Garhwal Post Bureau
Kotdwar, 2 Sep: Uttarakhand Assembly Speaker and Kotdwar MLA, Ritu Khanduri Bhushan conducted a surprise inspection of the Primary Health Centres (PHCs) at Jhandichaur and Kalalghati in her constituency on Tuesday. The inspection was aimed at assessing the quality of healthcare services and understanding the problems faced by the public.
During the visit to Jhandichaur Health Centre, she inspected the healthcare facilities, cleanliness, and the staff attendance register. On learning that doctors were directing patients to purchase medicines from outside medical shops instead of providing them through the health centre, she expressed strong displeasure and reprimanded the doctors. She issued clear instructions that all essential medicines must be provided free of cost at the health centre, itself, so that people are not burdened with unnecessary expenses.
The Speaker also checked the staff attendance and immediately called the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), instructing him to seek clarification regarding the absence of certain employees.
Subsequently, she visited the Kalalghati PHC, where she interacted with patients and their families to learn about their issues. She stated that a state-of-the-art 32-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) has been constructed at this centre by HSCL at a cost of Rs 3 crore under the Covid Relief Fund. This unit will be inaugurated soon, significantly strengthening healthcare facilities in the region.
She added, “It is a commendable step by the Government of India and the Government of Uttarakhand to provide such an advanced health facility in a small city like Kotdwar, which will give new direction to maternal and child healthcare services in the region.”
Present on the occasion were Kotdwar Health Representative Jitendra Negi, Mandal General Secretary Abhishek Negi, Rajat Bhatt, along with other workers and local residents.
