BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has urged Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare JP Nadda to take steps for issuance of Letter of Permission (LoP) to Government Medical College and Hospital at Baripada for commencement of undergraduate class from this academic session.
In a letter, Naveen has sought Nadda's intervention for immediate inspection of Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College and Hospital by the Medical Council of India (MCI).
The State Government had applied to MCI for LoP for two medical colleges at Baripada and Koraput following which a team of experts from the medical council had visited both the institutions in December last year.
Though the MCI visited Saheed Laxman Nayak Medical College and Hospital at Koraput again on April 11 for assessment of compliance of observations it had made earlier, the team is yet to inspect the medical college at Baripada for assessment of the compliance.
''All requirements for obtaining LoP have been fulfilled to commence first batch intake of 100 undergraduate seats in the current year,'' Naveen wrote in the letter and urged the Union Minister to allow the institution an opportunity to prove its readiness for availing LoP.
He said establishment of a medical college at Baripada is essential for health and socio-economic development of tribal people in Mayurbhanj district. Tribals constitute nearly 58.7 per cent of total population of the district.