Shafqat Sheikh
Jammu & Kashmir government is running Public Health Centres (PHCs) and Sub Centres in some parts of the Kishtwar district in violation of staff requirement norms and has been operating these from rented accommodations with damaged and old infrastructure for since long. Despite tall claims of Health Ministry and legislators to provide better medicare facilities at the doorsteps of every nook and corner of the State through numerous State and Centrally Sponsored Schemes, due to the lack of doctors and even para-medical staff in the rural Health care centres of Kishtwar district, people have no other option but to travel 200 Km to Jammu even for the treatment of common ailments. PHC Nali in Bunjwah region of Kishtwar district is the worse example of the pathetic attitude of the Govt towards medicare facilities in the Bunjwah region where other Health Sub Centres in far-flung areas including Kither, Buddhar, Suranga, Patnazi, Kewa, Pashalla, and Balgran are opened only once in a week or twice in a month. Now a days, patients are treated in the open sky which is enough to tell the apathetic attitude of the concerned authorities sitting at the helm of affairs that shows the real image of PHC Nali which faces a shortage of space, staff, lack of residential quarters, paramedical staff and other necessary types of equipment, etc.
Starting many years ago, PHC Nali in Bonjwah Tehsil of District Kishtwar has not progressed till date. As a result, the PHC still operates within the same infrastructure as it had before being opened in some rooms. Despite knowing the poor condition of hospitals across the state, Former Ministers of the Jammu and Kashmir Health Department vowed development in the Health Department, narrating their working style in public meetings and before State/ Union leaders but the reality differs from his fictions. Acute space shortage has badly hit services at Primary Health Centre Nali Bunjwah where health employees and doctors are finding it difficult to cater to the increasing patient rush. PHC Nali with a capacity of few patients, admits patients from across Bonjwah Tehsil but is deficient in space, besides nursing and other paramedical staff. The hospital beds are regularly occupied by two to three patients as I visited several times there. A source informed that in the Health sector Bunjwah there are own rules established by doctors as they are performing duties turn by turn from week to week among which few are performing their honesty and dedication. Besides the shortage of doctors in Sub Centres in Buddhar, Suranga, Kither, Kewa, Pashalla, and Balgran had hit the life of common masses badly as these centres are opened only once a week or twice a month. Source added that PHC Nali only has five rooms in which there is One Medical Officer office, a labour room, Lab section, a dental section and an emergency room”.
A patient said, “This is the same PHC that I had seen when I was a child, today I brought my child to the PHC, Nali for treatment but it is unfortunate that for the last so many years neither this PHC has been upgraded nor the condition improved. “With the current strength of staff, and accommodation of PHC it is impossible to run the same during late-night hours,” said an official. It is pertinent to mention that ” Due to shortage of doctors and paramedical staff in the far-flung region of Bunjwah, PHCs, sub-centers, and dispensaries, people have to travel long distances to either visit district hospitals or hospitals in Jammu and Srinagar. While Jammu is about 250 Km from here, Srinagar is more than 300 Km. Healthcare in remote Bunjwah area, having a population of about 35,000 people, is worst affected. The area is not getting any government attention. “Some health centres still operate from rented accommodations with poor infrastructure,” an eyewitness said. In Bunjwah, only one PHC has been running at Nali for many years. The government had now opened Sub Centres, Dispensaries in the darling area of Bunjwah along with a new type of PHC at Patnazi. As these Sub Centres and dispensaries were still not up to the mark as they face a shortage of staff results whole population of Bunjwah became dependent on PHC Nali, which too was devoid of modern facilities, sources alleged, saying that due to shortage of staff, doctors were finding it difficult to cater to the increasing rush of patients. A senior doctor of PHC Nali said, “We are having few rooms and we face it very tough in catering to the huge rush of patients. Patients are also facing difficulties as PHC lacks hospital beds. It also does not have a separate OPD block.” He said it was unfortunate that for the last so many years, neither PHC was upgraded to CHC nor the conditions had improved. Sources informed that some years ago land was acquired for the construction of separate blocks but to date, nothing was visible on the ground.
(The author is a freelance Journalist Columnist
and Socio-Political Activist).