HYDERABAD: A five-member Central team has been formed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to inspect the site for the proposed All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) for Telangana. The team includes two officials from Prime Minister Swasthya Surakshna Yojana(PMSSY), two from AIIMS New Delhi and Raebareli, and a senior architect from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. They would examine whether or not the proposed site fits the requirements for setting up the prestigious medical institute.
It was more than two weeks ago that the State Health Department officials received a memorandum from Union Finance Ministry which stated: AIIMS for the State is approved 'In-Principle'.
This followed by the officials from the State Health Department stating that the Bibinagar campus of Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS), including the building from where the Out-Patient services are offered, would be presented as an option to the inspecting team.
Interestingly, a letter from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare official, dated May 7, stated that the Central team shall inspect the Bibinagar site to assess suitability for setting up AIIMS.
However, now there is doubt if the Central team would be shown the NIMS-Bibinagar campus as an option for setting up AIIMS-Telangana. As per the Health department officials, a meeting will be convened between Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and Health minister C Laxma Reddy to decide whether the NIMS-Bibinagar campus or some other site would be shown to the Central team.
PEEK INTO THE PAST
The Bibinagar campus for NIMS was proposed during the Congress rule in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, when late YS Rajasekhara Reddy was the Chief Minister. While a skeletal structure of the building was constructed, the works were not completed.
After the TRS came to power in the newly-formed Telangana, the works were completed and NIMS started functioning from Bibinagar campus from March 2016. Recently, arrangements were made to offer inpatient services too. The campus is spread on around 180-acres and additional 50-acres was also acquired for the purpose.