NIMSR will address Nagaland’s health issues, says Health minister of India

KOHIMA — Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare and Chemicals and Fertilisers, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, on Saturday officially inaugurated Nagaland’s first state-run medical college — Nagaland Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (NIMSR) — at Phriebagei in Kohima.

After unveiling the NIMSR monolith, the union minister said that the institute is not only a medical college but also will serve as a research institute in finding solutions for rare diseases.

It will address Nagaland’s health issues and give medical education opportunities to the youths of Nagaland, he said.

The Union minister said that he foresees NIMSR as an ideal destination where people from across the globe will come to Nagaland not only for treatment but also to promote medical tourism.

The government of India (GoI) will provide all requirements for the growth of the health care sector in Nagaland in the days to come, he assured.

On holistic health, he informed that the Centre has increased the number of medical seats, doubling it 1.6 lakh over the last nine years.

Also touching upon the demand for qualified nurses in Japan, Mandaviya said learning the Japanese language was one criterion the Japanese counterpart had insisted on, while also preferring nurses from the Northeast region.

Towards this, he said Japanese language course has been introduced in two of the nursing colleges in Assam and, in the days to come, other languages will also be incorporated in all nursing colleges in the country.

Speaking about NIMSR, he said the current 100 MBBS seat capacity will be increased in the near future.

Further, medical camps will also be conducted and tertiary care facilities made available. Families that cannot afford medical expenses can also avail facilities like Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme (CMHIS) and Ayushman Bharat Yojana from this medical college, he said.

The PM’s initiative Jan Aushadhi Kendra will also be opened in this college, the Union minister assured. Towards this, he requested the chief minister of the state to set up a Jan Aushadhi Kendra each in all government hospitals.

He further assured that the central government will provide all necessities to the state so that people can receive affordable healthcare facilities and free medicines, to ensure that no family faces any death due to inaccessible health care.

The dream of PM Modi is to provide a good health sector and to make health accessible and affordable. Along this line, the central government will provide all necessary assistance for the state to gain access to health education and infrastructure, he said.

“Our cultural heritage tells us that health is not a business to our country but health is a service to our country and when there is any health emergency we all step forward,” the Union minister added.

Beginning of better healthcare — Rio

Dedicating NIMSR to the people of the state, Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, in his address, expressed confidence that the institute will herald the beginning of the journey to better healthcare.

The chief minister said that the medical college is a long-felt dream of the people, given the severe shortage of doctors and delivery of secondary and tertiary healthcare.

After 60 years of statehood, this dream project can be implemented today, Rio said, while expressing optimism that the new medical college will provide affordable and hassle-free healthcare to the people of the state.

“In Nagaland, education has been a one-way traffic where everybody from the state goes out to study but outsiders do not come here,” the chief minister said, adding that at the start of NIMSR’s first batch of 100 students, 15 students from outside the state had been enrolled for the first academic session.

Those who have come to study should be given special care so they can be good ambassadors of the state, he said while adding that the medical college should grow and become a centre of excellence.

He also informed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was supposed to inaugurate the “biggest project” in Nagaland but could not make it as he was fully engaged.

New city in offing?

Rio further disclosed that the state government had applied for a new city in the state under the Fifteenth Finance Commission, which has been shortlisted for the support.

“When a new city is built, many investors will want to come. The only thing is the state should make land laws and lease out to people from outside the state,” he said.

Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Paiwang Konyak, said that with the inauguration of the college, the healthcare delivery system in the state will be enhanced, as it will help provide quality education to medical professionals, conduct research and provide specialised care to patients. It will also provide a platform for medical research facilities and capacity-building besides medical education, said the minister.

Nagaland has a ratio of 5386 persons per doctor, which is one of the lowest in the country, and as of date, there is an acute shortage of doctors, said Paiwang.

In the coming years, the minister said that he envisions Nagaland as an important destination for medical tourism, “offering quality health care, combined with the alluring natural beauty of our State”.

Earlier in the programme, Director-cum-Dean of NIMSR, Prof. Soumya Chakraborty addressed the inaugural event, while MLA Dr. Tseilhoutuo Rhutso, who is also the managing director of KOHIMAS Hospital, donated a collection of pathology specimens to NIMSR.

Deputy CM TR Zeliang, Chief Secretary J Alam, and a host of dignitaries and students of NIMSR also attended the programme.

Also read: Inauguration of Nagaland’s first medical college today