Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, July 31: Five years on, work on construction of the multi-story building of Kashmir’s lone maternity hospital, Lal Ded Memorial Hospital, by Urban Environment Engineering Department (UEED) has vanished the hopes of its timely completion.
The work on its new building was started in 2009, but its faulty design by Jammu and Kashmir Project Construction Corporation (JKPCC) has delayed its completion.
“The JKPCC had forgotten to keep space for some basic units in the building, and for that they had to go for some redesigning of the building. Thus it took some more time to JKPCC for its completion,” he said.
“The construction work of the new 200-bedded block in the hospital is near completion and would be put to use within one and half month. It is built at an estimated cost of Rs 40.25 crore,” Bhat said.
Owing to huge rush of patients to the hospital, its administration has shifted few of its functioning units to the under-construction building to ease the overloading in the hospital.
As per records, the official said, 100-150 patients are admitted in the hospital every day, while hundreds visit every daily. “80 percent patients registered in the Out-Patient and In-Patient departments in hospital are from far-off areas of the Anantnag, Shopian, Pulwama, Kulgam, Baramulla, Kupwara, Bandipora, Budgam and Ganderbal despite these areas having around 35 health institutions including district, sub-district hospitals and health centers,” he added.
“The crowd in the labour room is unmanageable and sometimes that can affect the health of new born babies due to over-crowded shift of patients to C-section for caesarean,” he said.
Medical Superintendent, L D hospital, Dr Mushtaq Rather said that to overcome the excessive load of maternity patients in Hospital, the hospital authorities has shifted few units into the under-construction building to provide relief to the patients.
Dr Mushtaq said that it is a coordinated work between JKPCC, R&B, UEED and Mechanical wing, as the authorities have to take care of sewage, rehabilitation of affected shopkeepers and adequate parking facility has to be provided for doctors, paramedics as well as attendants.
Follow our WhatsApp channel