Jammu, July 4: “The healthcare services across the Jammu region have reached an alarming state, casting a dark shadow over the well-being of the people and leaving the healthcare system in shambles,” said Rattan Lal Gupta, provincial president of J&K National Conference, Jammu on Tuesday.
In a statement issued here, the senior NC leader strongly criticized the LG-led administration for its “failure” to provide adequate healthcare facilities to the people of the Jammu region. He said, “Primary Health Centers (PHCs) are operating in a dire state, with no available doctors and insufficient medical infrastructure. Over 165 PHCs are operating without qualified doctors, despite the issue being raised consistently by the party over the last one year. The reliance on paramedical staff to run these PHCs poses significant risks to the healthcare of the local population.”
Gupta said the rural and far-flung areas of the Jammu region are particularly affected by this “healthcare crisis”. “The LG administration has shown a lack of serious concern towards the hardships faced by the general public residing in these areas. The Primary Health Centres in Mougri, Latti, Thial and several other areas suffer from inadequate healthcare facilities. Shockingly, more than 1000 vacancies of doctors and 5000 vacancies of paramedics are lying vacant across the Union Territory. This shortage exacerbates the strain on the already struggling healthcare system,” he said.
Rattan Lal said the situation at SMGS Hospital Jammu “highlights the grim reality of the healthcare scenario” in Jammu. “More than one pregnant woman being compelled to share a single bed in the gynecology ward and almost the same condition is prevailing in children wards where three patient children sharing a single bed of SMGS Hospital Jammu are stark reminders of the dire conditions faced by patients, showing the bleak state of healthcare facilities in the Jammu city,” he said.
The provincial president asserted, “The LG-led administration boasts about unprecedented development in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir but the ground reality tells a different story.” He called upon the government to take immediate and adequate steps to address the healthcare crisis in Jammu. “It is crucial to ensure that people no longer feel compelled to seek better healthcare facilities in neighboring states,” he added.
“The LG administration should prioritize healthcare as a fundamental right and allocate the necessary resources to improve the healthcare infrastructure in Jammu. The well-being and lives of the people should be the utmost priority, and immediate action is required to address this pressing issue,” he concluded.
