Govind Sharma
JAMMU, Nov 6: State Cancer Institute (SCI) Jammu which missed its deadline of August 2022, is now likely to be dedicated to the public by January 2023 as about 70-80 percent civil and mechanical work has been completed and the process of manpower recruitment to run the Institute is underway.
The foundation stone of the 100-bed State Cancer Institute was laid in September 2019 by the then J&K Governor Satya Pal Malik in the premises of Super Speciality Hospital (SSH), Jammu. The SCI is being established at an estimated cost of Rs 120 crore under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme ‘National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, CVD and Stroke (NPCDCS).
Once it comes up, this apex institute of cancer will be of immense importance for the people of Jammu & Kashmir as cancer is spreading fast in the Union Territory. Besides functioning as an apex institute for cancer-related Treatment, the SCI will also coordinate activities of other institutes. It will also provide outreach services, diagnosis, and referral treatments, develop treatment protocols and undertake cancer research to enhance the efficacy of treatment in J&K.
Official sources told Excelsior that the State Cancer Institute was to be dedicated to the public in August this year but due to neglect on the part of the engineering section, many important things like Sewerage Treatment Plant, Oxygen Generation Plant, etc were skipped and there was no provision for setting up these facilities in the design of the building due to which many modifications had to be done later on and the project got delayed.
Sources informed that delay of the project has been viewed seriously by the Administrative Department which has asked the concerned officers to complete the project in all aspects by January next year. In this regard, sources said, a meeting of all concerned officers was held yesterday in Government Medical College Jammu, during which all the issues were discussed threadbare.
The issues that came up for the discussion include establishment of lab services, requirement of space for radiological machinery/equipments, availability of required supply of water & electricity at the earliest, setting up Sewerage Treatment Plant, Oxygen Generation Plant, etc. During the meeting, directions were passed to get the work executed in double shifts so as to complete the project in all aspects by January 2023.
Meanwhile, sources informed that 70-80 percent civil and mechanical work of the SCI has been completed and orders for the procurement of highly advanced medical equipments like advanced Linear Accelerators with IMRT, IGRT, SRT facility, PET Scan, Brachytherapy, CT Simulator have already been made and by the end of this month, their purchase process will be completed whereas the process for the recruitment of doctors and paramedical staff is also near completion.
Sources revealed that there will be a separate cancer rehabilitation department in the SCI with all physiotherapy equipments needed for rehabilitation of treated cancer patients. This will allow them to lead a normal life after they are cured from cancer, they added.
“Another important feature of the project will be the incorporation of Electronic Medical Record system (EMR) whereby all records, patient data, investigations, treatment records of all patients will be available digitally,” sources said.
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