Madurai MP, Su. Venkatesan, has accused Tamil Nadu government of showing lackadaisical attitude towards setting up of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) project in Madurai. Besides, he condemned the Centre for allocating a measly sum of ₹12,000 for 10 railway projects worth around ₹12,000 crores in Tamil Nadu.
Talking to reporters here on Sunday, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP said that as per the Centre’s plan, the AIIMS hospital and medical college buildings in Thoppur here would be commissioned by 2023 or 2024. But, before the construction work gets over, admission for the AIIMS medical college should begin at least three years in advance.
“For this to happen, the State government should provide a temporary building for the medical college and link a 300-bedded hospital to it so that the medical admission can begin at the earliest. In Jammu too where an AIIMS is coming up along with Tamil Nadu in 2023, the admission is likely to begin in August this year after the requisite facilities were provided by the Union Territory,” he said.
But, somehow Tamil Nadu government has showed cold shoulder in providing the basic facilities. “Even handing over of land for the project has been unduly delayed,” he said expressing suspicion that there was some force acting against AIIMS coming up here.
He said even part of Government Rajaji Hospital could be given for AIIMS medical college as a temporary arrangement. “If the State government is not going to provide these facilities so that the admissions can be started at least in the next academic year, then the commissioning of AIIMS might get delayed,” he added.
Centre ignoring TN
Accusing the Centre of ignoring new rail projects for Tamil Nadu in the Union Budget 2020, Mr. Venkatesan said that 10 such projects that had been included in the railway budget years back were allocated a meagre sum of ₹1,000 each.
“Against this backdrop, the Centre had allocated ₹7,000 crore for various railway projects around Uttar Pradesh,” he said.
Tamil Nadu being one of the highest contributor to the State exchequer through GST collections was given a step-motherly treatment, he accused.
All like-minded forces should come forward to condemn this. “The State government that has been in the forefront of implementing all the Centre’s policies, should intervene and get Tamil Nadu its due,” Mr. Venkatesan said.
The MP also said that after doubling work between Chennai and Madurai was completed years back only one new train had been introduced.
