iGovernment
05 October 2009
New Delhi, India

The university will link several institutes of public health that the Public Health Foundation of India aims to set up in various regions of India
India would soon set up a public health university and an Indian Institute of Public Health (IIPH) to provide a trained health workforce in the country.

The institute, a brainchild of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will be set up by the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), a public–private partnership between the central government, the Delhi government and private players.

The university, to come up in southwest Delhi, will be a constituent unit of the network of institutes being established by the PHFI, reports IANS.

The Government of Delhi has already allocated 51 acres of land for the campus–Swasthya Niketan–that will house the two institutes.

According to the state health department sources, the university will link several institutes of public health which the foundation proposes to establish in various regions of India.

Announcing the allocation of the land for the two institutes Delhi Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit said that the country urgently needs trained public health workforce that can supplement ongoing efforts to provide health services and ensure their reach to those most needy.

Speaking on the occasion, Delhi Health Minister Kiran Walia said the effort is also aimed at strengthening the overall health system in the country by creating a country–wide network of institutions committed to public health education, training, research, advocacy and policy initiatives.