Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin targeted the BJP-led government at the Centre on the development plank on Thursday saying his government succeeded in raising a 1,000-bed super specialty hospital in a mere 15 months while the AIIMS project at Madurai announced by the union government in 2015 was yet to see the light of the day.
He had laid the foundation stone for this multi-storeyed hospital on March 21, 2022, and inaugurated it today. "This is our biggest achievement. The Centre announced the AIIMS project at Madurai in 2015, laid the foundation in 2019 and so far no progress has been made," Stalin said, inaugurating the hospital named after former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi.
"You know the story of a brick. He is sitting here in the front (row)," the chief minister said pointing at his son and Youth Welfare and Sports Development Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin who campaigned in the 2021 Assembly election displaying a brick to indicate the pace of the AIIMS project. "Till date not even the second brick was placed at the Madurai site," the chief minister added.
However, about 4.89 acres of land was identified for constructing the Kalaignar Centenary Hospital on the premises of the King Institute of Preventive Medicine and Research, Guindy, here and the project was completed in 15 months, despite doubling the bed strength from 500 that was originally planned, he said.
"People of Tamil Nadu know the difference between those who formulate schemes with an objective to serve the people and others who announce projects and fool them," Stalin, who is the president of the DMK, said.
Built at a cost of Rs 230 crore, the Kalaignar Centenary Hospital has about 12 specialties including cardiology, neurology, cancer, renal vascular, gastrointestinal, besides OPD blocks, surgical wards, 10 lifts and canteen facilities.
Stalin said the DMK government implemented people-friendly programmes and would always continue to pursue this lofty goal. "Like our Kalaignar (as Karunanidhi was fondly addressed by his followers) we will convert our sufferings into achievements," the chief minister said.
-With PTI Input
