CHENNAI: Chief Minister MK Stalin will lay the foundation stone for India’s first world-class super speciality paediatric hospital and research centre at Guindy on January 27 (Tuesday), even as the State launches a free HPV vaccination programme for 14-year-old girls to prevent cervical cancer. “The project was announced by the Chief Minister in July 2024 and is being executed under his direct guidance,” said Health Minister Ma Subramanian on Sunday.
Addressing reporters after inspecting the site, he added that the proposed hospital would come up on a 6.5-acre campus at a cost of Rs 417.07 crore and was aimed at significantly strengthening advanced child healthcare in the State.
The hospital complex, spread over a total built-up area of 4.63 lakh sq ft, will include a six-storey main hospital block and separate residential facilities for postgraduate students, nurses and faculty. It will house advanced departments such as paediatric emergency care, cardiology, neurology, pulmonology, nephrology, haematology, gastroenterology, orthopaedics, bone marrow transplant, intensive care units and dedicated research laboratories.
“The Public Works Department has assured that construction will be completed within 18 months,” the Minister said. “The CM will also inaugurate the State’s free HPV (Human Papillomavirus) vaccination programme, making TN the first in India to roll out the scheme on a government-wide scale.”
The initiative, announced in the Assembly in March 2025 aims to protect adolescent girls from cervical cancer, which affects around 1.2 lakh women annually in India. The programme will initially cover 3.38 lakh 14-year-old girls, with a pilot phase benefiting over 30,000 girls in Dharmapuri, Perambalur, Tiruvannamalai and Ariyalur districts. “The vaccine, which costs up to Rs 14,000 in private hospitals, will be provided free of charge,” Subramanian pointed out.
The Minister also highlighted the success of the ‘Nalam Kaakkum Stalin’ health camps, which have benefited over 15.8 lakh people so far, and said that dengue and other vector-borne diseases were currently under control compared to previous years.
Senior officials from the Health and Public Works departments were present during the inspection.