Bhubaneswar, May 9: In connection to the delay in issuing the Letter of Permission to start the academic session in Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College, Baripada, the tussle between Odisha and Medical Council of India (MCI) is worsening.
On Monday, the Health and Family Welfare Department blamed the MCI for not taking proper efforts in issuing the Letter of Permission (LOP) for the taking up of 100 undergraduate from 2017-18 academic sessions. In its argument, the former also stated that Mayurbhanj district under which the Baripada medical college falls has got 58.7 percent of tribal population and hence a medical college is highly essential there for overall health and sociology-economic development of the tribal that also includes tribe from neighboring states of West Bengal and Jharkhand. Union Petroleum Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan stated to media that he hopes that the academic session in the Baripada medico college will begin from this year.
The Secretary of the Supreme Court Mandate Oversight committee, Shesh Kumar and the Odisha Health Secretary, P.K. Meherda had clarified that earlier Odisha had requested for the LoP for two medical colleges, Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College, Baripada and Saheed Laxman Nayak Medical College and Hospital, Koraput in June 2016, under the Central Sponsored Scheme (CSS). Following this, before permitting, the MCI team had noted the infrastructure, construction works and other facilities at both the medical colleges in December 2016. Post this, the Odisha Government stated that all the prescribed guidelines by the MCI have been followed and a report has been submitted to the Center. The Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, during his meet with Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda, had also requested for the issue of the letter of permission (LOP). On Apr 27, the State Government had sent another reminder for the LoP.
