Calcutta: The Howrah State General Hospital will be renovated and finally shifted to a more spacious place spread across five acres, chief minister Mamata Banerjee said on Thursday.

"The Howrah State General Hospital can be shifted to the Howrah Correctional Home building. Do not allow any other construction on the five acres of land," the chief minister said at the administrative meeting in Howrah's Sarat Sadan.

While speaking on medical facilities, Mamata said 27,000 beds had been added to various hospitals across the state over the past seven years.

"We are introducing new facilities in medical colleges and 43 multispeciality hospitals have come up since 2011," said Mamata, who also holds the health portfolio.

Expressing concern over floods in Howrah's adjoining districts along the Damodar, Mamata said the DVC should regulate the discharge of water with prior intimation to the state government to avoid sudden inundation of low-lying areas.

"We are writing to the DVC authorities urging them to regulate discharge of water and undertake proper dredging in their reservoirs to increase their capacity, which could help prevent flood in downstream areas," the chief minister said while conversing with officials at the meeting.

She stressed a mechanism should be in place to avert flooding in Amta and Udainarayanpur in Howrah, Arambagh-Goghat-Khanakul in Hooghly and Ghatal in West Midnapore.

These areas are inundated every monsoon because of sudden release of water by the DVC.

Mamata enquired about the progress of the Rs 2,800-crore Lower Damodar Basin project, which would benefiting Howrah, Hooghly, Burdwan and Bankura districts. "This project, when implemented, will help 1.7 lakh hectares of farm land. Ensure its speedy implementation," Mamata said.

Expecting an early Lok Sabha poll, she appealed for completion of all projects under the MPLAD by September-October.