Jamtara Sadar Hospital in Jharkhand will be upgraded into a 420-bed medical college with 100 MBBS seats under the public-private partnership (PPP) model, Health Minister Irfan Ansari said at a ceremony at Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) on Thursday.
Ansari handed over the letter of intent to the private company shortlisted to develop the project. The proposed upgrade is part of Jharkhand’s plan to expand medical education and healthcare capacity by converting district hospitals into medical colleges.
The state government had announced in May that district hospitals in Khunti, Jamtara, Giridih and Dhanbad would be upgraded under the PPP model after the state cabinet approved the plan. The move is intended to increase access to medical treatment and create additional MBBS training capacity outside the state’s existing medical institutions.
The Jamtara facility will combine hospital services with medical education. The information released by the minister did not specify the project’s construction timeline, capital cost, operating framework or the responsibilities assigned to the private partner under the PPP arrangement.
The announcement was made during the 66th governing body meeting of RIMS, where 16 development-related agendas were discussed. RIMS will receive a financial grant of Rs 466 crore for the expansion and renovation of its campus, buildings, hostels, residential facilities and other infrastructure, Ansari said.
The grant will also support the establishment of 10 new departments at RIMS. The institute plans to send proposals to increase postgraduate seats from 176 to 256 and super-speciality seats from 11 to 150, according to the minister. These proposals would expand the institution’s role in specialist and advanced medical training if approved and implemented.
The meeting also discussed measures to strengthen critical-care and diagnostic capacity at RIMS. Ansari said the hospital would need more than 200 ventilators for critically ill patients and emergency services. Expansion of ultrasound, echocardiography and X-ray facilities, along with the adoption of modern medical technologies, was also discussed.
RIMS will initiate recruitment for 106 nurses, 12 hospital managers and 100 Ayushman Mitras. The institution also plans to develop a well-equipped burn ward and ensure the availability of hearse vans, the minister said. These measures are aimed at addressing staffing, emergency care and patient-support requirements at the hospital.
The governing body further decided to increase the number of faculty members from 319 to 335 while reducing non-teaching posts from 1,962 to 1,862. The proposed changes at RIMS and the Jamtara medical college project will now depend on administrative approvals, project execution and the implementation of the announced recruitment and infrastructure plans.
