KUPWARA DIARY: Awathkul Meelyal craves for better health care; PHC Wadipora lacks staff, people suffer

The residents of Awathkul Meelyal in north Kashmirs’ Kupwara district are grappling with lack of better health care facilities, resulting enduring hardships to them. The residents said that after the passage of several decades, successive dispensations have miserably failed to fulfill the demands of common masses. “Since we belong to heavy snow bound area and during winters it takes a heavy toll on us whenever there arises any medical emergency in our area,” a local told Greater Kashmir . “Due to limited public transport available in our area, most of the times we have to shoulder our patients on makeshift stretchers to reach the nearby health centre at Kralpora which happens to be 8 kilometers away from Awathkul,” another local said. “Since most of the people here belong to the labour class so hiring a private cab during medical emergencies really tells upon them,” he added. Residents demanded that a health centre be sanctioned at the earliest in their area so that people who have been suffering since long would get respite. They appealed Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to directly look into the matter so that the long pending demand of people be fulfilled. PHC Wadipora lacks staff, better diagnostic facilities, people suffer Residents of Wadipora and its adjacent villages in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district have said that lack of adequate staff and better diagnostic facilities at Primary Health Centre (PHC) Wadipora has been a concern for them for last several years but authorities were unmoved, instead were watching their miseries as mute spectators. The residents said that the hospital was established several years ago but it has never remained a priority for authorities. They said that the health centre lacks better health care facilities thus forcing locals to look for other alternatives with regard to their treatment. The failure of the department to provide better diagnostic facilities at Primary Health Centre (PHC) Wadipora has also left the locals anguished. They said that a manual X-ray plant and an ECG machine were available in the hospital but they do not fulfill the purpose. They said that installation of a digital X-ray machine was must so that the patients were not forced to move to Handwara for the want of same. The residents said that the hospital was functioning without the services of an ambulance which really tells upon the smooth functioning of hospital. Pregnancy care has also been hit badly due to non-availability of a specialized gynecologist here with the result women of the area face severe hardships and they were forced to visit Handwara. Locals told Greater Kashmir that they have brought these grievances into the notice of concerned officials numerous times but nothing concrete has been done in this regard so far. Block Medical Officer (BMO) Zachaldara Dr Abdul Gani said that the whole Zachaladara medical block has dearth of medical officers still then two doctors have been deputed here. He said that since PHC Wadipora has been aligned with GMC Handwara, so it will be the responsibility of GMC to look after the staff and diagnostic facilities.