Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Saturday that the Central government was attempting to bridge the gap between demand and supply of quality healthcare through public-private partnership, keeping in mind the population pressure in the country.
Speaking at the 44th Convocation of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), he stressed on the need to improve the quality of care through tertiary, primary and secondary healthcare systems.
AIIMS president and Union Health Minister J. P. Nadda said six AIIMS have already been made operational and 12 new institutes are being set up across the country to set standards of medical education and healthcare at par with the best institutions in the world.
“Existing premier medical colleges are being upgraded. Medical teachers will also be closely involved in policy planning, regulation and enforcement of standards in medical education,” he said.
CATS ambulance
services hit
In another development, the CATS ambulance service here were hit on Saturday after 250 contractual workers and drivers went on strike in all 11 zones of the city. Narendra Lakda, the president of the CATS Contractual Employees’ Union, complained of gross violations of labour laws since operations were outsourced to a private company.
“The salaries are not paid on time and we are forced to run ambulances that do not have proper equipment,” he said.
The members said they may continue the strike for an indefinite period if their demands are not met.
