Ex-Union minister Kathiria resigns as AIIMS Rajkot president

Former Union minister Dr Vallabh Kathiria on Friday said he has resigned as president of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Rajkot.

Rajkot: Former Union minister Dr Vallabh Kathiria on Friday said he has resigned as president of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Rajkot on direction of the Centre, just days after he was appointed to the top post.

The central government appointed Kathiria (68) as president of the AIIMS, Rajkot on August 17.

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Talking to reporters here, the surgeon-turned-politician said, “I have resigned from the post because I was told to do so by the (Union health) ministry on some technical grounds.” As per an official communication available in the public domain, Kathiria tendered his resignation on August 20 and the same was accepted on August 25.

“I am directed to refer to your letter dated 20.08.2023 on the above subject and to inform that your resignation from the post of President, AIIMS Rajkot has been accepted by Hon’ble Health and Family Welfare Minister on 25.08.2023,” reads a communication sent to Kathiria by the ministry.

The communication, dated August 28, was signed by undersecretary Arun Kumar Biswas.

The construction of AIIMS Rajkot is currently underway and the facility is expected to be fully functional in the next couple of months.

The premier medical institute has been established under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojna (PMSSY) of the Union health ministry.

Kathiria was elected to the Lok Sabha from Rajkot for four consecutive terms between 1996 and 2004 on a BJP ticket. He served as the minister of state for health and family welfare in the Vajpayee government in 1999.

In 2011, the Gujarat government appointed Kathiria chairman of the Gauseva and Gauchar Vikas Board, an autonomous body.

In 2019, the veteran politician was named chairman of the Rashtriya Kamdhenu Aayog (RKA), set up for conservation, protection and development of cows and their progeny, by the Narendra Modi government.