Himachal Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Monday said a Bill would be introduced in next Assembly session on opening of medical university in the State.
Presiding over the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital (IGMC) here, he said besides, the Government had also decided to provide free medical education to the Below Poverty line (BPl) and IRDP students.
On fee structure in the medical college, he said students were paying fee of five years for a course of four and a half year. He said he will examine the issue and will come out with a solution to it.
Virbhadra Singh said Indira Gandhi Medical College had expanded and the second campus was coming up at Chamyana on 250 bighas of land near Bhattkuffar.
He said that this college had been started from humble beginning had developed as one of the prestigious institute of the country and expressed hope that it would grow leaps and bounds in near future.
The Chief Minister also released a souvenir titled ‘Sushruta’ and book on Pharmacology by Dr. Joginder Pathania. He felicitated the founding teachers of IGMC and students of first batch (1966) of IGMC including former principals and staff.
Health Minister Kaul Singh Thakur said this golden jubilee was a special occasion for IGMC, being the first medical college of Himachal Pradesh which had traversed a long successful journey. He said that as per capita expenditure on health, the Out of Pocket Expenditure (OOPE) was `797 in the State and telemedicine services had been started in Keylong and other far remote areas of the State.
Principal IGMC, Dr. Ashok Sharma gave details about the various measures being taken for expansion of the biggest hospital of the State.
A documentary, a production of Information and Public Relations department, on the long cherished journey of 50 years of IGMC was also shown on the occasion with interviews and pictorial presentation right from the first batch of 1966 till the present day scenario. The alumni of the IGMC, who were the special invitees, also recalled their experiences while in service.