The Union Health Ministry has resumed the construction work of four new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Bilaspur in Himachal Pradesh, Guwahati in Assam, Bhatinda in Punjab, and Mangalagiri in Andhra Pradesh, following the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) order that gave certain relaxation in COVID-19 lockdown.
The work has been restarted with the available labour at the sites. The Union Health Ministry has thoroughly discussed the protocol with the executing agencies and local administration before restarting construction ensuring that social distancing norms among the workers are strictly complied with.
"The construction work at the sites of four new AIIMS's were undergoing before the COVID-19 lockdown. However, when the lockdown was announced, the work was stopped. About 1,000 workers are residing at each of the respective hospital construction sites," said a senior government official.
"It has been about 15 days that we have resumed the construction work of these hospitals by the same workforce. We have instructed them to follow social distancing measures and other precautionary measures against COVID-19 as per government guidelines. No additional workers would be called from outside," said the official.
"These hospitals would have at least 750 beds in total bed capacity. It was supposed to be completed by December this year. However, the deadline will be extended for few more months due to limited manpower," added the official.
"Efforts were also made to resume construction work at AIIMS Gorakhpur, however it did not start due to less labour," informed the official.
On April 15, the MHA order stated that the States and Union Territories (UTs)/district administrations can operationalise certain activities ensuring strict compliance with the existing guidelines on lockdown measures.
Before operating these relaxations, states/UTs shall ensure that all preparatory arrangements with regard to social distancing in offices, workplaces, factories, and establishments as also other sectoral requirements are in place.
( With inputs from ANI )