Nashik MP demands push for trauma centre in district

Nashik: MP Rajabhau Waje raised concerns in Parliament on Friday over the shortage of medical professionals and the lack of essential infrastructure, including a trauma centre in Nashik, despite the city hosting the Simhastha Kumbh Mela 2026-28.During his speech, Waje said Nashik was a critical junction for several national highways, a growing industrial hub, and the host city for the upcoming Simhastha Kumbh Mela, yet it has not been included among six trauma centres sanctioned for Maharashtra."Nashik is hosting the Simhastha Kumbh Mela in next two years and the maximum number of pilgrims will be seen in 2027. Yet the city does not have a dedicated trauma centre," said Waje.Waje said the Mumbai-Agra National Highway, Nashik-Pune highway and the Samruddhi Expressway pass through the city, and a major Central Railway route also passed through Nashik.Responding to the concerns, Union health minister Jagat Prakash Nadda said healthcare was primarily a state subject. He said the Central govt provides financial and technical support, but the initial proposal for such projects has to be submitted by the state govt, and without a formal proposal from the state, the centre could not unilaterally include a city in the programme.Waje also highlighted a manpower crisis in Nashik's healthcare system. He said that of 2,107 sanctioned medical positions in the district, 334 posts remain vacant, with the shortage most acute in remote and tribal areas such as Surgana, Peth, Trimbakeshwar and Igatpuri.He said while 738 Ayushman Arogya Mandirs are active across the district, including 112 rural and 47 urban centres, the lack of specialist doctors means many patients still lack access to basic life-saving treatments. He said only five mobile units currently serve the district's remote populations, which he described as grossly inadequate for the region's needs.