Kerala will renew its demand for an All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) with the Centre after being informed that the state is not currently under consideration for the project, state health minister K Muraleedharan said. The state government plans to write again to Union health minister J P Nadda and press for one of 10 locations it has identified to be selected for the institute.
Muraleedharan said there was no question of Kerala withdrawing its demand and that the state would apply further pressure on the Centre. He described the Centre’s position as “double standards” and said the state would reiterate that it had submitted multiple potential sites for the proposed institution.
The renewed move follows the Centre’s submission before the high court that states lagging behind in healthcare would be prioritised for upcoming AIIMS projects. Kerala, according to the Centre’s position reported during the hearing, was not under immediate consideration.
The state government has disputed that approach. Muraleedharan said the Centre had initially indicated that Kerala had submitted only one location, after which the state provided a list of 10 sites. He alleged that the Centre had now offered a different justification for not considering the state.
The minister also alleged that the decision was politically motivated and that the Centre was citing different reasons because of political differences with the state government. Those allegations were made by the minister and were not independently established in the report.
The issue has also raised questions before the high court about whether Kerala’s relatively advanced healthcare system should be used to deny it an AIIMS. Chief Justice Soumen Sen asked whether a densely populated state would not merit such an institute despite its existing healthcare capacity.
Kerala’s case is therefore being framed by the state government not only as a demand for a new hospital, but also as a question of how national health infrastructure is allocated between states. The state says its list of 10 locations addresses an earlier concern about site availability, while the Centre’s reported position places priority on states considered to be lagging in healthcare.
The proposed institute would add a major central healthcare facility to Kerala’s existing network, although the report does not specify a final site, project cost, construction schedule or implementation timeline. No approval for the institute has been announced.
The state is considering coordinating its pressure campaign through Members of Parliament from Kerala. Muraleedharan said he could travel to New Delhi and meet Nadda again if required. He had previously met the Union minister, and the state government has said it received an assurance that Kerala would be considered for an AIIMS.
Union minister Suresh Gopi had earlier said he would not seek votes in Kerala in the next election unless an AIIMS was sanctioned for the state. The latest state move will now centre on another representation to the Union health ministry and continued efforts to secure consideration for one of the proposed sites.
