Thiruvananthapuram: The Central Government is actively considering the proposal to sanction an AIIMS (All-India Institute of Medical Sciences) for Kerala, the state’s health minister K K Shylaja has said.
She was speaking to the media in New Delhi after a meeting with the Union health minister J P Nadda.
“Nadda promised to examine the issue of starting an AIIMS in Kerala. The Centre is opening AIIMS in various states in different phases. Till last year, Kerala was not in the picture; but during the next phase, the state has a very good chance of getting an AIIMS, according to Nadda,” said Shylaja.
She said that the Central government would take a final decision on the matter before its term ends. Four locations have been shortlisted in Kerala for setting up the prestigious institution. The state has suggested Kozhikode, where 200 acre has already been identified. Land acquisition will not be an issue, said Shylaja.
The minister also submitted a memorandum to the Centre seeking its support to set up a research facility in the state against epidemics like Nipah, detected recently, with the aid of WHO. Nadda has assured the Centre’s full cooperation in the matter.
Expressing the state’s gratitude to the Centre for its active role in preventing the spread of Nipah infection, Shylaja said that intervention of institutions like ICMR (Indian council of medical research) had helped to contain the epidemic quickly. “Kerala has prepared a plan to tackle similar outbreaks in the future,” she added.
The Centre will soon convene a conference involving representatives of WHO and ICMR as well as scientists. Kerala authorities too have been invited to the meet.
Shailaja later met Central health secretary Preeti Sudan also. The Kerala minister had arrived in the national capital for accepting the award for the state with the lowest maternal mortality rate.
