
The minister assured the House that a massive recruitment drive is set to be launched in the coming days, which will effectively resolve this issue. He urged everyone to extend their cooperation to doctors currently posted at the district level and to help boost their morale, promising that the problem would be resolved within one month.