Shillong, May 15: The Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways and Ayush, Sarbananda Sonowal today inaugurated six new buildings as part of the Project II of North Eastern Institute of Ayurveda & Homoeopathy (NEIAH) to expand capacity. The cost of the construction of these new buildings is estimated at more than ₹60.16 crores.
Speaking on the occasion, Sonowal said, “It gives me immense pleasure that we have been able to open up these six new buildings in Shillong today. They will expand the capacity of this premier institute which can play an instrumental role in furthering the role of traditional medicine in the region. Under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we are taking steps to build evidence based research in traditional medicine in tandem with modern medicine. We see huge role of integrative medicine in the healthcare solutions delivery system of the country in the forthcoming years. The investment made by the government through these new buildings will embolden our effort to rejuvenate traditional medicine in this region of the country. I am happy to inform you that NEIAH will be starting its ambulance services soon.”
The six new buildings will have a boys’ hostel with a capacity to accommodate 104 occupants, a girls’ hostel with a capacity to accommodate 104 occupants, 8 units of Type III quarter, 6 units of Type IVA Quarter, 7 units of Type IVB cum Director’s Residence, a senior resident hostel with 25 units, and a guest house with 19 rooms & 2 suites. The buildings were made with an estimated cost of ₹60.16 crores.
Speaking about the role of Northeast’s role in traditional medicine Sonowal added, “Our northeast is blessed by Mother Earth whose natural bounty has helped us heal for many generations. We simply want to take this process forward so that it can help many more people and help them live a better quality of life. The vision of PM Modi is to develop a healthcare delivery system which is effective and efficient. With the continuous impetus to build and expand capacity for research and build a scientific base for traditional medicine, I believe the six new buildings inaugurated today will play a crucial role for NEIAH towards the achievement of this objective.”
NEIAH has witnessed a steady growth in patients as more and more people are experiencing better results at the hospital. In FY2022-23, the hospital saw footfall of 52,088 patients in its OPD clinics while 504 patients were admitted as IPD patients for healing & recovery. In Ayurveda, NEIAH saw a footfall of 36,683 patients at the OPD clinics as well as 482 patients got admitted at the IPD section of the university. In Homoeopathy, the footfall in its OPD clinics were 19,397 patients while 22 patients got themselves admitted under it. As many as 35 health camps & 4 CMEs (Continuing Medical Education) were conducted by NEIAH during the same period.
The event was also attended by guests of honour Dr Mazel Ampareen Lyngdoh, Health & Family Welfare Minister, Meghalaya government as well as AL Hek, Meghalaya’s Minister of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary.
Prof Prabha Shankar Shukla, Vice Chancellor, North Eastern Hill University (NEHU), Prof (Dr) Nalin Mehta, Director, North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health & Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS) and Dr Neeta Mahesekar, Director, NEIAH also attended the event.
In the academics, NEIAH has already enrolled six undergraduate batches into Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine & Surgery (BAMS) and Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine & Surgery (BHMS). From 50 students in 2016-17, the intake of students has now been increased to 63 per batch. The courses are affiliated to North Eastern Hill University (NEHU), Shillong, Meghalaya.
The North Eastern Institute of Ayurveda & Homoeopathy (NEIAH) is an autonomous Institute under Ministry of Ayush, Government of India. NEIAH was established to provide health care facilities to the people of NE Region and Sikkim under Ayurveda and Homoeopathy systems of medicine. The Institute is currently running one college Ayurveda and one college of Homoeopathy along with its attached hospitals. The Institute runs 60 bedded Ayurvedic and 20 bedded Homoeopathic Hospitals.
The hospitals at the NEIAH campus are well-equipped with private wards, labour room, Operation Theatre, Yoga centre, Physiotherapy unit, Panchkarma unit etc. The investigation facilities like ECG, USG, X-ray, Laboratories, Nadi Tarangani etc. are also available at the institute. The institute is equipped with 7 OPDs in Ayurveda and 5 OPDs in Homoeopathy. There is a full-fledged IPD facility with 60 beds for Ayurveda and 20 beds for Homoeopathy. The institute is spread over an area of 20 acres. IANS