Gujarat yet to establish any Government Medical College since 1995, reveals govt data
Ahmedabad: Gujarat, under the continuous governance of the BJP since 1995, has not initiated the establishment of a single government medical college since then, as per information provided by the state government in the recent Assembly session. In contrast, four private medical colleges were granted permissions in 2023, raising questions about the government's commitment to public healthcare.
In response to queries from Congress MLA Amit Chavda, the government disclosed that six government medical colleges currently operate in the state, with the last one established in Bhavnagar in 1995. The lack of new government medical colleges since then has raised concerns about accessibility to healthcare education.
Furthermore, the government's reply indicated that no government medical colleges were approved in 2022 or 2023, while four private medical colleges received the green signal in the same period. This data underscores a potential disparity in the focus on private healthcare institutions over public ones.
Regarding nursing education, of the 508 new nursing schools and colleges established over two years, only one was initiated by the state government. The remaining 507 were private institutions. In 2023-24, out of 315 institutes established, only one, MSC Nursing Government College, was publicly owned.
Congress MLA Ganiben Thakor sought clarification on the establishment of public nursing schools, prompting the revelation of the predominantly private nature of these institutions.
Leader of the Opposition in the Gujarat Assembly, Amit Chavda, criticized the government's lack of initiative in establishing new government medical colleges, emphasizing the importance of affordable education for aspiring doctors. Chavda argued that the government's focus seemed directed towards affluent individuals and industrialists.
Health Minister Rushikesh Patel asserted the government's intention to establish a medical college in each district by 2027, with plans to increase the number of medical seats at undergraduate and postgraduate levels to 12,200.
The New Indian Express reported on the revelations from the Assembly session, highlighting the disparities in the establishment of government and private medical institutions in the state. The debate over the BJP government's claims regarding AIIMS establishments across the country was also referenced, raising concerns about incomplete infrastructure being declared as fully operational.
Across the country, as the country gears up for the general elections due in a few weeks, the BJP government has amped up its publicity but there has been a sharp debate on exactly how many public medical institutions, especially AIIMS, the BJP government has been claiming it has set up. Five were inaugurated by PM Modi across India, but there are questions about how ‘new’ they are and of multiple inaugurations they have seen. The Wire has also reported last year on partially constructed AIIMS being declared as complete institutes.
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Assam: 20 illegal immigrants pushed back to Bangladesh
Guwahati (PTI): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said 20 foreign nationals were apprehended in the state and pushed back to Bangladesh.
"Rude people don't understand soft language... We continuously remind ourselves of this prophetic line when we expel infiltrators from Assam who don't leave themselves. For instance, these 20 illegal Bangladeshis who were PUSHED BACK last night," Sarma said in a post on X.
He, however, did not share details pertaining to the location where they were nabbed or their nationality.
"Assam will fight, Pushbacks WILL CONTINUE," Sarma asserted.
Sribhumi, Cachar, Dhubri and South Salmara-Mankachar districts in Assam share 267.5 km of the international border with Bangladesh.
There is an Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Sutarkandi in Sribhumi. The northeast has a total of three ICPs along the India-Bangladesh border, the other two being at Dawki in Meghalaya and Akhaura in Tripura.
Another ICP in the region is at Darranga in Assam along the India-Bhutan border.
The Assam Police had earlier said that the force and the BSF would do everything possible to prevent any attempt by non-Indians to enter the country from Bangladesh, as per law, following a political turmoil in the neighbouring nation in 2024.
However, all Indian passport holders have been allowed to return from trouble-hit Bangladesh through the entry point in the state.
