Jammu Dec 28 PTI In yet another major step to boost domestic investment in Jammu and Kashmir the Union territory government on Tuesday signed a pact with the world-renowned healthcare company Apollo Hospitals to establish a multi-specialty hospital in Jammu In the presence of JK Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha a memorandum of understanding MoU was signed between JK Principal Secretary Commerce and Industry Ranjan Prakash Thakur and Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Executive Vice-Chairperson Preetha Reddy Speaking on the occasion JK Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said the MoU is another major milestone for the Union Territory We have embarked on a new journey of development and socio-economic growth which will take the JK UT to levels never seen before Sinha added With greater industry engagement and investment JK will grow from strength to strength in the years to come the lieutenant governor said Sinha added added that providing best healthcare facilities the venture will also bring huge direct and indirect employment opportunities for the locals The lieutenant governor said JK is the only UT and state in the country with the universal health insurance coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh per family We are also having an extensive budget for the health sector More healthcare projects and MoUs are in the pipeline to ensure best healthcare within the reach of every citizen of the UT said the lieutenant governor In the first phase Apollo Hospitals will set up a 250-bed hospital in the region Well-known for clinical excellence Apollo has a robust presence across the healthcare ecosystem providing high-quality patient-focused medical care Thakur spoke on the health facilities to be extended to the people of the Union Territory through the MoU Apollos Reddy shared the vision of Apollo Hospitals to establish the state-of-the-art health facilities in the UT We understand that the health sector creates vast job opportunities and this project will also generate more than 1000 direct jobs she said Reddy added that this is the responsibility that have been collectively set forth to discharge Apart from this it will also become the training centre not only for doctors but also for the nurses paramedics technicians and allied healthcare workers she added Tomorrow when JK will become a hub for healthcare tourism people from the rest of the world can also be treated here In a way this project will help us heal the world Reddy said Reddy said she is committed to bringing specialists in various healthcare sectors onboard Trained health personnel are required to efficiently look after the people in need of medical attention We are happy to bring good standard of training learning and skilling in the health sector to JK This is a progressive step We are thankful to the lieutenant governor for giving us this opportunity I believe that its a giant leap of faith but it is a project that will put us on the global map she added PTI AB HRS hrs