Thiruvananthapuram : While NDA allies had huge projects assigned to their State in the Union Budget 2024, Kerala was left cropped out in total neglect. The name Kerala did not come up even once in the Budget speech that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman delivered. There’s no AIIMS for Kerala this time too. Kerala’s demand for a Rs 24,000 package too was shunned.
The package Kerala demanded was to help cope up the monetary embargo imposed by the Centre and in the face of continued natural disasters striking the State. There is no allocation for development of rail or nation highways in State either. There has been no new project announced for Kerala in the past 10 years. And, though BJP now has an MP from Kerala, it makes no difference to State in terms of being allocated benefit from Centre.
It is almost now certain that AIIMS for Kerala has no bearing, even in terms of expectations. The upending move on part of Centre comes even as land acquisition for All India Institute of Medical Sciences(AIMS) has been completed. Land acquisition is the major hurdle in all mega projects and the State government came a long way in that respect.
It is BJP-led Central government’s hatred for Kerala that puts AIIMS on back burner. The wait for AIIMS dates back to years when KSEDC took over 150 acres in Kinaloor and completed social impact studies for the project. The process of acquiring 40 acres of privately owned lands is also in final stages. Recently, the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana approved 22 AIIMS for states, but not for Kerala.
To the letter sent by the Chief Minister, the indication from Central government was that AIIMS would be approved. Land acquisition in Kinalur was made based on such expectation. CM said that in his discussion with PM too, there was positive response for the project. Later, the Union Minister of State for Family Welfare in the previous govt, Dr. Bharti Parveen, said AIIMS was not being considered for Kerala. Union Minister of State Suresh Gopi later remarked that AIIMS will come but not in Kozhikode.
Apart from land held by KSIDC, 40.68 hectares of land belonging to 193 families, a health centre and mosque in Kinalur Kanthalad villages of Tamaraserry Taluk were acquired for the purpose in second phase. All measures for rehabilitation and compensation too have been taken.
It is with all this preparation in the backdrop that AIIMS is spoken of as an impossibility in Kozhikode. The campaign is to consider Palakkad or Kasaragod as alternatives. The question however is, how can AIIMS materialise elsewhere leaving out land acquired by State government for the purpose?
