Mohali, September 27
The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, today announced the setting up of the country's first National Institute of Public Health in Punjab. The institute will be established in Mohali by the Public Health Foundation of India in collaboration with the Punjab Government.

The memorandum of understanding between the Foundation and the state government was exchanged, among others, in the presence of the Prime Minister, Punjab Governor General (Retd) SF Rodrigues and Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh during a ceremony held at the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) here this evening.

The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone of the country's third Indian Institute of Science Education and Research to be established at Mohali during the function where an announcement was also made about the setting up of an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in Chandigarh.

The Public Health Foundation of India is considered to be unique example of public-private partnership NGO and was launched by the Prime Minister in March this year.

The Foundation will set up six such institutes across the country to train professionals in preventive health care, the first of which was announced today.

Talking to The Tribune, Mr Harpal Singh, member, Board of Governors of the Foundation, said the site for the institute in Mohali was being finalised.

"We have requested the Punjab Government to grant the institute the status of a deemed university. These Institutes will be fashioned as centres of excellence in public health and will be managed entirely by the Foundation. Each Institute would cost the Foundation Rs 100 Crore and announcements regarding the location of the next two will be done shortly," he said.

"There is a dearth of trained health care professionals in the field of preventive medicine. While social and preventive medicine forms a part of a medical students' curriculum, the focus always remains on curative medicine. Curative health care is also very expensive. The Foundation aims to shift the spotlight from curative medicine to preventive medicine which will, to a large extent, take care of the medical needs of the masses," said Mr Harpal Singh pointing out that this was a significant step in the history of health care in India.

“The Foundation will also be the regulatory and accrediting body for other

institutes which have started courses in public health. It will also draft the curriculum for various courses which will range from full fledge degrees to short diplomas and even week long courses for the general public," he said.

Chaired by Mr Rajat Gupta, the Foundation has many global institutes of public health, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as its partners.

Dr Amartya Sen and Dr R A Mashelkar are on its Board which is presided over by Mr Srinath Reddy. Mr TKA Nair, Dr Montek Singh Alhulwalia and Mr Harpal Singh, also Board members were among those present on the occasion while the CEO of the foundation, Mr Perumal Pillai, signed the MOU and exchanged it with Mr JR Kundal Secretary Health Punjab today.