Decaying Manipur Health Care Delivery System - I
How JNIMS, Porompat, was established!
Suggested treatment lines for improvement
- Part :: 2 -

Dr Th Suresh Singh *

JNIMS (Jawarhal Lal Nehru Institute of Medical Science) at Porompat :: Pix - Bunti Phurailatpam
See a full 360 Panoramic view of JNIMS here

In my mind, I had the satisfaction that it was one of the best project proposals I ever prepared. The project was in a phased manner showing a road map for 3 years costing 193 crores. It also clearly shows the present infrastructure, the manpower available, the various equipment etc. It clearly also indicates the state and central funding pattern. This is a vital part as no such project with a 100% funding from the centre will be approved. A 100 % one is sure to rebound with the instruction to resubmit again after due modification. That will only lead to unnecessary delay of another 1-2 yrs.

In the proposal, it was clearly mentioned that the project was prepared personally by me as DHS so that my name is preserved for all time to come and to prevent ownership by some unworthy doctors. Previously, I learnt that the same thing happened to National Rural Health Mission where the project was prepared by some doctors but claimed by another group. Such funny things also do happen in our land.

Afterwards, I heard that our CM was very happy. He took it personally to Delhi and submitted personally to Union Health Minister Gulam Nabi Azad. Azad agreed to the same. Probably in December/ early January, after a Cabinet Meeting, CM again asked me to give a copy of the same project for further perusal with the centre. I handed over the same next day to him. I am happy with the thought that I have done my part to the best.

Various activities were already going on. My personal repeated meetings with hon'ble Revenue Minister Th. Devendra Singh, Hon'ble Minister FCS and local MLA Shree Irabot Singh for land acquisition of the 14.5 acres and additional 30 acres for future expansion. The 2 ministers were very helpful, we had repeated field visits. I had also to send my staff to the revenue department to fix certain dates with them for field survey. 2/3 meetings with PDA Chairman Hon'ble MLA Shri Loken Singh to short out the occupation under PDA also took place.

Meetings with PWD Chief Engineer and PDA Chief Architect by visiting their offices for vetting were other activities. Meeting these officials at that time because of the prevailing law and order situation was not an easy one. All these are living witnesses; no single line is false or exaggerated one. Personal calls to Bombay firm HOSMAC to short out tender problems as consultancy firm, various tender procedures for purchase of medicines/equipment, ongoing frequent monitoring of the various construction works are the other important activities.

All these were over and above attending normal, almost weekly, Cabinet meetings presided by the Hon'ble CM. You have to be on your toe for these meetings as there were also sudden calls from CS/ CM'S office. In every meeting, I had to present our progress report positively, show the timely expenditure statement, show the progress of the Porompat hospital and lastly fight for your share of the budget for health department. In those meetings, I highlighted the various unnecessary objections put forward by the finance Secretary.

There were occasional hot exchanges. I became the only vocal HOD fighting for his department. Many Manipuri IAS officers were witness to it. I really wonder why other HODs were so timid; perhaps there were little progress report to show. I certainly found that Manipuri Finance Secretaries were having far negative attitude than their non-Manipuri counterparts. Now you can imagine the progress of the state.

Another very tiresome work was the running of here and there at secretariat health department and finance department for sanction and repeated follow up. You know, these are no ordinary follow up action. One has to accompany with certain sweeteners, small or big, in the lower section. For a sanction, big or small, the file has to move up and down 25/30 times in the medical section and another 35-45 times in the finance section. Still, there is every chance of a lapse. It is a peculiar situation, here our department is running like a wild cat for sanction, for encashment and for ultimate deposition to the concerned construction agency.

Not only that, I have to submit next project formulation or continuation of the ongoing ones, take approval from the central agencies like NLCPR, NEC, SPA, SCA, ACA etc. and provide expenditure statement as a head of department. Ultimately the big fish is shared by the concerned staff of the construction agency and the contractor. Anyhow, we don't envy; all are done to have one medical college there.

As a health Director, my only demand is that the construction be completed in time, there should be good progress; otherwise, there will be no fund release, I threatened. That worked certainly, as there was no dearth of fund. Those contractor sand construction agencies were so happy that there was no dearth of money for health department. All cooked and kept readymade by us like a servant.

I still remember one cabinet meeting in February 2008 for my last financial year. Our Honb'le Medical Minister was absent due to some preoccupation, Principal Secretary was away in Delhi attending an important meeting. During discussion for allocation of health budget, I was demanding Rs 50 crores for upcoming JNIMS. Chief Secretary Jarnail Singh replied that that was too big and moreover your department could not spent that much.

I replied that all the formalities for the proposed college had been completed and it is time that we show our intention to the centre and the MCI by allocating the needed fund. Infect, CS was worried that the money had to be found by slashing funds from other departments. Further arguments followed. CS further asked whether about 30 crores would be enough. I replied that 40 crore is the minimum if we want to start the medical college during next 2 years or so. CS was muttering something like 30-35 crores when CM, who was remaining silent during those arguments, intervened and asked Jarnail to allot what I demanded. I knew that CM would always support me.

I was a little surprised to see Rs 20 crore allocation when final allocation order was out. Probably the state did not have fund. I did not complain to CM as there was no time and money for further allotment. Anyhow, with these facilities we can start the college in July/ August 2009 if we can convince the inspecting MCI team. When I left, around 50 crores had been spent/earmarked for JINIMS. This includes 13 crores for equipment.

The more difficult task was finding piecemeal funds from different sources, their encashment, seeking further funds etc. I was said to learn that the college could not be inaugurated in 2009 session. The same was, however done in August 2010.

Credit for this entirely goes to the present CM Ibobi Singh who was responsible for allocating funds from the various resources of the poor state and for pursuing tirelessly with the centre. The next in line was your poor writer who pursued vigorously it and kept the baseline foundation for the coming up medical college. I can proudly say that the college would have been delayed by another 3/4 years had the activities mentioned above had not been pursued vigorously from my side as a Director.

From hindsight, I fill proud of this achievement and will cherish for lifelong. It is another matter that self was not invited in the inauguration of JNIMS on 16/08/2010. Other credits also should go to C S Jarnail Singh who had a +ve attitude for the state. His annoyance with the non-performing departments specially with PWD is a thing worth remembrance in every Cabinet Meeting. He knew details of every hilly roads and was an embarrassment to the PWD Engineers. The CS must have now changed his opinion on my ability to spend the money in every financial year beyond expectations.

He was pocking health department in every cabinet meeting for my immediate predecessor's inability to encash more than 6 crores in March 2005. It is again another matter that my immediate successor also failed to encach about 11 crores in March 1009. My principal Secretary D.S.Punia (retired as C S) was the Principal executor with fewer words. I had never seen a file put up by me objected by him. On occasions, I requested him to speak to finance department which he did promptly.

His contribution to the last financial year was immense. He disposed all the files in his room with his personal staff by detection. There was no pending, no unnecessary query. The other person worth mentioning was the then Finance Commissioner R.R.Rashmi with whom I had an excellent personal rapport. A complex file to be objected by the finance department had to be taken by me personally to him and explain on the spot. He readily cleared many such files in my presence.

To be continued.....