Pradhan urges for medical college, minority girls’ hostel in Odisha under PMJVK

Bhubaneswar: Union Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan urged the Centre and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for establishment a hostel in Bhubaneswar for girls belonging to minority communities and a medical college in Bhadrak under a central scheme.

In a letter dated February 14, 2020, Pradhan said that Ministry of Minority Affairs sanctions projects under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakaram (PMJVK) only in the identified Minority Concentration Areas where there is more than 25% minority population and the area is relatively backward in socio economic and basic amenities parameters as compared to the national average.

He urged Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi to allow projects like girls hostel, residential schools, ITIs skill centres in locations where students belonging to minority communities migrate to in search of better facilities for education, skill, healthcare in the state capitals and other metropolitan cities.

“I request you to instruct expeditious action for making provisions to cover major cities as well as state capitals under PMJVK scheme, so that infrastructure support in priority sectors such as education, health, skill, women empowerment etc, can be made available in these cities as well,” Pradhan wrote.

Moreover, in view of need for tertiary medical facilities in Bhadrak district, Pradhan requested Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik to set up a medical college in the coastal district under PMJVK.

In a letter to Patnaik dated Feb 17, the union minister said that having a medical college in Bhadrak district would be extremely helpful in providing the required healthcare facilities for people in and around Bhadrak.

He said that the Central scheme PMJVK, which is implemented by the Ministry of Minority Affairs, provides for creation of community assets and health is one of the priority sectors under the scheme. In consultation with the Department of Health, Odisha, the state may forward duly approved proposal to the Ministry of Minority Affairs for consideration of the above requirement.

“I request you to give necessary instructions to the concerned, to send a detailed proposal for medical college in Bhadrak district to the Ministry of Minority Affairs, Government of India under the PMJVK scheme,” Pradhan stated in the letter.

Worth mentioning, the Centre bears 60% of the capital cost of the project, while the remaining expenditure including manpower is provided by the states for the project under the scheme.