The Tripura government is all set to ink a pact with a West Bengal-based trust to establish a private medical college at Madhuban in the West district, a minister said on June 25. The announcement follows opposition leader Jitendra Chaudhury's letter to Chief Minister Manik Saha, opposing the allocation of Indira Gandhi Memorial (IGM) hospital facilities to a private entity for the proposed college.

"The state government is set to sign a pact with West Bengal-based Swadheen Trust for the establishment of Shantiniketan Medical College," said Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury at a press conference. Further, he added that the state government has completed the necessary paperwork to formalise the pact with the private entity, pending the visit of the National Medical Council (NMC) delegation to inspect the medical college's infrastructure.

Formerly known as Victoria Memorial (VM) Hospital, IGM Hospital is a prominent referral hospital located centrally within the city. Emphasising the institute will operate from its own dedicated campus, Chowdhury assured that the existing healthcare facilities at IGM Hospital will be accessible to students of the proposed private medical college, as stated in a report by PTI.

In response to criticism, Chowdhury pointed out that numerous private medical colleges across India, including 27 in Uttar Pradesh alone, operate using government health facilities, stating that the proposed pact complies with central government guidelines. Strongly criticising the opposition leader's letter, the minister accused him of attempting to mislead the NMC delegation during their upcoming inspection visit to the state.

Questioned about Chaudhury's concerns regarding the alleged ownership of the private entity by a Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader in Birbhum district, Chowdhury emphasised that the government's decision was based solely on Swadheen Trust's credentials in running a medical college in West Bengal, without considering personal identities, PTI reported.