The polio mission will be one of the projects that will benefit from the new plan

July 4: Public healthcare system in the city is set to receive a big boost with Dispur deciding to create a separate health department for Kamrup (metro) district.

A state government official said the district needs better implementation of various government healthcare schemes and improvement of healthcare facilities.

Kamrup (rural) district has a better performance record in public healthcare sector than the metro district.

The official said the deputy commissioner of Kamrup (rural) district, R.C. Jain, had been rewarded during a recent meeting between chief minister Tarun Gogoi and the deputy commissioners for his administration’s good performance in the healthcare sector.

“The office of the joint director of health services, Kamrup, looks after healthcare in the two districts even after the division of Kamrup district during the previous tenure of the Tarun Gogoi government. Considering the multitude of problems in Guwahati, there is a need to chalk out a different strategy for the urban population,” he said.

According to the plan, the state government will soon appoint a separate joint director for Kamrup (metro) district. Health and family welfare minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has already approved the plan. “The government will also appoint different officials and staff who will concentrate on improving healthcare facilities in Guwahati,” he said.

The draft city health plan prepared by the National Rural Health Mission will be finalised during a meeting chaired by Sarma on Friday.

Refusing to divulge details, the official said the plan would contain government’s programmes and policies for a special urban strategy to improve healthcare in the city.

A health official said lack of interpersonal communication in implementation of the government schemes is a major problem faced by health workers in the city.

“It is essential for the success of programmes like polio immunisation which requires a big turnout. Creation of a separate health department for the city will in the long run help us achieve that success,” he said.