KURUKSHETRA: Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched six projects related to health and education in Haryana, including a cancer institute in Jhajjar and a medical university here
Modi was here to participate in ‘Swachh Shakti 2019’, an event to recognize the leadership role played by rural women in Swachh Bharat Mission towards achieving a clean and open defecation-free country by October 2 this year.
The event was attended by woman sarpanchs and women associated with the ‘Swachhta’ campaign from across the country. Modi distributed the ‘Swachh Shakti 2019’ awards at the event.
He inaugurated the Rs 2,035-crore National Cancer Institute (NCI), Badhsa in Jhajjar district, through video conferencing.
The NCI is a state-of-the-art tertiary cancer care-cum-research institute, constructed at the AIIMS Jhajjar campus. The 700-bed hospital will have facilities such as surgical oncology, radiation oncology, medical oncology, anesthesia, palliative care and nuclear medicine, besides hostel rooms for doctors and attendants of cancer patients, an official statement said.
Modi also inaugurated the ESIC Medical College and Hospital, Faridabad. This is the first ESIC Medical College and Hospital in north India and it has 510 beds.
The prime minister laid the foundation stone for National Institute of Ayurveda, Panchkula, being set up at Shri Mata Mansa Devi temple complex there. It will be a national-level institute for Ayurveda treatment, education and research.
The foundation stone for Sri Krishna Ayush University, Kurukshetra, first varsity related to the Indian system of medicine in Haryana as well as first-of-its kind in the country, was also laid.
Modi also laid the foundation stone for the ‘Battles of Panipat Museum’. The museum will honor the heroes of the battles of Panipat.
Besides, the PM laid the foundation stone for Pandit Deen Dayal Uadhyay University of Health Sciences, Karnal.
Before inaugurating and laying foundation stones for projects, Modi visited the ‘Swachh Sunder Shauchalay’ (neat and clean toilet) exhibition.
The government is encouraging use of ‘Swachh Sunder shauchalays’ to fight practice of open defecation in rural areas of the country.
The Union Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation had instituted a competition aimed at promoting toilet usage, and mobilize rural households to beautify their toilets.
Modi congratulated the ‘Swachh Shakti award’ recipients and the villagers who worked shoulder-to-shoulder with the awardee women. “I visited the exhibition here. Within one month 1.25 crore paintings on toilets is a big achievement. For the first time, toilets are being beautified and are being called as ‘izzat ghar’.”
In Europe, there is a place which attracts lot of tourists because people there have beautifully painted and decorated front walls of the houses, he said. May be, a day will come when tourists will flock a village in our country to see beautifully painted toilets, he said.
Describing Kurukshetra as the land of “dharma and karma”, Modi said it is the same land where Lord Krishna delivered the celestial message of Karma.
“Today, the third edition of Swachh Shakti 2019 has been launched from Kurukshetra,” he said.
He congratulated the winners of the Swachhta Shakti Award for making outstanding contribution under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
He touched upon several developmental initiatives undertaken by his government.
“Be it the network of hospitals, setting up of 1.50 lakh health and wellness centers in villages or giving free medical health service to poor– Ayushman Bharat, several works are going on,” he said.
There are 21 All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the country of which work has been started on 14 AIIMS after 2014, Modi said.
He said that in the recent Union Budget, another AIIMS has been sanctioned for Haryana, which would be set up in Manethi village in Rewari district.
Earlier, the Prime Minister honored 12 ‘Swachhtagrahi’, including Sarpanch of Dharala village in Panchkula district, with ‘Swachh Shakti Award 2019’ .
Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Uma Bharti said at present, 5.5 lakh villages, 28 states and 600 districts have been declared ODF. She said the central government under the leadership of PM Modi has resolved to make the country ODF by October, 2019.
Haryana Urban Local Bodies Minister Kavita Jain said the state government has effectively implemented Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in the state. She said that while 31 lakh toilets have been constructed in rural areas, 67,000 toilets have been constructed in urban areas. PTI
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