Fadnavis orders Nagpur dental research centre finished within three months

After reviewing stalled projects at the Government Medical College campus in Nagpur, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has directed that the remaining work on the super-specialty dental treatment and research centre being built there be completed immediately. He has given clear instructions that the centre must be inaugurated within the next three months.

The centre will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology and several super-specialty dental facilities. This will benefit dental patients from Vidarbha as well as central India, and will also give a new direction to dental education and research. To ensure the centre runs properly, the government has approved new posts and recruitment for some posts is underway. Of a total of 91 posts, 60 have been filled so far.

Administrative approval has been given for machinery worth about Rs 3.89 crore to be purchased under the DPC for providing modern medical facilities at the centre. In addition, funding of about Rs 3.43 crore has been approved under the state plan, and the process of purchasing machinery is underway.

As for the current situation, the state has four government dental colleges, one of which is Nair Dental College run by the Mumbai Municipal Corporation, besides more than 30 private dental colleges. Maharashtra leads the country in the number of state government run dental colleges. Once this super-specialty dental treatment and research centre in Nagpur begins functioning with state-of-the-art technology, it will further strengthen Maharashtra's lead in dental research and patient care.

The Government Dental College, Nagpur already has 63 undergraduate BDS seats and 24 postgraduate MDS seats, along with scholarships and postgraduate PhD courses. The college has also received a NAAC A Plus grade. The new centre will bring modern and specialised dental treatment facilities together under one roof, including six new departments: digital dentistry, cosmetic dentistry, oral implantology, sports dentistry, craniofacial surgery and forensic odontology.

About 22,002 square feet of land has been acquired for this major project, and the total built-up area of the centre is about 4,770.12 square metres. Funding has been approved for this project, which is equipped with modern facilities, and technical approval has also been given for the quality and planning of the construction. The foundation stone for the project was laid on 4 January 2019 by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari.