PGIMER, Chandigarh (Express photo) PGIMER, Chandigarh (Express photo) THE UNION government has given in-principle approval to a UT proposal under which 50 acres of land allotted to the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) will cost less than the earlier cost of Rs 20 crore per acre, said a senior UT Administration official on Saturday. The UT Administration, now waiting for the final approval, recently sent a Cabinet note to the government. The north India’s premier medical hub had announced the setting up of a major health facility on the 50-acre land sanctioned by the Chandigarh Administration in Sarangpur. But, the move hit a roadblock after the UT Administration informed the PGI that the land would cost a whopping Rs 1,011 crore. The PGI administration then approached the Union Ministry of Health for a solution. Officials said a proposal sent to the Centre regarding the allotment of land to the central government-run institute has been approved in principle. “Regarding the PGI’s Sarangpur land, the Chandigarh Administration had sent a proposal saying permission should be given to allot land for central government institutions on the current acquisition price and 15 per cent of administrative charges. It has been approved by the Union government in principle and now we are waiting for the final approval,” Uma Shankar Gupta, Additional Secretary Estate, UT Administration, told Chandigarh Newsline. He said once the final approval is received, PGI will have to pay only a few crores per acre of land instead of the earlier price. Sources said the cost of land is expected to be less than Rs 4 crore per acre once the proposal is approved. In May last year, PGI had announced the setting up of a new Out Patient Department (OPD), trauma centre, new learning centre and a full-fledged cancer centre on the Sarangpur land. While the land had been earmarked by the administration, the allotment was not done. The four departments are expected to come up at a cost of Rs 2,500 crore approximately. Coming as a shocker, a few months ago, in the letter received by the UT Administration, the UT finance department informed PGI to express their “willingness to get the land measuring 50.76 acres @ Rs 41,184 per square yard (i.e. 50 per cent of the existing collector rate of 2016 i.e. Rs 82,836) which comes to Rs 19.933 crore per acre) and the total amount comes to Rs 1,011.80 crore. At the governing body meeting of the PGIMER held recently, Union Health Minister J P Nadda, also the PGI president, informed the GB members that he would take up the matter with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs as well. For all the latest Chandigarh News, download Indian Express App

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