Bhopal, April 22 (IANS) The Madhya Pradesh Council of Ministers on Wednesday approved the establishment of accommodation facilities for patients’ relatives within the campuses of selected medical colleges in the state, to be facilitated through philanthropic organisations.

These organisations will establish such ‘relatives’ rest houses’ using their own financial resources; the state government will not provide any financial assistance for this purpose.

The fees to be charged by the organisations for these services will be determined by a committee constituted by the state government.

This proposed arrangement will provide patients’ relatives with better accommodation facilities at affordable rates, thereby improving their mental well-being.

This, in turn, will have a direct positive impact on the hospital’s overall management and ensure smoother operations.

Patients from distant regions often seek treatment at hospitals affiliated with medical colleges.

They are invariably accompanied by their relatives.

Many of these relatives, unable to bear the financial burden of arranging accommodation outside the hospital premises, end up sleeping within the hospital campus itself.

This places an additional strain on the hospital’s sanitation and hygiene systems, while also leaving the relatives without a comfortable place to stay.

This situation has an indirect impact on the hospital’s administrative management and the interactions between patients/relatives and the hospital staff, thereby adversely affecting the hospitals’ overall functioning.

The Council of Ministers has approved an allocation of Rs 5,479 crore under the Department of Public Health and Medical Education to provide advanced medical services across the state, upgrade existing medical colleges, and establish a new Government Medical College in Mandla.

In accordance with this approval, Rs 3,628 crore has been sanctioned for the continuous operation of the ‘Chief Minister’s Comprehensive and Advanced Tertiary Health Service Institution Strengthening Scheme’ (CM CARE 2025) over a period of five years.

Through this scheme, provisions are being made to strengthen super-specialty health services — including Oncology (Surgical, Medical, and Radiation), Cardiology, Cardiac Surgery, and Organ Transplant units — within government and autonomous medical colleges, as well as the private sector, thereby establishing them as robust hubs for tertiary healthcare services.

To achieve this, the expertise, cutting-edge technology, and capital investment of private partners will be leveraged alongside government investment to ensure enhanced quality and availability of services.

Additionally, Rs 1,503 crore has been sanctioned for the upgradation of medical colleges.

As per the approval, this scheme will facilitate the expansion of medical facilities within these colleges over the next five years.

Regarding the establishment of the new Government Medical College in Mandla, a revised administrative approval of Rs 347.39 crore has been granted, superseding the previously sanctioned amount of Rs 249.63 crore.

This revised administrative approval was necessitated by an increase in project costs resulting from technical factors associated with a change in the construction site.

The establishment of the new Government Medical College in Mandla will ensure easy access to tertiary-level medical facilities for the residents of the surrounding region.

The Council of Ministers has approved the creation of 15 posts for the duration of its tenure to facilitate the functioning of the 6th State Finance Commission.

The state government has already constituted the 6th State Finance Commission.

Approval of Rs 24 crore for the ‘Chief Minister’s Young Professionals for Development Program’.

The Council of Ministers has sanctioned a sum of Rs 23.90 crore for the operation of the third phase of the “Chief Minister’s Young Professionals for Development Program” over a period of three years.

Additionally, the Department of Public Service Management has been authorised to take further necessary action — including defining procedures and issuing relevant rules and directives — to ensure the effective implementation of this program.

–IANS

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