Dehradun, July 15 (IANS) Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met Union Health Minister JP Nadda at his official residence in Delhi on Tuesday.

The Chief Minister requested the Union Health Minister JP Nadda to expand the air ambulance service in Uttarakhand and also underlined the need for enhancing helicopter services to meet any exigencies in the hilly and inaccessible areas of the state.

The Chief Minister also urged the Union Minister to increase the central contribution per SECC family under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme from Rs 1,052 to Rs 1,500.

The meeting between Uttarakhand CM and Union Health Minister centred around giving a fillip to the medical and healthcare facilities in the hilly state.

CM Dhami later told the press that the construction work of two new medical colleges in Uttarakhand is going on a war-footing and added that Jagjivan Ram Medical College (Pithoragarh) and Pt. Ram Sumer Shukla Medical College (Rudrapur) will soon start teaching work from the academic year 2026-27.

He also expressed gratitude to the Centre for the contribution of AIIMS experts in the Char Dham Yatra and for including travel duty in the Post Graduate Doctors Residency (DRP).

Besides the two medical colleges, the Chief Minister drew the attention of the Union Minister towards Tehri Medical College, being built in collaboration with Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Limited. He also urged the Centre to expedite the establishment of a state-of-the-art trauma centre at Srinagar Medical College.

He said this initiative is not only important for the local population, rather it will also prove to be a lifesaver for the pilgrims and tourists passing through the Char Dham Yatra routes and the surrounding mountainous regions.

Notably, the Char Dham Yatra this year got marred by multiple incidents of flash floods and landslides, resulting in the loss of several lives while putting the lives of tourists as well as pilgrims in peril.

Union Minister JP Nadda is understood to have assured all possible assistance and support to the state government.

–IANS

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