Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurates Nagaland's first medical college

KOHIMA: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Saturday inaugurated Nagaland's first medical college -- the Nagaland Institute of Medical Sciences & Research (NIMSR).

Mandaviya unveiled the monolith marking the inauguration, in the presence of Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, Deputy CM TR Zeliang, state ministers, MLAs and bureaucrats.

The college has 100 seats -- 85 for students of Nagaland and 15 for other states.


Addressing the function, Mandaviya said that the first medical college of the state will not only impart medical education but it will also be a research centre.

The central government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to set up healthcare facilities in every part of the country, he said.

Medical and nursing education needs to be strengthened considering the need of the hour, he added.

There were about 64,000 MBBS seats in the country in 2014, and it has increased manifold, Mandaviya said.

"Similarly PG seats have also doubled in the last nine years," he said.

He asked the Nagaland government to start Jan Aushadi Kendras in every health facility of the state, and assured full support of the Centre.

CM Rio said it was a historic day for the people of Nagaland as their dream of a medical college was fulfilled.

The state has a severe shortage of doctors, and there are shortcomings in the delivery of secondary and tertiary levels of healthcare, he said.

He said that he hoped the new facility would grow into a centre of excellence.

Rio urged the people to ensure special care and love for the students coming from other states to study at NIMSR, so that they become the ambassadors of the state.