Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar inaugurated the Buddha Operation Complex at the Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital and Research Centre in Muzaffarpur on Thursday.

He announced that the government will upgrade and expand the Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH) to a 2,500-bed hospital.

The Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital is located on the premises of the SKMCH. Nitish visited the modular hospital facilities, operation theatres, intensive care units, paediatrics intensive care unit and research centre, and inspected the under-construction Centre for Cancer Epidemiology Unit there. He interacted with the doctors and patients during the visit.

Nitish asked the health department officials accompanying him to ensure that the “doctors, medical workers and patients at the facility do not face any problem.”

The chief minister laid the foundation stone for a nursing hostel at the cancer hospital.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of his visit, Nitish said that all the under-construction facilities would be completed by the end of this year.

“The people will not have to go out of the state for medical treatment. We will also expand the SKMCH into a 2,500-bed facility. Please let the people know that much work is happening in the field of health in the state. We also help people from the chief minister’s medical fund to ensure their treatment,” Nitish said.

Health department additional chief secretary Pratyaya Amrit apprised the chief minister of the work going on at the cancer hospital. He said that around 9 lakh people from 38 districts of the state have undergone cancer screening at the facility.

“Cancer screening helps detect cancer in two-thirds of the total patients,” Amrit said.