By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Sep 10: Tura MP Saleng A Sangma, who was recently nominated as a member of the Governing Council of NEIGRIHMS, visited the institute on Tuesday and tried to understand the issues afflicting it.
He was received by NEIGRIHMS Director Nalin Mehta.
The MP was briefed about the current status of NEIGRIHMS at a meeting held with many faculty members and heads of various departments. The meeting, which lasted over an hour, was said to be “productive”.
In his address, Sangma said the main objective of his visit was to get an overall understanding of the issues affecting NEIGRIHMS.
He said a better understanding would help him to take up the issues with the central government to ensure that NEIGRIHMS develops into a premier institution for the provision of the highest quality of healthcare to the people of the Northeast.
Mehta apprised the MP about the main areas of concern, including shortage of faculty, long-overdue cadre review, parity with AIIMS, New Delhi and PGIMER, Chandigarh, and requirement of land to build a guest house for the needy patients.
He stressed on the need for conferring the status of Institute of National Importance (INI) to NEIGRIHMS to help it overcome numerous obstacles.
Sangma requested the faculty members to submit a brief note about their requirements so he could take necessary steps to resolve them at the earliest. He said the entire region looks up to NEIGRIHMS as it is the best hospital-cum-teaching institution in the area.
During the meeting, he also said that he would hold discussions with the Lok Sabha members from other states of the Northeast to help resolve the issues plaguing NEIGRIHMS.
He was happy to learn that the people of Meghalaya and the Northeast are benefiting immensely from the healthcare services being provided by NEIGRIHMS. He felt it his duty to ensure that the institute improves further.
On the request of NEIGRIHMS to allot a land parcel near the institute for the construction of a patients’ guest house, Sangma assured that he would take up the matter with the state government on priority. He said the facility would be of great help to patients who come from faraway places to seek treatment at NEIGRIHMS.
The MP promised that he would also take up the issues of impediments to delivery and supply of medicines and high-end medical equipment as per local rules and regulations and resolve them after discussing the matter with the district councils concerned.
Mehta expressed gratitude to Sangma for visiting the institute. He was confident the visit would yield positive outcome.