Kulgam, Aug 08 (KNO): Health and Education Minister Sakina Itoo on Saturday congratulated the people of Qaimoh in South Kashmir’s Kulgam district on the completion of the Sub-District Hospital (SDH) building, a project that took nearly two decades to materialise.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a function here Itoo, according to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said the completion of the hospital building will provide much-needed relief to residents of Qaimoh and adjoining areas, who have for years been demanding better healthcare infrastructure closer to their homes.
She said, “After around 20 years, the hospital building has been completed. Dialysis and testing facilities have been made available here, while bedding and other facilities will also be provided.”
The Minister said residents have been seeking further upgradation of the hospital and assured that the demand would be considered once the formal process for upgrading the health facilities is initiated.
Pertinently, the project was originally sanctioned for the then Primary Health Centre (PHC) Qaimoh, which was subsequently upgraded to a 50-bed Sub-District Hospital following demands from the local population. The hospital building was sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs 19.34 crore. Construction work began in 2003, but progress remained slow for several years.
According to residents, only the pillars and basic structural work had been completed during the initial years before construction was halted amid funding constraints and other issues.
For years, residents repeatedly approached authorities seeking completion of the building. Tahir Ahmad, a local resident, said, “The prolonged delay had caused considerable inconvenience to people, particularly poor families, elderly patients and those requiring regular medical care.”
“We have been hearing assurances about the completion of the building for years. Every year, people were told that the hospital would be ready soon, but the project continued to remain incomplete,” he said.
Residents said the completion of the building has raised hopes that the hospital will now be equipped with adequate manpower, beds, diagnostic facilities and other essential services so that patients do not have to travel long distances for routine and specialised treatment.
A health official earlier said that the prolonged delay was linked to paucity of funds and other issues associated with the project. The official had said the interior work was nearing completion and that the building would be made operational once the remaining formalities are completed.
Meanwhile, the Health Minister said the government is committed to provide 10 kilograms of free ration, as mentioned in NC’s election manifesto.
On the concerns of National Health Mission (NHM) employees regarding their remuneration, the Minister acknowledged their contribution to the healthcare system and said the matter of increasing their honorarium has already been taken up with the Union Health Ministry.
“NHM employees have a very important contribution in the health department. They have been appointed under the Government of India’s programme, and the issue of increasing their honorarium has already been taken up with the Union Health Ministry,” she said.
Itoo added that whatever was required at the government’s level would be done on priority.
The Minister also hit out at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), describing the FIR registered against party leader Iltija Mufti as a “fixed match” and alleging that the controversy was being used to divert attention from remarks made by PDP president Mehbooba Mufti during a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.
“There is a scripted narrative being created. The real issue is the statement Mehbooba Mufti made at Jantar Mantar. The FIR is only a diversionary tactic,” Itoo said.
The remarks came after Iltija Mufti was booked in connection with an alleged assault on a police officer during a PDP protest in the Srinagar on August 04—(KNO)