Chandigarh, March 19 Punjab Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh announced the establishment of a new government medical college in Kapurthala on Thursday.
This is the second such institute announced this month, following the Shaheed Udham Singh State Institute of Medical Sciences in Hoshiarpur, he said.
The new facility, Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji State Institute of Medical Sciences, will be constructed at the existing district hospital complex in Kapurthala, he said.
"All formalities, including the tendering process, have been completed and work orders have been issued to the executing agencies," Singh said.
He told reporters here that the construction work is scheduled to commence on March 25 and will be completed within 24 months by March 2028.
The project, which will be established at a total cost of Rs 275 crore, will feature a 300-bedded hospital and a medical college with an annual intake of 100 MBBS students, significantly bolstering the state's medical education capacity and ensuring that students from Punjab do not have to seek costly alternatives abroad, said the minister.
Once operational, the institute will not only add 100 MBBS seats but also provide state-of-the-art secondary and tertiary care services to the people of the region.
This institute will be a major source of employment, with over 1,000 people set to benefit directly, while thousands will get employment indirectly, he said.
To further strengthen the healthcare network, the government hospital in Sultanpur Lodhi will be upgraded as an urban centre and the government hospital in Begowal will be upgraded as a rural centre. Both will be attached to the new medical college in Kapurthala, he informed.
The project to be established over an area of more than five lakh square feet will include six major operation theatres, a 500-capacity auditorium, advanced diagnostic facilities such as MRI and CT scan, a central lab, a blood bank and modern teaching departments equipped with skill labs and museums.