KGMU gets ₹908 cr to spruce up healthcare

LUCKNOW: The state government on Thursday allocated ₹908 crore for Lucknow’s King George Medical University. The sum is ₹71 crore more than what was allocated in the previous budget.

The additional sum will help the medical university fulfill the demand for drugs and also purchase some of the equipment it needed. A total ₹40 crore have been allocated for purchase of equipment.

The KGMU will also utilize the extra amount on contingency and maintenance work on the campus, said officials. While the budget earmarks ₹27 crore more for drug, food and electricity management, the budget for the construction work has been reduced. The allocation, this year, is ₹5 crore less than the previous year.

The budget has allocated ₹248 crore for the superspeciality cancer hospital in CG City which is expected to boost up work on the campus. The hospital is a project worth ₹854 crore and ₹550 crore have been released to UPRNN, the work agency that has completed major portion of the entire buildings. The 60-bed hospital is expected to run patient care service from February end. With this hospital extending facilities to patients, the load on KGMU and Lohia institute is expected to reduce. The state government has also allocated ₹396 crore for Lohia institute and ₹854 crore for the SGPGI. “The allocation for Atal Bihari Vajpayee Medical

University will ensure that more doctors pass out from the state. The benefit will reach to the common man,” said Dr Sandeep Kapoor, director, Health City hospital. Prof AP Tikku, head, conservative dentistry and endodontics, KGMU said that the allocation of ₹47.50 crore to open 100bed hospital in districts will help people get speciality treatment in their respective places.

“They will not have to bear the pain of travelling to higher centres,” he said.