A medical college is awaiting to be established in Ambikapur — the headquarters of Sarguja Revenue Division in the near future, said Chief Minister Raman Singh on Tuesday while chairing a meeting of Sarguja and North Region Tribal Development Authority here reviewed the steps being taken for opening of the medical college in the Ambikapur district.
The meeting was held at Mainpat tourist destination more popularly known as ‘Mini Tibet’. He said that a separate meeting of the officials of Sarguja University, Health and Education Department must be called to start preparations for establishment of the medical college.
This apart, the meeting took the decision of setting up an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the Government District Hospital in Ambikapur at a cost of Rs 1.50 crore.
A series of key decision were taken in the meeting and some of them are as follows—The Chief Minister, in the meeting, after consultation with the public representatives approved a sum of `5 crore for developing a ‘Botanical Garden’ besides taking up of plantation of 1.50 lakh sapling of fruit bearing trees of various varities of mango, gusva and jack fruit with a view to preserving environment and enhancing green coverage in the Mainpat area.
Singh said that Mainpat’s natural surroundings had made it an attractive destination
for tourists.
There is a need to bring about more greenery in the region and keeping this is view, an intensive plantation drive would be taken up during the monsoon season.
The Chief Minister also approved to launch a bus service for tourists from Ambikapur Railway Station till Mainpat besides approving construction of a 10 kms road in Tibetan settlements in the Mainpat area.
Moreover, Singh directed that a solar operated geyser be installed on a pilot basis in each students hostel of all the ten districts and after gauging their success could install such
geysers in other students hostels of the State.
Moreover, the Chief Minister after consultation with the public representatives stated that a decision had already been taken in the State budget for establishment of a Potato Research Centre in the State.
The District Administration had already earmarked 135 acres of land for establishment of the Potato Research Centre.
Singh directed that all the district hospitals of Sarguja Development Authority must keep sufficient stock of anti-venom injections for treating snake bites during the monsoon season.
Moreover, he also provided in-principle approval for provision of power using solar energy in police stations
and posts without any conventional power supply arrangement.It was told in the meeting that following the setting up of the Sarguja Development Authority, a total amounting to more than
`313 crore had been approved for all 10 districts from financial year 2004-05 to 2012-13 for 5,466 construction and development works out of which 4,614 had already been completed.
The completion rate of the work in the district coming under the Authority is 84.41 per cent to which the Chief Minister stated to complete the remaining 852 works at the earliest.
The Chief Minister during the meeting also announced to increase the maximum grant from `one lakh to `1.50 lakh for provision of power supply to the non electrified pumps for tribal farmers in all the districts of Sarguja Development Authority as was done in the districts of Bastar Development Authority .
As a result a sum of `1.31 crore was approved in the meeting for electrification of irrigation pumps of 195 farmers in the districts coming under Sarguja Development
Authority.
Present in the meeting were — Home, Jail and Co-opeartive Minister Nankiram Kanwar, Water Resources and Higher Education Minister Ramvichar Netam, PWD and School Education Minister Brijmohan Agarwal, Agriculture Minister Chandrashekhar Sahu besides all senior officials from the development authorities , district administration, police and the panchayats in the region.