Bhubaneswar: State health secretary Aswathy S on Thursday chaired a high-level meeting to review the progress and address ongoing requirements before Pabitra Mohan Pradhan Medical College and Hospital (PMPMCH) at Talcher in Angul district and the Government Medical College and Hospital at Phulbani in Kandhamal district start functioning later this year.
The meeting, conducted via video conferencing, was attended by key officials of the health department and focused on areas such as making sure the buildings and equipment are ready and identifying and addressing the gaps, if any, in the process. To expedite the process, district collectors from Angul and Kandhamal, along with relevant officers from both the districts, have been instructed to hold regular weekly meetings to fast-track all pending work.
Recently, state health minister Mukesh Mahaling had told the media that the two govt medical colleges will conduct admissions for the MBBS course from the upcoming academic session of 2025-26.
The construction of PMPMCH, where Mahanadi Coalfields Limited has invested around Rs 500 crore in constructing the hospital, medical college, hostels and residential complexes, is complete. Its construction started in April 2016.
The one at Talakapada near Phulbani, built by the govt at Rs 548 and spread across 50 acres, is nearing completion.
Official sources said the department applied for approval from the National Medical Commission (NMC) to start admissions. “We are prepared to start the admission process in each hospital with 200 seats. After getting approval from NMC, we will start the admission process,” Santosh Kumar Mishra, director of Medical Education and Training, said.
At present, Odisha has 2,450 MBBS seats. After the addition of the 200 seats, it will go up to 2,650.