The work on the construction of a 220-bed super-speciality hospital attached to Mysuru Medical College and Research Institute (MMCRI) for which Chief Minister Siddaramaiah recently laid the foundation stone on the premises of PKTB Sanatorium may be “delayed” for “technical” reasons.
The Chief Minister had allocated ₹123.77 crore for civil works of the eight-storey building and ₹37.25 crore for the purchase of medical equipment. The allocation was described as highest for a super-speciality hospital under the government set up in recent times.
The Department of Public Works, which constructed the trauma care centre on the same premises that was also inaugurated by the Chief Minister recently, was supposed to have executed the works of the super-speciality hospital.
Sources familiar with the ongoing public healthcare projects told The Hindu the responsibility of the construction may be vested on the Karnataka Health Systems Development and Reform Project (KHSDRP), a government of Karnataka institution which is said to have expertise in executing healthcare projects, including the construction of hospitals, instead of the Public Works Department.
Following an apparent suggestion from a senior bureaucrat, who inspected the work of the ₹25 crore-trauma care centre, the project work may be handed over to KHSDRP and the process of transferring the documents and other procedures are expected to happen soon. “As this is expected to take time, the construction work may take a while to begin,” the sources added.
The hospital will have two basement floors and ground plus five floors to accommodate over a dozen departments with speciality care. They include neurology, neuro surgery, medical gastroenterology, surgical gastroenterology, plastic surgery, paediatric surgery, medical oncology, surgical oncology, radiation oncology, and other departments.
The structure was earlier planned on the premises of K.R. Hospital in the heart of the city. But, on knowing that the tall structure may not get approval from the State heritage authorities with K.R. Hospital being a heritage structure, the project was shifted to PKTB Sanatorium premises, which has over 100 acres of land under the control of the Directorate of Medical Education.
The super-speciality hospital will have a built area of 2,20,676.84 sq ft with each floor having over 40,000 sq ft of space to accommodate the departments and other facilities.
