Chief Minister M.K. Stalin inaugurated a newly constructed tower block building of the Government Rajaji Hospital here through video conference on Tuesday.
The building constructed on an area of 2.9 lakh square feet at a cost of ₹313.35 crore is a Tamil Nadu Urban Healthcare project funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), an implementing agency of Japanese Official Development Aid (ODA).
Minister for Health and Family Welfare Ma. Subramanian, who was present at the Madurai Medical College for the inauguration, while addressing the audience, said that three projects funded by JICA were started in Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai and Madurai was the first one to be inaugurated.
“This would serve as the next step in improving the medical facilities available to the people of the southern districts as the hospital was equipped with some of the most advanced equipment to perform world class surgeries,” he added.
Some of the modernised equipment such as the catheterization laboratory, radiology department, modern operation department consisting of 22 operation theatres, hear lung machine, digital mammography, digital radiography with fluoroscopy, ultrasound machine for cardiac cath lab with echo navigation, ultrasound machine for cardiology ECHO and TEE probe, digital radiography machine, anaesthesia workstation, monitors, and ventilators were installed in the new building, said Mr. Subramanian.
In addition to this, a building for the thoracic pulmonary section worth ₹ 2.89 crore having an intensive respiratory care ward with six beds, general ward with 25 beds, bronchoscopy research room was also opened
Further, a new building at the Usilampatti Government Madurai district headquarters hospital built at a cost of ₹8.01 crore with facilities like outpatients section, laboratory, paediatric intensive care unit, among others, was also opened, he said.
Other facilities like a girls’ hostel and an indoor stadium at the assistant nurse college in Samayanallur at a cost of ₹1.75 crore, additional rooms built at a cost of ₹ 1.50 crore at the Samayanallur regional health and family welfare training centre, a building for bronchoscopy section, intensive care unit and an isolation ward at Government Tuberculosis Hospital in Thoppur constructed at a cost of ₹ 10 crore, were also opened at the inauguration.
A patient attenders’ room at GRH which could accommodate about 100 people with attached bathrooms and toilets built at a cost of ₹ 65 lakh was also opened.
Mr. Subramanian said that an animal centre worth ₹ 1.75 crore inaugurated on the Madurai Medical College premises would be helpful in performing clinical trials.
Along with this, an auditorium which remained unused for over four years was renovated at a cost of ₹ 2.46 crore and was opened.
Madurai MP Su. Venkatesan, who spoke at the event, said that the land acquisition process for the new hospital building was a challenge as the old building on the location was considered a heritage building.
“But, due to our repeated struggles we convinced the people who were against the new construction. Now, this building stands as one of the important hospitals in the State,” he added.
Madurai Medical College Dean A. Rathinavel said the new building would be very helpful to treat the increasing number of patients who visit hospitals from the neighbouring districts.
He sought the intervention of Ministers to acquire the Madurai central prison land for the GRH once the prison was shifted to a different location. “A larger space for GRH is the need of the hour as the current location is very congested,” he added.
Ministers P. Moorthy and Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, Director of Medical Education J. Sangumani, Mayor V. Indirani Ponvasanth and others were present.
