Shopian, May 12 (KNO): The lone X-ray machine at District Hospital Shopian has remained defunct for over a week, leaving patients, accident victims, and emergency cases with no diagnostic facility at the district's main hospital. The crisis worsens during night hours when emergency patients, elderly citizens, and critically ill individuals have no immediate option for investigations.
Patients and attendants, as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), termed the situation inhuman, saying the absence of a basic diagnostic facility has exposed the fragile state of healthcare in Shopian. They said the poor are silently suffering while authorities have failed to resolve the issue despite repeated complaints.
"Will someone listen to our cries?" said one attendant, whose relative had been waiting for treatment. "People come to a government hospital with hope because they cannot afford private clinics, but here even a simple X-ray is unavailable."
Locals alleged that patients are being compelled to move from one hospital to another, often during late-night hours, only to get a routine X-ray examination done. Many questioned how a district hospital could function without such an essential diagnostic service for weeks.
Tariq Ahmad, an attendant, said he brought his ailing father to the hospital around 8 PM after his condition suddenly worsened. "The doctors immediately advised an X-ray, but when we reached the X-ray section, we were told the machine had been out of order for many days and that we should go outside. My father was in severe pain, it was dark outside, and we had nowhere to go. At that moment, I felt completely shattered. What is the purpose of a government hospital if basic facilities are unavailable?" he asked.
Several attendants demanded an investigation to check the existence of a possible nexus aimed at forcing patients towards private diagnostic centres outside the hospital, and called for a transparent inquiry into why the machine remained defunct for such a long time without timely repairs or replacement.
MLA Shabir Ahmad Kullay visited District Hospital Shopian and reviewed the situation with concerned medical officials, acknowledging the hardships being faced by the people and assuring that the X-ray facility would be made functional within the next few days.
An official from the Health Department said the issue had been taken up with concerned authorities and that a new X-ray machine would be installed at District Hospital Shopian within a week.
Residents said the healthcare sector in Shopian remains very weak, urging the Health Department and higher authorities to intervene without further delay—(KNO)