This Bengal Village Has Had Hospital Building for 3 Decades. Not Enough Staff

A 15-bed hospital in West Bengal, inaugurated by erstwhile Union minister Ajit Panja, has been shut for the last 30 years. The hospital in the Khemasuli village on the border of West Midnapore and Jhargram has been only operating its outdoor facilities for the last few years. The residents of the area are now demanding the indoor facilities to be opened. The hospital is covered with weeds and various other kinds of undergrowth.

Although this village is located just beside the national highway in Kharagpur, Block No. 1 in the West Midnapore district, it has been missing a hospital for the last 30 years. Outdoor services are available from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. If someone suffers from any serious ailment, they have to be taken to the Jhargram District Hospital or the Medinipur Medical College, situated 20 to 30 km away.

Even if the situation is not serious, you can visit the Kharagpur sub-divisional hospital, but even that is almost 12-13 km away. Villagers such as elderly Tapan Mahato or the youngster Pranab Mahato are demanding that the villagers desperately need 24-hour service, especially keeping in mind the snake bites that are on the rise.

The indoor medical services of this hospital have been defunct since 1992. But before it shut down its indoor services, it was fully functional for several years. Pranab Mahato said, “Around 50,000-60,000 residents of the 20-30 villages nearby have to depend on Khemasuli Primary Health Center. The indoor services should be restarted immediately. It will benefit more than half a million people.”

Tapan Mahato said, “The buildings including the doctors’ quarters are all falling apart, and the condition of the hospital is worsening and it is in dire need of repair.” He also said, “We had earlier sent a letter to  the Chief Minister’s office regarding the issue, but no response was received.”

Dr Bhuvan Chandra Hansda, Chief Health Officer, said, “At present, the hospital has a pharmacist, a medical health officer, a nurse, and a Group-D staff. It is not possible to start indoor service with only these four staff members. However, we have forwarded the demands of the locals to the state health building.”

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