By Prof. (Dr.) M. Ashraf Ganie
Director, SKIMS
43rd Annual Day & First SKIMS Annual Festival Week 2025”
It is an honour to stand before you on the occasion of the 43rd Annual Day of SKIMS, now expanded into the first-ever SKIMS Annual Festival Week 2025.
This is not merely a date on an institutional calendar. It is a moment in the life of a society that has consciously chosen to believe that health is not a privilege for a few, but a right for every individual who walks through our doors. When a society makes that choice, it also accepts a responsibility — and SKIMS is one of the places where that responsibility is tested every single minute.
Last year, when we marked this day in the presence of the Hon’ble Chief Minister, it became a turning point. We did not simply celebrate achievements — we made a decision about direction. We resolved to renew SKIMS’ commitment to modernisation, equitable care, and world-class academic and research standards.
Once an institution chooses its direction with clarity, every step becomes either progress or regression — there is no neutral ground. That is the standard with which we must evaluate ourselves.
Patient Care & Public Trust
In the past year, SKIMS recorded:
• Nearly 15 lakh outpatient visits
• Over 1 lakh admissions
• Approximately 50,000 emergency registrations
• More than 20,000 surgeries, including high-end superspecialty procedures
These figures are often seen as statistics, but in reality, each number represents a story — a family placing its trust in this institution, often in a moment of fear and uncertainty. When we speak of numbers, we speak of trust — and trust strengthens ethical responsibility.
With a daily footfall touching 45,000 to 50,000, the pressure on infrastructure and staff is immense. But rather than treat this as an excuse, we treated it as a diagnostic clue — a reason to redesign and strengthen systems.
Strengthening Emergency & Specialty Services
Over the past year, SKIMS undertook major structural improvements:
• Introduction of scientific triage
• Separation of medical, surgical, and paediatric emergencies
• Designation of critical vs. non-critical care pathways
• Operationalisation of a dedicated 5-suite emergency theatre
• 24×7 SMART emergency laboratory
• Dedicated CT scanner, Ayushman cell, multiple USG and X-ray units
The goal was simple:
Reduce the time from door-to-doctor and doctor-to-decision — because in emergency medicine, delays are measured not in minutes, but in lives.
The foundation for a 100-bed emergency expansion is ready and a dedicated trauma centre is in planning.
Outpatient care has also expanded with new super-specialty clinics including liver transplant, paediatric pulmonology, endocrinology, psychiatry, and drug de-addiction services.
Online appointments and automated kiosks are being rolled out.
Equipment worth ₹100 crore has been added or replaced to improve high-end patient care.
Bone marrow and kidney transplant services have been expanded by 50%, significantly reducing waiting time.
Responding to the Cancer Burden
With nearly 10,000 new cancer cases annually in J&K, SKIMS has strengthened the State Cancer Institute through:
• Doubling daycare capacity
• Preventive oncology clinics
• Welfare support services
• Procurement of advanced systems including:
• ₹29 crore linear accelerator
• ₹24 crore 3T MRI
• 128-slice CT scanner
• Mammography and microarray platforms
A district-level ONCONET hub-and-spoke model is being conceptualised to decentralise cancer care. A proposal for Zonal Cancer Centre status has been submitted to GoI.
Human Resource Revival & Institutional Ethics
Institutions cannot progress when their workforce stagnates. In a landmark move, SKIMS executed:
• 1100 long-pending promotions
• 1400 paramedical and ministerial posts referred to SSRB
• 130 faculty positions referred to JKPSC
These are not administrative actions alone — they are a recognition of human value and institutional dignity.
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Academic & Research Advancements
New academic programmes launched include:
• DM Critical Care Medicine
• MCh Endocrine Surgery
• DrNB Cardiac Anaesthesia
• Fellowship in Cardiac Physiology
Eleven additional programmes are underway, alongside a proposal for 100 new postgraduate seats.
In research, SKIMS has built a structured research ecosystem and secured ₹50 crore in competitive extramural grants, including DBT SAHAJ, NIDAN and DHR Centres of Excellence.
Landmark research contributions — including Genome India, INDIAB Study, and ICMR PCOS Task Force — were successfully completed.
Publications in Nature Genetics, The Lancet, and JAMA reflect global scientific standing.
A Vision for the Next Decade
The next phase includes:
• Liver and heart transplant programmes
• Dedicated Trauma & Emergency Centre
• Centres for Neurosciences, Cardiac Sciences & Robotic Surgery
New domains aligned with global health futures:
• Centre for One Health
• Centre for Precision Medicine
• Centre for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
• Centre for High Altitude & Environmental Medicine
• Centre for Sports Medicine
• Clinical Data Repository
• Centre for Non-Communicable Diseases
Infrastructure expansion includes a new OPD block, doctors’ hostel, auditorium, faculty facilities, stadium and recreational spaces to preserve dignity in service.
Moral Compass & Institutional Legacy
Our scripture reminds us in Surah Aal-Imran:
“You are raised for the benefit of humanity — to promote good and prevent harm.”
In medicine, this is not a metaphor — it is a daily instruction.
We honour today:
• The founder, Sher-e-Kashmir Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah
• The pioneers who built SKIMS under difficult circumstances
• The silent workforce — nurses, technicians, residents, paramedics — who carry this institution every day
• The COVID warriors whose service remains unforgettable
Message to the Young Doctors
You enter medicine in an era of extraordinary technology — yet deep inequality.
Machines will assist you — but compassion, ethics, and clarity of thought will define you.
If you pair scientific rigour with moral purpose, you will not only treat disease — you will help transform society.
Closing Note
The journey ahead is demanding. Expectations are high. Challenges are real.
But we also possess something invaluable — a community capable of rising to every challenge.
With continued financial support, policy vision and administrative autonomy, SKIMS will not only remain a centre of excellence in name — but in measurable outcomes and lived experience.
May SKIMS continue to be the place where science, compassion and justice come together in service of humanity.
Thank you.
( partly IA generated image )
