The cities of Machilipatnam, Piduguralla and Paderu in Andhra Pradesh are all set to get a medical college each. The colleges have been approved by the Union government under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's Centrally Sponsored Scheme for the “establishment of new medical colleges by upgrading district/referral hospitals”, said Union MoS Health Bharati Pravin Pawar.
The information came to light after YSR Congress' Rajya Sabha member Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy questioned the centre on the status of the scheme in the Rajya Sabha. The three colleges are among the 75 that have been approved under Phase III of the scheme, which assigns the state governments the responsibility to commission and execute the plans for the hospitals. The central government's initiative is in a bid to make medical education affordable for the poor and provide quality healthcare in all regions, say the guidelines of the scheme.
With the aim of taking healthcare to "underserved" areas without a private or government medical college, the scheme helps establish new medical colleges in connection with district hospitals. Out of the 157 medical colleges that have been approved under the scheme, seven were allotted to the state of Andhra Pradesh. The scheme is to be carried out in phases and 71 new colleges across the country have already been established. The other AP cities in line for a medical college under the upcoming phases of the project are Eluru, Markapuram, Pulivendula and Vizianagaram.