**Bhubaneswar:** Odisha’s capital city is going to be bestowed with healthcare facility of 800 bedded, chiefly catering to the needs of the BPL patients, and 1300 low-cost houses for the slum-dwellers.
This was revealed by the State Government on Tuesday after the 38th meeting of Empowered Committee on Infrastructure (ECI) chaired by Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi at the State Secretariat here.
Besides, the ECI also accorded approval to setting-up of 23 rice storage godowns in the State and plying of town buses in Balasore town.
Briefing media, P.K. Jena, Chairman, ECI said, “The 38th meeting of Empowered Committee on Infrastructure was held today. Four new projects were accorded approval. First project is setting-up of rice storage godown in 23 places on PPP (public private partnership) mode by the Civil Supplies Department. Second project approved is that of integrated healthcare in Bhubaneswar that includes one tertiary care hospital and five secondary care hospital under the BMC (Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation). The private partner will invest Rs 424 crore in the project and it will be of 800-bedded hospital. In the main hospital there would be 500 beds and in the other hospitals there would be 300 beds. The private partner as chosen by the bid is Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad. Out of the 800 beds, 359 beds will be exclusively reserved for the select category people, basically the poor patients. Those BPL patients will not pay the market rate of the treatment. Another one is that of operating town bus in Balasore town. Two packages were approved today. Two operators were accorded approval to run the town buses there.”
Kishen Kumar, Vice-Chairman, BDA said, “Under the Smart City plan, there was a slum development project that was approved today which is to be implemented on PPP mode. It has been named as Shantinagar Awas Yojana. 1300 EWS (economically weaker section) houses will be built by the developer and handed over to BDA (Bhubaneswar Development Authority). The slum dwellers there will be given those houses. Besides, as per our Model 4 policy, the concerned developer can develop 35% of the 3.5 acres of land on his own. It has been implemented under the cross-subsidisation model. After the approval by the committee today, we’ll be floating the tender in a day or two while it will be closed by March and the work will be begun. The project cost of the 1300 houses is pegged at Rs 92 crore. The completion duration of the project is 30 months.”