A meeting of Committee on Estimates of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly was held under the Chairmanship of MLA, Mushtaq Ahmed Shah here today to review the overall functioning of Health and Medical Education Department (H&ME).Legislators, Ghulam Mohammad Saroori, Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, Ishfaq Ahmed Sheikh, Jeevan Lal, Daleep Parihar, Neelam Langeh and Surinder Mohan Ambardar were also present in the meeting and gave their views regarding the further improvement in health sector in the state.The Committee reviewed the overall functioning of health department and directed the concerned authorities to provide adequate staff strength of medical and para medical in all district hospital especially rural and far-flung health institution of the state.The Committee also directed the concerned authorities to take all measures to provide adequate medicines and other equipments to the hospitals, health sub-centres.The Committee further directed to provide ambulances for those hospitals that are so far left out from the facilities so that the patients’ especially living in far flung areas could avail the benefit.
Commissioner Secretary, Health and Medical Education, M K Bhandari briefed the Committee about the working of the department and gave district wise details of the staff working in the hospitals of the state, besides position of vacant posts.He also briefed the Committee about the original estimates and the revised estimates are framed by the department on the basis of Budget proposal furnished by different HoDs. The department consolidates these proposals and submits to the Finance Department for its consolidation and approval.He also briefed that prior to submission of the proposals to the Finance Department, the department holds pre-budget discussions with all the HoDs and recommends the Revised Estimates and Budget Estimates to the Finance Department as per requirement of HoDs with full justification for any increase/decrease in the proposals.The Committee also directed the concerned authorities to resolve the issues of NHM employees.Director, Finance H&ME, Zahoor Ahmad Wani, Director, Health Jammu, Dr. Gurjeet Singh, Principal Government College Jammu, Dr. Zahil Geelani, Principal, GMC College, Jammu, Dr. Ramesh Singh, SKMCL, Dr. Yaspal Sharma, M D NHM Dr. Mohan Singh, and other concerned officers were present in the meeting.