Nizamia Unani General Hospital’s crumbling structure craves for attention from the authorities. The renovation works of this heritage structure has been a backburner for more than five years. Even this year, the government has allocated only Rs one crore for repair works.
According to official sources, the disrepair of the heritage structure is no secret and has been represented at regular intervals to the higher authorities’, but the matter remains pending by the consecutive governments. Even this year, the budget allocations remains low for building repair work, which is Rs 1 crore and Rs 1 crore for equipment and medicine. But even this budget utilisation, if allocations are made within the financial year, remains a question to be pondered.
Now the situation has to come to this far that even the water coolers has to be provided by the NGOs. “You can witness the structure by yourself. If we talk about developmental activities, you can see that the water coolers are being installed by NGOs,” said the official source, on condition of anonymity.
If one visits the hospital, the crumbling structure is visible at the ceiling in any of aisle. The hospital which was built more than eight decades ago has been providing service ever since it was constructed. Even to this day, the hospital serves pregnant women in cases of normal delivery. “My wife gave birth to baby boy and will be discharged as this is the third day. Poor still come here for normal deliveries and there if there is bleak chance of normal delivery they are referred to Petlaburj hospital or other government hospital,” said Shabbir, an auto driver.
Another problem the hospital continues to face is staff crunch and low supply of medicine. The staff which should have been 210 as per the requirement remains below 100 and unable to sustain the requirement of the historic hospital. More than five years ago it was proposed that this hospital near Charminar should be renovated but remains pending due to shortage of funds. The hospital, which was built in 1938 by Nizam Osman Ali Khan, has been known for its Unani treatment and alternative medicine practices for the last 80 years. #KhabarLive
