Centre approves All India Institute of Medical Sciences for Bihar's Darbhanga

The Union Cabinet has approved establishment of a new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Bihar’s Darbhanga, an official statement said on Tuesday.

The institute will come up under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) at a total cost of Rs 1,264 crore, it said.

The new AIIMS is likely to be completed within a period of 48 months from the date of the approval by the Centre, the statement said.

It will add 100 undergraduate (MBBS) seats, 60 B.Sc. (Nursing) seats and will have 15-20 Super Specialty Departments and 750 hospital beds, the statement said.

Going by the data from the AIIMS already functioning, it is expected that each new AIIMS will cater to around 2,000 OPD patients per day and around 1,000 IPD patients per month.

The PG and DM/M.Ch super-specialty courses will also be started in due course, the statement said.

The establishment of new AIIMS involves creation of hospital, teaching block for medical and nursing courses, residential complex and allied facilities/services, broadly on the pattern of AIIMS, New Delhi. and other six new AIIMS taken up under Phase-I of PMSSY.

The objective is to establish the new AIIMS as Institution of National Importance for providing quality tertiary healthcare, medical education, nursing education and research in the region, the statement said. The 750 beds will include emergency and trauma beds, ICU beds, AYUSH beds, private beds and Specialty and Super Specialty beds, the statement said.

In addition, there will be a medical college, AYUSH Block, auditorium, night shelter, guest house, hostels and residential facilities.

The establishment of the new AIIMS will create capital assets for which requisite specialized manpower will be created, based on the pattern of the six new AIIMS, for their operations and maintenance, the statement said.

The recurring cost on these institutions shall be met through Grant-in-Aid to them from Plan Budget Head of PMSSY of Ministry of Health.

The operations and maintenance expenses on new AIIMS are also fully borne by the Central Government, it said.

The statement said the setting up of new AIIMS would not only transform health education and training but also address the shortfall of health care professionals in the region.

It will serve the dual purpose of providing super specialty healthcare to the population while also help create a large pool of doctors and other health workers in the region that can be available for primary and secondary level institutions / facilities being created under National Health Mission (NHM).

Setting up new AIIMS in the state will lead to employment generation for nearly 3,000 persons in various faculty and non-faculty posts, the statement said Further, indirect employment generation will take place due to facilities and services like shopping centre, canteens, etc. coming in the vicinity, it said.

The construction activity involved for creation of the physical infrastructure for the AIIMS Darbhanga is also expected to generate substantial employment during the construction phase as well, the statement highlighted. 

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