Dilip Tirkey
Port Blair, 16 February 2023
The pitch-dark wards of PHC Tushnabad are haunting the poor in-patients. The staff works under candlelight to treat the patients, and they struggle every day.
The bad power cut situation in South Andaman District is nothing new, and Govt. establishments have their own DG Sets to cope with the situation. Hospitals need power backup to maintain the comfort of the already suffering patients.
The DG Set of PHC Tushnabad frequently stops functioning properly, and the patients suffer due to the department’s inability to maintain their assets properly.
The villagers of Tushnabad reportedly had to protest to get a DG Set installed at the premises of the PHC for the well-being and comfort of the patients. When the DG Set was installed, the happy villagers and the political leaders also sang praises for the officials, but the reality struck when the DG Set started developing issues frequently.
While the Govt. sent rulers of the people of Andaman and Nicobar Islands rest peacefully in their well-maintained heavenly abodes, the poor cannot even find solace in hospitals during illness.
It’s hard to imagine the consequences the local officers would face in case of an hour-long power cut in the posh bungalows that line up the prime areas of Port Blair city, but the poor is powerless. Powerless in all senses.
Maintaining the basic infrastructure in hospitals should at least be a top priority.