Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 25: Ashok Kumar, former MLA Ramban and a senior Congress leader regretted the 65% shortage of Medical staff at Primary Heath Centre Rajgarh, in Ramban district and urged upon the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory to fill up the vacant posts at the earliest.
In a press statement here today the former MLA said that in Ramban constituency the people are facing a lot of hardships and difficulties in this crucial time of Covid-19 pandemic. The Ex-MLA said, ” Rajgarh is a Tehsil and a Block Headquarters and comprising of more than 12 Panchayats and covers three more Panchayats in its periphery. He said geographically, Rajgarh is centre of Ramban constituency and surrounded by hundreds of small hamlets whose people are suffering badly due to non-availability of doctors and medical facilities. During this unprecedented crisis of Covid-19 pandemic, it becomes essential in rural areas to ensure smooth functioning of every health centres,” he added.
Ashok Kumar further said that Rajgarh BDO block surrounded by 16 hilly panchayats, has only Primary Health Centre (PHC) where four posts of doctors and six posts of para-medical staff are lying vacant. Thus, patients belonging to Rajgarh region are suffering badly because of two months lockdown and non-availability of transport facilities from the administration. Patients have to walk on-foot 25-35 Km in this tough and difficult mountainous terrain for their treatment in District Hospital Ramban. Consequently, the serious patients are in deep trouble and nobody from higher authority is paying any attention towards the poor people. These people are also without any work or job from the last two months because of the prolonged lockdown under covid-19 pandemic.
Congress leader further said that Medical higer authorities of Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory are responsible to solve the problem of these beleaguered rural people. On the contrary, Government of Jammu and Kashmir is projecting different Medical schemes only on white papers. However, the ground reality is painful and shocking. As a result of the political vacuum and failure of bureaucracy, people in rural areas of Ramban constituency and erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir are being pounded and their living conditions is ever becoming miserable.
Ashok has stressed that in such a remote and mountaineous region of Rajgarh life saving ambulance facilities and free medicines are urgently required. On the other, not even a single ambulance is functional at PHC Rajgarh. He also demanded that PHC Rajgarh be upgraded to CHC level.