Jammu: The Government of Jammu & Kashmir signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Apollo Hospitals for the establishment of a multi-specialty hospital in Jammu, an official press release informed Tuesday.
It said in presence of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, the MoU was signed between Ranjan Prakash Thakur, Principal Secretary to J&K Government, Industries & Commerce Department and Dr. Preetha Reddy, Executive Vice-Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd.
Speaking on the occasion, LG Sinha observed the MoU is “another major milestone for J&K”.
“We have embarked on a new journey of development and socio-economic growth, which will take J&K UT to levels never seen before,” the LG said, adding that “with greater industry engagement and greater investment, J&K will grow from strength to strength in the years to come.”
Besides, providing best healthcare facilities, the venture will bring huge direct and indirect employment opportunities for the locals, Sinha said.
The LG said that J&K is the only UT/State in the country with universal health insurance coverage for up to Rs 5 lakh per family. “We are also having an extensive budget for the health sector.”
More healthcare projects and MoUs are in the pipeline to ensure best healthcare within the reach of every citizen of the UT, the LG added.
According to the press release, in the first phase, Apollo Hospitals will set up a 250-bed hospital in the region. Well-known for clinical excellence, Apollo has a robust presence across the healthcare ecosystem, providing high-quality, patient-focused medical care, it said.
Ranjan Prakash Thakur, Principal Secretary to J&K Government, Industries & Commerce Department spoke on the health facilities to be extended to the people of the UT through the MoU.
Dr. Preetha Reddy, Executive Vice-Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited shared the vision of the Apollo hospitals to establish state-of-the-art health facilities in the UT.
“We understand that the health sector creates vast job opportunities and this project will also generate more than 1000 direct employment. That is the responsibility which all of us collectively have set forth to discharge. Apart from this, it will also become the training centre not only for doctors, but also for the nurses, paramedics, technicians, and allied healthcare workers,” said Dr. Reddy.
“Tomorrow when J&K would become a hub for healthcare tourism, people from rest of the world can also be treated here. In a way, this project will help us heal the world,” she added.
“We are committed to bring specialists in various healthcare sectors on board. Trained health personnel are required to efficiently look after the people in need of medical attention. We are happy to bring good standard of training, learning and skilling in the health sector to J&K.
“This is a very progressive step. We are thankful to Hon’ble Lt Governor for giving us this opportunity. I believe that it’s a giant leap of faith but it is a project which will put us on the global map,” Dr. Reddy said.
Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, Chief Secretary; Atal Dulloo, Additional Chief Secretary, Finance Department; Vivek Bhardwaj, Additional Chief Secretary, Health and Medical Education Department; Dheeraj Gupta, Principal Secretary, H&UDD; Anoo Malhotra, Director, I&C, Jammu, besides other senior officers were present during the MoU signing ceremony at Civil Secretariat, the press release said.
