With 150 students’ intake capacity per year, the new Shija Academy of Health Sciences will become operational from the academic session 2021-2022.
TFM Report
Manipur gets its first private medical college — Shija Academy of Health Sciences (SAHS), with 150 students’ intake capacity per year.
Shija Hospitals and Research Institute (SHRI) is honoured to announce the first homegrown private medical college in Northeast India, said SHRI chairman and managing director Dr Palin Kh, during a press conference on Sunday.
“After due inspection and screening, the National Medical Commission has permitted SHRI to start a new private medical college at Health Village, Langol, Imphal West, Manipur from the academic session 2021-2022,” he added.
Dr Palin maintained that the main purpose of establishing the new medical college is to produce strong, empathetic, compassionate, socially and environmentally responsible research-oriented medical graduates and postgraduates for the new era of health sciences, affordable quality healthcare, and medical value tourism to help save the state’s exchequer and inclusive growth of the region.
Out of the over 4,000 medical aspirants in Manipur alone, only about 150 students are selected as government nominees and over 400 Manipuri students are going outside the state and country for private medical studies per year, he said.
“Approximately, over Rs. 500 crores is spent outside the state annually for healthcare and medical education. The amount will be more if we include the expenditure of dental, nursing, paramedical, and health management studies outside the state,” he added.
The proposed private medical college will have an academic block and an independent subsidized 700 bedded teaching hospital which will be constructed within two years.
The seat sharing (state government nominee, Shija management nominee, and non-resident Indian) and annual fee structures is already proposed to the Government of Manipur based on one of the nearest private medical colleges in Kolkata as there is no full private medical college in NE India.
“We have proposed 20 per cent for state government nominees, 65 per cent for management nominees, and 15 per cent for NRI, of the total 150 seats,” he informed.
Stating that the teaching institute will attract both domestic and international students which will help in the generation of foreign exchange that will contribute towards inclusive economic growth of the state, Dr Palin said Shija envisions to be a premium and leading brand in healthcare services globally by 2026, recognised by our customers for our holistic approach, personal touch, and technological advancement.
The dean/director of the new medical college, Professor M Amuba said that with 22 departments, SAHS will have around 150 faculties.
“Faculties of RIMS and JNIMS retire at the age of 65, but they can still serve for another five years as mandated by the Government of India. So, most of the faculties of the new medical college come from the two government medical colleges,” he said, who himself was a faculty at RIMS.
SHRI board of director, Dr Jugindra S, maintained that COVID-19 made the country realise about the lack of doctors. Government also made some concessions in granting the permission to set up the college in view of this, he added.
SHRI had a humble beginning as Shija Clinic, a mono practice attached to a pharmacy at Paona Bazar in 1985. Now, it is a NABH (Pre Entry) certified 350 bedded (including 60 critical care beds) super speciality hospital supported by 1,399 caregivers including 165 full-time doctors.
The hospital also played a key role in the detection and treatment of COVID in both the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in the state.