Alappuzha: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has urged the Centre to set up an All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Kerala at the earliest.

Pinarayi was addressing the inauguration of a super specialty block at the Government Medical College Hospital in Alappuzha on Saturday in the presence of Union Minister of State for Health, Bharati Pravin Pawar.

“After our last meeting with the prime minister, we had the feeling that the AIIMS will be granted because the meeting and his response were welcoming. But when the list arrived, Kerala was missing from it,” Vijayan said.

“This (AIIMS) is Kerala's genuine demand, the Centre must consider it and not cause further delay,” he added.

Kerala's health at par with developed nations
Vijayan reminded the union government led by Narendra Modi that it should consider Kerala's achievements in the health sector. “Kerala has achieved the top positions in all health indices in the country. It is at par with that of developed nations.

"Kerala has converted the primary health centres in the state to family health centres and as a result, all sections of the society have now started relying on the government medical facilities for the treatment,” he added.