PRAGATI platform fast-tracks AIIMS projects in Bibinagar, Jammu and Guwahati: Sources

New Delhi, Jan 6 (PTI) The setting up of new AIIMS across the country has received a boost due to the PRAGATI platform initiated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, leading to the fast-tracking of works and clearance of hurdles in building such institutes in Bibinagar, Guwahati and Jammu.

The success of these three institutions, born from the synergy of high-level monitoring, inter-agency coordination and outcome-driven governance, reaffirms PRAGATI's place as a transformative force in India's development journey, official sources said.

The AIIMS at Bibinagar in Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district of Telangana is emerging as a major tertiary-care and teaching hub under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY), they said.

"Established by the Government of India and fully funded by the Centre, the project started on July 7, 2022 and has already achieved about 85.97 per cent physical progress as of December 1, 2025, keeping it firmly on track for completion by June 30, 2026," an official source said.

The turning point came with the prime minister's review of the project under the PRAGATI platform on June 28, 2023, after which execution accelerated sharply.

A critical hurdle discussed in PRAGATI concerned an assured water supply of 1,243 KLD from the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board. It was resolved on May 27, 2025, enabling an enhanced supply of 1,143 KLD in addition to the existing 100 KLD and securing a key prerequisite for commissioning.

Another major issue related to the release of Rs 21.57 crore to the Telangana Southern Power Distribution Company Limited for permanent high-tension electricity supply was also resolved on May 27, 2025.

Beyond physical construction, AIIMS Bibinagar is designed as an integrated ecosystem for medical education, research and employment. Around 3,000 direct jobs are expected across faculty and non-faculty positions, alongside substantial indirect employment through housing, retail, transport and other services that will grow around the campus.

Sanctioned on January 10, 2019, under PMSSY, with the foundation stone of AIIMS Jammu at Samba laid on February 3, 2019, the project was conceived as a major greenfield campus to bridge regional gaps in advanced medical infrastructure.

With a sanctioned cost of Rs 1,856 crore and implementation entrusted to the Central Public Works Department, the institute has now achieved 100 per cent physical progress, with commissioning on November 25, 2024, official sources said.

They said as the project neared completion, several external issues threatened to delay its commissioning. Four major bottlenecks surfaced, notably a long-standing cremation ground of about 2,800 square metres directly in front of the main hospital block, which obstructed external development, landscaping and access planning.

Delays also affected water supply works by the Public Health Engineering Department and other connectivity and utility linkages, raising the risk of slippages despite near-complete construction.

"These challenges were taken up through the Project Monitoring Group and escalated to PRAGATI, where the prime minister reviewed the project on June 28, 2023, at a critical juncture. During the PRAGATI meeting, the Union Territory administration and district authorities were given clear, time-bound directions to identify alternative land for the cremation ground, construct a new cremation shed and related facilities, and ensure that no further disruption impeded the project timeline," the source said.

Coupled with tighter coordination among CPWD, HITES, PWD, PHE and UT agencies, backed by real-time digital tracking through PMG, the PRAGATI intervention transformed administrative inertia into collaborative problem-solving, the source said.

The AIIMS Guwahati in Assam, sanctioned on May 24, 2017, under PMSSY, represents a structural shift in healthcare access for the northeastern region.

As the first AIIMS in the "Seven Sisters", the institution was conceived to bring advanced tertiary care, teaching and research within easy reach of remote hill and border districts.

The foundation stone was laid on May 26, 2017, and the 189.2-acre campus at Changsari in Kamrup Rural district now houses the hospital complex, academic blocks, hostels and residential facilities, sources informed.

The project, with a cost of Rs 1,123 crore, achieved full physical completion by its target date of October 31, 2023 and was virtually inaugurated by the prime minister on April 14, 2023.

Electricity emerged as a key bottleneck, with Assam Electricity Grid Corporation Limited tasked with the 132 kV substation and transmission link, and Assam Power Distribution Company Limited responsible for the 33 kV internal network, the source said.

Stormwater management works, sluice gates and high-capacity pumps discharging into the Brahmaputra reached full functionality by June 2023, while coordinated efforts ensured completion of the water supply system in sync with electrical and civil dependencies.

By late 2025, AIIMS Guwahati had scaled up to a 750-bed hospital with specialised wards, including a 30-bed medical ward, a 30-bed obstetrics and paediatrics ward and a six-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Approximately 60 per cent of patients are treated free of cost through Ayushman Bharat–Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, directly lowering out-of-pocket expenditure for vulnerable households, sources stated. PTI PLB HIG HIG