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Normal life has been thrown into disarray in Sundergarh as the Congress party on Saturday is observing a 12-hour bandh in the town demanding setting up of second All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) of the State in the district.
Commercial and business establishments have remained shut while vehicular communication in the town has been partially disrupted since the agitation kicked off at 6 am today.
The Congress activists are picketing in the town and appealing to the public to cooperate with the bandh call for the interest of the district.
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Sundergarh merchants’ association lawyers and various other outfits have extended cooperation to the shutdown call by the Congress.
The grand old party has been demanding conversion of NTPC Medical College and Hospital into the AIIMS.
The Odisha Government had recently written to the Centre proposing establishment of the premier health institute in the district. Odisha Health Minister Naba Kishore Das had proposed to the Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan to set up the second AIIMS in Sundergarh.
Das had suggested that the existing infrastructures of a medical college and hospital at Sundergarh can be used for the establishment of the second AIIMS.
A central team had also reviewed the infrastructures at the NTPC medical college and hospital for setting up the campus of the proposed second AIIMS.
A five-member team led by Delhi AIIMS Superintendent BK Sharma had inspected whether the existing infrastructures of the MCH developed by NTPC is adequate to set up the new campus of premier national health institute.
In the meantime, Odisha Government had issued notification to start admission from 2022-23 academic session after Centre showed apparent unwillingness to set up the AIIMS.
The Odisha Health Department on June 25 had authorised the Director of Medical Education and Training (DMET) to file an application with the National Medical Commission for establishment of the MCH from academic year 2022-23.
The department has also already appointed the district medical officer (Medical Services) and superintendent of Sundargarh district headquarters hospital (DHH) Dr PK Sahu as the additional superintendent-cum-nodal officer of the MCH.
The move of the government has however drawn sharp reactions from the residents, social organisations and political parties in the district
