Ernakulam District Co-operative Bank to give Rs 450 crore loan to society

KOCHI: The moves for setting up the Kochi cancer centre has picked up momentum with steps being initiated to form the society under which the cancer centre is to come up.

The Ernakulam District Co-operative Bank will loan Rs 450 crore to this society. However, it is not yet clear whether the Central Government owned-Hospital Service Consultancy Corporation which prepared the Detailed Project Report for the centre will have any role in setting it up.

The Chief Minister is expected to head the society and the next Cabinet meeting scheduled for August 12 may take the decision on it.

The process for registration of the society has already been set in motion by the Health Department. Deploying cancer specialists at the Ernakulam Government Medical College at the required level would also be considered by the Government.

Dr V P Gangadharan may be requested to spend a few hours in a week at the hospital to give proper direction and inform the government of the requirements of the centre.

Appointing an IAS officer as the fulltime liaison officer for the cancer centre project too is expected to be taken up at the Cabinet meeting.

With the Chief Minister taking a personal interest in carrying forward the process of setting up the centre, it is expected that things will fall in place at the right time.