Nagaland sanctioned second medical college as special consideration — Jitendra Singh

Eastern Mirror Desk

Dimapur, Sep.15 (EMN): Deputy Chief Minister of Nagaland Y Patton on Tuesday called on Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh and discussed wide range of issues related to development projects and proposals submitted by the state government.

During the meeting, Jitendra Singh pointed out that as a ‘special consideration and priority,’ the Centre has sanctioned Nagaland a second government medical college within a short span of three years, a PIB update informed on September 15.

‘It is an irony that for over 70 years after independence, Nagaland was possibly the only state in the country which did not have a single medical college of its own, which led to inconvenience to the patients as well as aspiring medicos who were constrained to travel outside the state,’ he said.

Singh further stated that for a small state with a population of just about 20 lakh, ‘two centrally funded medical colleges are an indication of the priority that the Central government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi accords to the North Eastern region and the peripheral far-flung states like Nagaland.’

It may be mentioned that while the first ever medical college for Nagaland was sanctioned about three years back for the state capital of Kohima, the second medical college has now been sanctioned to be located in Mon district.

The deputy CM also took up with the DoNER minister the state projects to be executed under the North East Region Development Scheme (Nerds). ‘He expressed keenness to expedite the road project of Chan Dang Sadle to Noklak which is about 31 kilometres,’ it stated.

Singh stated that all the schemes sanctioned by DoNER and the North Eastern Council (NEC) are based on the priority cited by the respective state governments.

‘There has been certain inevitable delay in some projects due to unfortunate Covid conditions,’ he said and added that DoNER had been forthcoming in providing financial assistance to the North Eastern state governments in the very beginning of the Covid pandemic.

‘Even now, the Ministry is processing proposals from several states for funding of infectious disease hospitals and healthcare for the future,’ he added.