Classes begin at Kasaragod Medical College; minister calls it historic; MLA does a reality check

Kasaragod: "This is a historic moment for Kasaragod's health sector," said Minister for Health Veena George, inaugurating the first day of Kasaragod Government Medical College on Friday.

So far, 40 students have enrolled in the 50-seat MBBS college at Ukkinadka in Badiadka panchayat. Of them, one student is from Kasaragod's Panathur.

Presiding over the function, Kasaragod MLA N A Nellikkunnu said that a medical college is not complete without in-patient treatment facilities. Buildings should not be reduced to teaching and learning blocks. "We are proud of the students who joined here... but without in-patient treatment, the medical college is of no use to the people of Kasaragod," he said, and added that the minister is turning a blind eye to these shortcomings.

What the people of Kasaragod are seeking is a good treatment facility in the medical college, he said. A 500-bed hospital is proposed here. "That construction has not reached anywhere," he said, using the celebratory moment to do a reality check.

Responding to the MLA, Minister George reiterated what she had said in the Assembly, that Kasaragod was like her home district. She, however, did not set any deadline to start the hospital on the medical college campus in Ukkinadka.

For the teaching hospital, the government changed the name of the General Hospital in Kasaragod town -- 50 minutes away -- to Kasaragod Government Medical College Hospital for approval for the National Medical Commission (NMC).

As per the NMC guidelines, the teaching hospital, if away from the medical college, should be reachable in 30 minutes. The medical college's hostels -- another mandatory requirement -- are not yet ready.

But speaking at the inauguration, the minister said: "Meeting all the criteria for National Medical Commission approval was a challenging task, but we succeeded. This is a collective achievement."

She, however, set a new deadline. In four months, one block of the hospital would become operational, the Health Minister said. "And Kerala's best speciality centre will be set up at the medical college for Endosulfan victims. The speciality centre will also include physiotherapy and occupational therapy facilities," George said.

The foundation stone for the medical college was laid by the then Chief Minister Oommen Chandy in November 2013. In her defence for the delay, Minister George said that the construction work began only in 2016.

She was speaking a day after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the 264-bed Aster Hospital in Cherkala, on the National Highway, and 4km from Kasaragod town.

Aster DM HealthCare, promoted by Dr Azad Moopen, began construction of the Rs 195-crore seven-storey multispecialty hospital in December 2022, and completed the work in 33 months.

In a district that has long lacked tertiary care, Aster is opening with 60 doctors across 31 specialities, with a focus on specialised care for critical illness, trauma, stroke, and pediatric emergencies. The hospital is equipped with 44 ICU beds, 16 NICU beds, seven major and two minor operating theatres, and dedicated units for chemotherapy and dialysis.