Bihar Medical Services and Infrastructure Corporation Limited has planned to use prefabricated building technology to speed up construction of health centres.

To begin with, six additional primary health centres would be constructed using this technology. The plan, however, is to build 7,138 new health sub-centres and 1,483 additional primary health centres.

Prefabricated technology comprises construction of components at a factory and assembling them at the site of the building.

For instance, in traditional architecture, sand, bricks, cement, iron, wood and other material are transported to the construction site and used to build an edifice. In prefabricated technology, various components of a building like walls with doors and windows fitted in it are constructed in the factory and transported to the site, where they are assembled and fitted.

Sources said using this technology would help the Bihar Medical Services and Infrastructure Corporation (BMSIC) Limited construct the health centres faster and at lesser expense. The buildings also have a number of advantages of building constructed using traditional technology.

R.P. Ojha, additional secretary, health said: “Three companies have evinced interest. There are now working on the pilot project.”

A senior BMSIC officer said: “At present, the number of additional primary health centres are not enough to meet the requirement of the people of Bihar. We have decided to construct 7,138 sub-centres and 1,483 additional primary health centres using prefabricated technology.”

He added that as part of the pilot project, five additional primary health centres were being built in Vaishali and one in Patna.

“We had issued an expression of interest about the project in August last year. Twenty-four companies had expressed their interest to be a part of the project; three were shortlisted. The best model would be selected and the remaining health centres would replicate it.