Kerala to get AIIMS at right time, right place: Union Health Minister Nadda

Kollam/Kochi, Sep 27 (PTI) Union Health Minister J P Nadda on Saturday assured that Kerala would get an All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) but did not specify when or where it would be set up.

His assurance came amid an ongoing debate in the state over the location of the AIIMS once the Centre grants approval.

Speaking at a BJP state committee meeting in southern Kollam district, he said reporters had asked him about the issue.

"Certainly, you will be getting the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. But you will be getting it at the right time... at the right place," Nadda said, without elaborating on details of the long-pending demand.

Earlier in the day, Kerala Health Minister Veena George said the state should not be denied the AIIMS over disputes regarding its location. She described it as a "political decision pending at the Centre." She told reporters in Kochi that both Nadda and his predecessor, Mansukh Mandaviya, had responded positively to Kerala’s demand for the premier medical institute.

George said, "Mandaviya had even said the state ‘definitely deserved’ an AIIMS." She added that, according to official information received, the matter is currently before the Union Finance Department.

Asked about the ongoing debate over the location of the AIIMS, George said the project should not be delayed on such grounds.

"Only a political decision of the Centre is pending now. That decision should be taken at the earliest," she said.

She stressed that establishing an AIIMS was a long-standing demand of the people of Kerala.

Her remarks came days after Union Minister of State Suresh Gopi called for an AIIMS in Alappuzha district. Several BJP leaders described Gopi’s statement as a “personal view,” adding that the Centre would take the final decision on the location.

Earlier this week, Gopi said he had requested the Kerala Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan, to allocate land in Alappuzha.

The ruling CPI(M) criticised his remarks, terming them an attempt to create “unnecessary controversy” after the state had already proposed Kozhikode as the ideal site and earmarked land for it.

On Thursday, BJP state general secretary M T Ramesh said the party welcomed the setting up of an AIIMS anywhere in Kerala, adding that Gopi’s demand was his “personal opinion.” On Friday, BJP leader and former Union Minister of State V Muraleedharan echoed the view, stating the party’s state unit would not decide the location of the AIIMS. PTI LGK SSK KH