Madurai: The much-anticipated project to build the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Madurai has seen a recent development. The institute is finally expected to be completed soon by 2028, with its construction set to begin by December this year.  

The announcement regarding the update came from the Minister of Health and Family Welfare Ma Subramanian on Tuesday. He also said that the tender for the construction has been floated. 

In December 2018, the Union Cabinet approved for the establishment of AIIMS facility in Thoppur under the Thirupparankundram Assembly constituency in the Madurai district. The project was approved under Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) at a cost of Rs 1,900 crore as reported by the Medical Dialogues team.

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The foundation stone for the AIIMS in Madurai was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he paid a visit to the district in January 2019. The then AIADMK government provided 199.88 acres of land for the project and another 22 acres additionally sought by the Centre.

"Once the construction will start, the project work will be done in a stipulated time. It will at least take four years for the completion of the work and it is hoped the project will be completed by 2028," the Minister informed DT NEXT.

"The Centre permitted the intake of the first batch of 50 students and said classes could be conducted at a private college, art college or JIPMER in Puducherry. But our Chief Minister accommodated them at the Government Medical College Hospital, Ramanathapuram, and now the second batch of 50 students have been admitted," Subramanian said earlier in February when his attention was drawn to the Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya's claim in the Parliament that the DMK was providing wrong information about the project.

Subramanian mentioned that the site for the project had never been a problem but financial allocation had been. "While all similar projects are being funded by the Centre, the latter had said the Madurai project would be funded by JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency). Probably, this is the first such project to be funded by JICA in the world," he said.

Also read- Row In Lok Sabha Over AIIMS Madurai Construction

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