BENGALURU: Union Minister for Finance Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday announced that she would allocate Rs 1 crore from her MPLAD funds for the setting up of a neonatal and paediatric ICU at Jayanagar government hospital.
The Union Minister, who is a Rajya Sabha MP from Karnataka, visited the vaccination centre at the hospital. Earlier in the day, Sitharaman said that vaccine supply will be managed well and assured that everybody will be vaccinated. On Thursday afternoon, she visited the 100-bed oxygenated Covid-19 facility set up by Boeing India and the SELCO Foundation at Yelahanka as her first pitstop during her two-day visit to the city.
She assured that there was no shortage of vaccines in the country and needs of all the states are being addressed. “Every state gets its allocation as per the intensity of the attack, density of the population and the number of vulnerable populations. The Union Government supplies it well in advance so that they (states) can announce as to how much is being given some seven days prior,” she said.
Later, she visited the Jayanagar government hospital where she allocated funds from her MPLAD for a project that would involve setting up a 20-bed paediatric ICU, upgrading the physical infrastructure, adding medical oxygen facilities, and upgrading the electrical infrastructure. Canara Bank would also contribute funds for this as part of its CSR activity.
On Friday, Sitharaman will visit the Institute of Bioinformatics and Applied Biotechnology and Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre where a demonstration of various innovative products will be held. The Union Mnister will also participate as a chief guest in the interaction with biotechnology industry leaders and start-ups organised by the Department of Electronics, IT/BT and S&T.