As stated by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget presentation on Wednesday, February 1, Odisha expects that out of the 157 nursing colleges currently existing in the nation, at least seven new ones will open up in the state. The government medical colleges that have been in place since 2014 will be complemented by nursing colleges that will be built in key locations. The government nursing colleges are likely to come up at Balasore, Baripada, Balangir, Koraput, Puri, Jajpur and Kalahandi. Five of the government medical institutions are now fully operational, but only two will be able to take students as of the upcoming academic year, stated a report by The New Indian Express.
The Center has approved the establishment of two additional government medical colleges in Keonjhar and Phulbani, but no statement has been made regarding the establishment of government nursing colleges in either of those cities. In addition to the five GNM schools that have recently been upgraded to nursing colleges, the state of Odisha has three government nursing institutions in Berhampur, Cuttack and Burla. According to official sources, if not one in each of the 30 districts, the state requires at least 13 government nursing colleges. Since more than 30% of the state's 29,700 nursing officer positions are vacant, health experts anticipated that the new nursing colleges will help meet the demand for qualified nurses.
