By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, July 30: The Meghalaya government is yet to grant a Rs 233-crore interest-free loan to the PA Sangma International Medical College and Hospital (PIMCH) to help fund its operations, including a super-specialty hospital.
The PIMCH, launched in October last year, is a joint venture between the University of Science and Technology Meghalaya (USTM) and the state government. The National Medical Commission recently approved its MBBS programme with 150 seats.
Talking to media persons, USTM Chancellor Mahbubul Hoque recalled that within 8 hours, as many as 600 students had applied for admission online last year. Out of the 150 seats, 64 have been reserved for the students of Meghalaya. “We are coming up with the super speciality hospital which will be an attraction in healthcare of Northeast. We are trying to attract ASEAN countries for their expertise and facilities in the field of healthcare,” Hoque said.
Asked about the Rs 233-crore interest-free loan, he said PIMCH had approached the state government again as the Super Speciality Hospital has to be constructed.
It is also approaching banks for additional loans.
The students of Meghalaya have to pay around Rs 4.9 lakh in PIMCH compared to Rs 18 lakh in other institutes.
“We will again request the state government to help us as we want to turn Meghalaya into a destination for education and research,” Hoque said.
As the state is gearing up to operationalise the Shillong and Tura Medical Colleges and Hospitals in the next couple of years, Hoque is confident that the number of MBBS seats would be sufficient for the students of Meghalaya within the state once these three institutes start their full-fledged operations.
