- Rs 90 Crore Lapsed In Last 3 Fiscals
- Recruitment Shifted To JKPSC, JKSSB For Transparency
Jammu- The Jammu & Kashmir Government on Saturday informed the Legislative Assembly that SKIMS Soura continues to function as an autonomous institution, with no changes in its status before or after the reorganization of J&K.
Notably, in February 2023, the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha led administration had rolled back SKIMS Autonomy and its administrative control was given to the Health and Medical Education Department
Responding to a query from Tangmarg MLA Farooq Ahmad Shah, Minister in-charge of Health and Medical Education, Sakina Masood Ittoo informed the House that SKIMS continues to be an autonomous institution.
“SKIMS Soura was established in 1976. SKIMS continues to be an autonomous institution. This is true for both SKIMS as a tertiary care hospital and as a deemed university. It continues to grant degrees as per SKIMS (Grant of Degrees Act), 1983. Further the Budget allocation for SKIMS continues to be on the grants of the Health Department, as was previously,” the minister said.
Recruitment Shifted for Transparency
The government stated that recruitment of gazetted and non-gazetted staff at SKIMS has been transferred to the Public Service Commission (JKPSC) and Services Selection Board (JKSSB) to ensure a transparent, time-bound, and merit-based process.
“With respect to appointments and promotions, it was observed that vaccines in both gazetted (including faculty) and non-gazetted positions had got piled up over the years. In order to support and strengthen the institution, in the interest of patient care and to make the recruitment process and promotion processes transparent, time bound and merit-based, the services and expertise of two dedicated recruitment agencies, Jammu and Kashmir Public service Commission and Jammu & Kashmir Services Selection Board have been provided to SKIMS for recruitment of gazetted (including faculty) and non-gazetted posts,” it said.
“JKPSC is a constitutional body and JKSSB is an expert recruitment body known to have delivered in a very transparent and expeditious manner,” the government added.
Procurement Overhaul
The government also revealed that J&K Medical Supplies Corporation now manages SKIMS procurement, citing inefficiencies in the institute’s internal purchasing mechanisms.
Lapsed Capital Funds
The government also disclosed that capital expenditure funds allocated to SKIMS Soura have gone unutilized, leading to lapses amounting to ₹34.16 crore in 2021-22, ₹21.72 crore in 2022-23, and ₹34.22 crore in 2023-24.
The revelation has sparked discussions over budgetary inefficiencies during the tenure of former SKIMS Director, Dr. Parvaiz Koul, under whom the lapses occurred. Sources said the inability to utilize allocated funds had hindered infrastructure development and procurement of essential medical equipment at the institute.
However, the current administration at SKIMS has ensured the complete utilization of funds this year. “For the first time in years, we have successfully utilized the entire budget, including Rs 50 crore received from the central government,” SKIMS Director, Prof. Muhammad Ashraf Ganaie said.
Notably, Omar Abdullah had earlier expressed his government’s commitment to restoring the institute’s autonomy and addressing its ongoing manpower shortages.
The Chief Minister had further acknowledged the difficulties caused by the erosion of SKIMS’ autonomy, which has impacted its ability to function efficiently.
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
| ACT NOW |
| MONTHLY | Rs 100 |  |
| YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
| LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |
