NEW DELHI: India will set up 157 government nursing colleges at a cost of Rs 1,570 crore in co-location with existing medical colleges over the next two years in 27 states and Union territories. The step will add approximately 15,700 nursing graduates every year.
The announcement was made by Union health minister Mandsukh Mandaviya on Wednesday after a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, which was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
For each nursing college, financial assistance of Rs10 crore would be provided, the health minister said. There is a great imbalance in the country as 40% of Indian nursing colleges are in four southern states, while on the other hand, there are 13 such states where there are no nursing colleges, he said. Citing examples, the minister said in Bihar there are only two government nursing colleges, besides 10 private ones. Now, Bihar will get 8 nursing colleges.
In the same manner, Uttar Pradesh has 10 government nursing colleges, Rajasthan 11, Madhya Pradesh 11, and Jharkhand 1. Now, under the new policy, these states will get as many nursing colleges as there are medical colleges, he added. The maximum number of nursing colleges will be set up in Uttar Pradesh where 27 new nursing colleges will come up.
This will be followed by Rajasthan (23), Madhya Pradesh (14). Both Tamil Nadu and West Bengal will get 11 new nursing colleges. “The initiative aims to address the geographical and rural-urban imbalances in the healthcare sector, which have led to the skewed availability of nursing professionals and impacted healthcare services in underserved areas,” he
said at a press meet after the cabinet briefing.
The establishment of these nursing colleges will provide a significant boost to the availability of qualified human resources in healthcare. Co-location of these nursing colleges with medical colleges will allow optimal utilisation of the existing infrastructure, skill labs, clinical facilities and faculty, he said. The proposal to set up 157 new nursing colleges was made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during her budget speech in February.