Jalandhar, March 24 -- The Shaheed Bhagat Singh Government Medical College, the stone for which was laid by chief minister Bhagwant Mann in Nawashahr on Sunday, is the third such facility announced for the Doaba region in the past six years but the previous two colleges, announced in 2019 and 2020, are yet to see the light of day.

The then Congress government in the state had approved a medical college in Hoshiarpur in 2020 and another in Kapurthala in 2019 to mark the 550th celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev birth anniversary.

The construction of both these colleges has been delayed as the officials concerned have failed to find any bidder despite floating tenders for more than four times. An official, wishing not to be named, said the bid...