Mafia and encephalitis both reduced to dust in Uttar Pradesh, says Yogi in Gorakhpur
Gorakhpur, September 16: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that nine and a half years ago, every conscious parent was worried about seeing children suffering from encephalitis and dying in eastern Uttar Pradesh. But now this worry has ended.
Comparing the mafia-era with fatal encephalitis, he said that like the mafia and mosquitoes, encephalitis has also been eradicated. Now we are seeing a new Gorakhpur and a new Uttar Pradesh in the new era. The Chief Minister said that the government is starting dialysis units with ten beds each in all the district hospitals of the state.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was addressing the inauguration ceremony of a charitable blood bank run by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) Gorakhpur on Wednesday morning. The Chief Minister inaugurated the Charitable Blood Center by cutting the ribbon and toured the center, inspecting the facilities, equipment, and arrangements available there.
Speaking from the stage of the inauguration ceremony, highlighting the positive changes in healthcare services in eastern Uttar Pradesh, the Chief Minister said that nine and a half years ago, Gorakhpur’s BRD Medical College was the primary healthcare center in the region. The situation was such that up to four patients were admitted to a single bed. The encephalitis ward was on the third floor, lacking fans, toilets, and other essential amenities.
He added that BRD Medical College, which was once considered unhealthy, has now become a super-specialty center and a major center for the treatment of various diseases, including encephalitis.
Chief Minister noted that an AIIMS has also been established in Gorakhpur. Medical colleges have been established in various districts, including Maharajganj, Kushinagar, Deoria, Siddharthnagar, Basti, Balrampur, Bahraich, Gonda, Ayodhya, and Ambedkar Nagar. The state has 75 districts, and the number of medical colleges has now reached 85. Two AIIMS are also operational. MBBS seats have increased from 4,600 to over 13,500, and PG seats have doubled. Nursing and paramedical education is also being expanded.
Chief Minister Yogi said that at one time, every district in the state was associated with some notorious mafia, and doctors were their victims. In Gorakhpur, doctors were kidnapped, extorted, received threatening calls, and were assaulted in their chambers. He had to protest these incidents on the streets with doctors. He said that today, doctors, businessmen, and citizens across the state, including Gorakhpur, feel safe. Now, the state is being identified not by the mafia, but by the goal of “One District, One Medical College.”
Yogi lauded the IMA’s social commitments, stating that it is not merely an organization of practicing doctors. He noted that in 2017-18, the IMA started a free OPD at the Sitapur Eye Hospital in Gorakhpur. Subsequently, when the IMA requested land for its office, the Gorakhpur Development Authority provided assistance. The IMA has made good use of this land and established a charitable blood center, which will contribute to providing blood to needy patients in eastern Uttar Pradesh.
Referring to the Guru Gorakhnath Hospital, which was established under the guidance of his guru, the late Mahant Avaidyanath Ji Maharaj, the Chief Minister said that initially, discussions had been held to start the hospital with 10 beds, but with the support of Gorakhpur’s doctors, it was expanded to a 100-bed facility. This hospital demonstrated that a hospital, blood bank, and ICU can be successfully operated through charity. Facilities such as blood separators, apheresis, and dialysis were developed here. He said that for dialysis, people once had to go to Lucknow or BHU, but today quality facilities are available in Gorakhpur.
