Changsari

[2] With the existing health care facilities, the state government on 28 June 2016 handed over more than 571 acres of land at Changsari to the centre to set up the 750-bed super-speciality hospital, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, at an expenditure of around Rs 10 billion.

Handing over the plot at Changsari to the centre triggered a series of protests at Raha in Central Assam and senior citizens of the area went on a hunger strike.

Committee and others alleged that construction in current site will have grave environmental hazards, huge natural wetland (Jalah Beel) will have to be completely filled up which may have grave consequences in future including abnormal flooding of the adjoining areas and the highways to support their point, which is thoroughly rejected by Engineers forum.

They said the expert committee examined the technical parameters, which included mandatory environmental impact assessment, accessibility, national and international connectivity, technical feasibility, comparative project cost analysis and existence of support infrastructure in the vicinity for the purpose of selecting the AIIMS site.

One can imagine the plight of a top level specialist or emergency patient being caught in water logging at Jorabat or in the numerous road blockades and bandhs en route to any other location in Upper or Middle Assam.