AIIMS: Murali withdraws Centre’s adamant stance

The Center seems to be adamant that Kerala should not be given the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) as it has given different reasons at different times for denying AIIMS to the state, Health Minister K. Muraleedharan said here

He was reacting to the Centre’s statement in the Kerala High Court that Keralam was not among the priority states for allotment of AIIMS as the scheme was primarily meant for states whose health sector was lagging behind.

“During the tenure of the previous government, the Center said that the land identified in Kozhikode was not suitable. When the UDF government came to power, we made it clear that Keralam should not lose AIIMS due to regional considerations. But from what the Center said today, it is clear that Kerala is not being denied AIIMS because it failed to identify the right site,” Mr Muraleedha said.

He added that when he met the Union Health Minister, he was assured that Keralam deserved to have an AIIMS and that the state would definitely get one.

He said it looked like the Center was deliberately denying Keralam AIIMS out of political enmity.

Published – 7 Oct 2026 11:30 PM IST