Gandoh (Doda), June 25: Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad Monday said the center is contemplating a new health scheme for three states, including Jammu and Kashmir, to ensure delivery of adequate basic medicare facilities to the rural population.
“There is growing demand and need for opening more Primary Health Centers and Community Health Centers in the hilly states with hilly and tough terrain as such areas are facing deficit of healthcare facilities”, the union minister said while addressing a public gathering at Thatri.
He announced that Union Ministry of Health is soon going to formulate a new scheme for three states - Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand – under which the criteria of sanctioning a PHC will be a population of 12000 souls and for sub-centre it will be 2500 souls.
Presently the health policies envisage Primary Health Centre (PHC) for 20000 to 30000 people and a Community Health Centre (CHC) as referral centre for every four PHCs covering a population of 80,000 to 1.2 lakh.
The Union Minister and former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, during his day-long tour of the area, also visited Kahra, Bhatyas and Gandoh.

ON DEVELOPMENT WORKS
Once again coming heavily on the National Conference led coalition government in the state, Azad said that most of the development works in the far flung areas have come to standstill adding to the miseries of common masses.
“Focused attention needs to be provided towards the development of rural and hilly areas of the state”, he said adding the benefits of different state and centrally sponsored schemes must percolate down to the poor people irrespective of caste, region or religion.
Expressing dissatisfaction over slow pace of works on various roads in Chenab Valley region, he said that a network of roads was initiated in the erstwhile Doda district to provide road connectivity to the people living in the most backward and far flung areas of the region for their socio-economic upliftment. “But I don’t see anything positive on the work initiated during my tenure in the state”, he said.
Azad said that five motorable bridges were sanctioned on the Kishtwar–Ramban belt on river Chenab to provide better connectivity to the people. The bridges, he said, included Ganpat Bridge, Shiva Dal Bridge, Thatri Bridge, Trungal Bridge and Marsoo Bridge.
However, he said, that the construction work on most of these bridges has come to standstill and the authorities must ensure construction work of these bridges on priority basis.

ON EMPOWERMENT OF PANCHAYATS
The Union Minister said that the incorporation of 73rd and 74th Constitutional amendments in Jammu and Kashmir were must for fully empowering the Panchayat system.
“During a meeting held in New Delhi, I strongly recommended that the Panchayats in Jammu and Kashmir should be empowered fully and state government should make every endeavor in this regard”, he said.
He congratulated people of the area for their enthusiastic, peaceful and successful conduct of Panchayati elections and said that Panchayati Raj Institutions help in the better and fruitful implementation of benefit and welfare schemes among the targeted people.
He said empowerment of Panchayati Raj Institutions is vital for which Block level for Block Samiti and District level elections for Zila Samiti needs to be held in the state so that full powers gets diverted to the ground level democratic institutions as per the constitution.

Lastupdate on : Mon, 25 Jun 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Mon, 25 Jun 2012 18:30:00 GMT
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