Union Heath Minister, Jagat Prakash Nadda on Saturday said that work on Rs10,000 crore AIIMS at Bilaspur in Himachal Pradesh would be started at the earliest. He said during the past 60 years, never such a huge project had been given to Himachal Pradesh.
Speaking at a rally organised by BJP at the historic Seri Pavilion to give him a Civic Reception on his first visit to Mandi, he also assured that the deadlock on ESIC Medical College and Hospital building at Ner Chowk, which had been partially completed with an expenditure of over Rs700 crore, would be shortly solved in consultation with the State Health Minister, Thakur Kaul Singh and after the State Cabinet forwarded the workable proposal to the Centre and assured that in no case the opening of the Medical College at Ner Chowk would be delayed or stalled. He was applauded by the audience with tumultuous clapping.
He said for the first time in the history of independent India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had come with a new vision for lifting the country out of the mire of poverty and usher in a new era of development and prosperity with top priority for the benefit of the poor and the small and backward States.
He said the vision of Modi had been appreciated within the country and abroad. The emergence of Modi has taken a new turn in the political history of the past six decades.
The old system was not workable in the present context and the old and outmoded system of working had no place in the present modern world and emergence of new technologies in the wake of Make India, Skill India and Digital India concepts conceived by the Prime Minister. All the new changes were practical and purposeful, he added.
He said the skill identification was paramount for the youths to get remunerative employment. Himachal Pradesh has immense potential of becoming an ideal hub of advanced digital and internet education because of pollution free climate unlike many cities of the country which have become digital hubs despite environmental degradation there.
The Health Minister said the infinite potential of tourism was yet to be harnessed in Himachal Pradesh. Health tourism, adventure tourism, education tourism etc were many fields yet to be explored and the Central Government would provide maximum financial support to the enterprising youths.
Nadda said much hue and cry was made when the new BJP Government winded up the outdated Planning Commission replaced by NITI Aayog. Earlier, the schemes were imposed by the Planning Commission whether they fitted in the framework of the requirements or not like the readymade garments.
Niti Aayog will make schemes on the basis of requirements of the people like the tailor made clothes. This would leave little scope for scams, he explained.
Many small but innovative measures for the benefit of the poor launched by the Prime Minister might look small to some, but they had far-reaching benefits for the welfare of the poor. Knowing little the detractors of Modi mocked at Jan Dhan Yojana forgetting that from 1972 to 2014 during the Congress regime only 3.25 crore accounts of poor persons had been opened, during the short tenure of Modi as many as 14.5 crore persons opened bank account and made a record.
In reply to the allegations made by various BJP MlAs and former ministers about the bad conditions of roads in the State particularly Kiratpur-Manali Highway, Nadda said he and the other leaders of the State including four MPs had vigorously taken up the matter with the Union Surface Transport Minister, Nitin Gadkari and a sum of Rs40 crore had been allocated for the repairs of the national highways in Himachal Pradesh. The work would be taken up on a war-footing, he assured.
Earlier one or two highways were given to the State. But this year eight National Highways had been sanctioned, he said amidst cheers. Referring to the expansion of the rail network in the State, Nadda said for the first time 300 times more allocation of budget had been made for the expansion of the railways and added that more funds would provided if the allocated money would be utilised well in time.
He announced Rs5 crore for each Mother Care Health Centre at Sundernagar, Mandi, Kulu, Bilaspur and some other places. Besides this, trauma centres would be set up in Mandi, Rampur, Hamirpur and Tanda, he added. Earlier Ram Swarup MP thanked the people of Mandi Parliamentary constituency for electing him. Mandi got freedom from the rule of royals after 60 years, he added.
Former Minister Jai Ram Thakur said Modi had given great honour to Himachal Pradesh by making Nadda as union Health Minister and member of Parliamentary Committee. Former minister Thakur Mahinder Singh appealed that the condition of roads should be improved on a war-footing.