The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) and Department of Biotechnology (DBT) will sign a Memorandum of Understanding soon to assume control of the Bhopal Memorial Hospital (BMH) which was set up as a charitable trust on orders of Supreme court to treat victims of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy. The two departments stepped in after the Ministry of Health expressed its unwillingness to take over the hospital as it had plans of creating an AIIMS-like institute in Bhopal.
"It (BMH) is a cancer hospital primarily. The DBT was looking for a place to do clinical research and the DAE was searching for a place for its cancer grid and Bhopal was an ideal location for both," Science and Technology Minister Prithviraj Chavan said here. The two departments would continue to run the Hospital as a health care facility for victims of the gas tragedy, he said.
"The DAE would bring in its expertise in treatment and research on cancer, while DBT would bring in its experience in the area of clinical research on cancer as well as other diseases," Chavan said. The Bhopal hospital would be part of the DAE programme to set up a cancer grid for the benefit of cancer patients across the country, who found it difficult to visit the Tata Memorial Hospital run by it in Mumbai for regular check up and follow up treatments, Srikumar Banerjee, Secretary DAE, said.
DBT Secretary Maharaj Kishan Bhan said the Hospital would not be used to conduct clinical trials for new drugs. The Group of Ministers, which deliberated upon the situation emerging out of the Bhopal court verdict in the gas tragedy, recently had suggested that the BMH be taken over by DBT and DAE. The suggestion has been approved by the Union Cabinet.
A team of officials from the two departments have already carried out surveys of BMH and listed out a plan of action to complete the takeover of the Hospital. Pursuant to the apex Court orders, Union Carbide had set up a charitable trust in London on March 20, 1992 called 'Bhopal Hospital Trust' with Sir Ian Percival as its trustee.
Following the death of Percival, the "Bhopal Memorial Hospital Trust" was established in accordance with the apex court's orders in 1998 with former Chief Justice of India A M Ahmadi as its chairman. Ahmadi resigned last month. Madhya Pradesh government had given free of cost 80 acres of land for the construction of the hospital.
The Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Centre (BMHRC) became functional in July 2000. It has eight mini-centres. There are six hospitals, nine day-care centres, three Unani, three Homoeopathy and three Ayurveda dispensaries.