Not a brick was laid even 14 months after the foundation stone laying ceremony for a proposed medical college and hospital (MCH) by the NTPC in Sundargarh district.
The State Government had signed a MoU with the NTPC on December 13, 2013 for the MCH. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had laid the foundation stone on January 22, 2014 at Shankara in the premises of a poultry farm. Among others, bigwigs like MP Dilip Tirkey, former Ministers Mangala Kissan, Sarada Prasad Nayak, Sundargarh MlA Jogesh Singh, Zilla Parishad chief Pitrus Toppo, the Sundargarh Municipality Chairman and the Vice-Chairman and NTPC Eastern Zone Director Arvind Kumar were present.
The foundation stone was laid in a hurry without handing over the 25 acres poultry farm land (which is still in the name of Animal Husbandry department) to the NTPC. The Opposition had alleged it as a publicity stunt of the Chief Minister and his party, since the general elections were not far off. But the BJD had rubbished the charge then. Addressing the public, Patnaik had said that the demand for a medical college was a long standing one of the tribals which was soon going to be fulfilled.
While thanking the NTPC for taking step for the project, the Chief Minister had further said besides Sundargarh, the people from other nearby areas would be benefitted out of the MCH.
NTPC Director A Kumar had said his organisation would spend Rs 350 crore for setting up a 100 seated and 500 bedded college and hospital. In first phase, it would start with 400 beds and 50 seats and gradually it would reach the target. Confidently, he had declared that the students would take admission from 2016-17 sessions. According to the MoU, the Government would provide 25 acres of free land to the NTPC and 10 seats would be reserved for the children of the displaced families.
But surprisingly, though the NTPC is serious about its supper thermal power plant at lephripara block over 3,000 acres of land and coal mining at Hemgiri but so far it has not shown any significant sign for setting up the MCH though eight months have elapsed. It is also shocking that the Government was able to arrange 3,000 acres of land for establishment of the company but unable to complete paper works of 25 acres of land for an MCH.
Even nobody has visited to the spot after January 22, 2014 foundation stone ceremony. Now the locals here wonder if the allegation of the Opposition then is true. Interestingly in September, 2014, NTPC GM Pramod Kumar had said the tender process for the MCH would be completed in Delhi soon. Once it is finalized, the construction work will start, he informed. But now none of the NTPC officials give any comment on the progress of the project.
Another suspicion has cropped up over the running of the MCH. During a talk between the Chief Minister and the NTPC Chairman on October 21, 2010, it was decided that the State Government will only provide the land and the NTPC will manage it including bearing the construction expenses. But in the MoU some deviation has been found, that is, the NTPC will hand over the college building to the State Government to manage it. If it is so, then how the State Government which is unable to manage its CHCs / PHCs properly will manage the MCHIJ