Hyderabad: Union Health Minister J P Nadda on Thursday said a long leap has been taken in the health sector in the country during the last 12 years under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership with the establishment of new AIIMS institutions and increased focus on primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare.
Speaking after a review with officials at Bibinagar near here, he also said the construction of AIIMS, Bibinagar would be fully completed by December 2026.
He said only one AIIMS existed till the end of the 20th century and six AIIMS institutions were created during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee regime in 2003.
From 2004 to 2014 (previous UPA regime), only one AIIMS was set up, he said.
"It was in 2014, under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, a big leap was taken in tertiary healthcare and 19 AIIMS were created. Twenty three AIIMS are there now and 18 are operational, while the remaining are in construction stage," he told reporters.
The NDA government has taken care of tertiary healthcare, strengthened secondary healthcare and made efforts to expand primary healthcare, he said.
He said 1.85 lakh Ayushman Bharat 'Arogya Mandir' (health centres) have been set up.
The AIIMS, Bibinagar was sanctioned in June, 2022 and it has been made operational in four years, he said.
He said OPD services have started at AIIMS, Bibinagar for all major specialities and the daily footfall is about 1,800, Nadda said.
While inpatient care has begun, 1.56 lakh people have received treatment through telemedicine via AIIMS, Bibinagar, he said.
So far, about Rs 64 crore in research grants have been sanctioned at AIIMS, Bibinagar. The institution is now a full-fledged patient care centre and also a full-fledged research centre, he said.
Lauding the AIIMS, Bibinagar for its efforts in community medicine, he said the country's first AIIMS-run Community Radio Station was launched by the institution.
He expressed confidence that AIIMS, Bibinagar would emerge as a pioneer institution in the southern states.
