Trauma Centre Watergam faces official neglect, residents protest

Srinagar, Mar 18: The Trauma Centre at Watergam Rafiabad in North Kashmir’s Baramulla district lacks basic facilities, prompting residents to protest and appeal to the government for urgent intervention and provision of essential services.
Zahoor Ahmad Malla, a teacher from Watergam, stated that the government had established trauma centers across Kashmir a decade ago, including the one at Watergam, but continued neglect has rendered them ineffective in managing injuries caused by road accidents.
“Over the years, the health department has ‘designated trauma hospitals and centers,’ yet they have failed to provide the required services. These trauma facilities exist only on paper,” he said.
The area has witnessed multiple casualties due to road accidents, including a recent fatality and serious injuries, raising serious concerns over the lack of proper medical facilities at the trauma center, which is a crucial healthcare unit along the Baramulla-Kupwara Highway.
Residents recalled that the foundation stone for the facility was laid in 2014, and they had high hopes that it would help manage road traffic injuries on the highway.
“It brought hope for the people. We believed the hospital would bring a change but that never happened. Those who suffer road traffic injuries die on the way to hospital,” he said.
Residents said they have learnt that the facility has suffered from years of neglect, making it incapable of treating accident-related injuries in the district.
“There are no adequate facilities. It faces shortage of doctors and paramedical staff and patients suffer,” said Haji Ghulam Malla, a local resident.
He said that residents are compelled to refer critical patients to Srinagar hospitals, which leads to delays in treatment and worsens patient outcomes.
The trauma center also faces a shortage of ambulances, essential medical instruments, and round-the-clock emergency services, which significantly affects patient care.
“The highway is prone to road accidents, yet we lack the infrastructure to handle critical cases. There is no specialized trauma care,” locals lamented. The lack of manpower and infrastructure has made it nearly impossible for the facility to deliver critical care services.
“Due to the absence of trauma care in North Kashmir, patients often die on their way to Srinagar hospitals. This is an unfortunate reality,” a health official admitted.
About the already established trauma centres in the valley, he said these are not trauma hospitals in the true sense; they are merely first-aid centers that have been wrongly designated as trauma hospitals.