Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, would lay the foundation stone for the proposed Government Medical College in Konni on January 26, Revenue Minister and local MLA Adoor Prakash has said.
Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, the Minister said Prof P.J. Kurien, Rajya Sabha Deputy Speaker and V.S. Sivakumar, Health Minister, would be the guests of honour at the stone-laying ceremony.
He said the proposed medical college and a modern hospital complex would come up in the 50 acres of land provided by the Soil Conservation Department at Vattamon in Aruvappulam grama panchayat.
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Mr Prakash said a total of Rs 200 crore, that include the State Government’s budget allocation and the credit taken from NABARD, would be utilised for the construction work in the first phase of the project. The technical committee has approved the plan and HLL Lifecare Limited would undertake the work, he said.
500-bedded hospital
According to him, Government is planning to construct a 500-bedded modern hospital complex at the college compound.
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He said the General Hospital in Pathanamthitta would be temporarily attached to the proposed Konni Medical College till the construction of the medical college hospital complex.
Mr Prakash said the Government would also set up a drug testing laboratory in Konni and the project was given a special mention in the State budget too.
Township planned
The Minister said the Government was planning to develop a township that houses the proposed medical college, College of Food Technology and Research Institute, a Central School, etc. in Konni.
He said the District Collector has already submitted a proposal to the Centre for sanctioning a Central School in Konni. The Government has expressed willingness to allot four acres of land attached to the Soil Conservation Department at Vattamon for the proposed Central School project, he added.
The Minister said classes for the first batch of MBBS students at the proposed Government Medical College is expected to start in 2014-15.
He said the much sought-after medical college project in the hilly tracts of Pathanamthitta was the UDF Government’s New Year gift to the district, adding that the Government was committed to complete the project in a time-bound fashion.