Udhampur/Reasi: Minister for Health and Medical Education, Education and Social Welfare Sakeena Itoo on Tuesday inaugurated a 128-slice CT scan machine at Government Medical College (GMC) Udhampur and the newly constructed building of Government Degree College (GDC) Katra at Kakryal.
At GMC Udhampur, the 128-slice CT scan machine has been installed at a cost of ₹8.30 crore. The facility will support diagnostic investigations, including CT angiography, cardiac CT and triple-phase imaging, besides emergency, trauma, neurological and cardiac cases.
Itoo subsequently chaired a review meeting with the GMC administration and took stock of staff strength, outpatient department (OPD) services, infrastructure, medicines, diagnostic facilities and the progress of ongoing works.
She directed the hospital administration to ensure timely healthcare services and maintain hygiene and sanitation on the premises. She also asked executing agencies to expedite ongoing projects by deploying additional manpower and increasing working shifts at construction sites.
Later, the minister handed over a motorised tricycle to a specially-abled person under a Jammu and Kashmir Rehabilitation Council initiative. She also felicitated the mother of a newborn girl under the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao initiative.
At Katra, Itoo inaugurated the new GDC building at Kakryal, constructed by the Jammu and Kashmir Housing Board at a cost of ₹12.92 lakh. She said the building would provide improved facilities to students who had earlier been studying in a makeshift arrangement.
The minister announced that a college bus would be sanctioned soon for students travelling from distant areas and said the Commerce stream would be introduced subject to sufficient student demand.
Itoo also directed the Director Health Services Jammu to initiate the process for shifting Katra Hospital to land and a building owned by the Irrigation Department, subject to the required no-objection certificate (NOC). She also said efforts would be made to provide a fully equipped 108 ambulance for the area.
She said students belonging to Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) categories were eligible for fee-waiver benefits for higher education and urged parents, students and community representatives to encourage greater enrolment in colleges.
MLA Katra Baldev Raj Sharma, Director Colleges Dr Sheikh Ajaz Bashir, Director Health Services Jammu, GDC Katra Principal Dr Rajni Bhagat and other officials, faculty members and students were present during the college event.
At GMC Udhampur, MLA Udhampur West Pawan Kumar Gupta, Deputy Commissioner Udhampur Minga Sherpa, Director Social Welfare Jammu Ranjeet Singh, Director Health Services Jammu Poonam Sethi, Principal GMC Udhampur Dr Pramod Kalsotra, Medical Superintendent Dr Sanjeev Gupta and other officials were present.