Normal life was affected in Dhenkanal town when the local Nagarik Kriyanusthan Committee resorted to a 12-hour dawn-to-dusk bandh pressing for its demand for a city hospital status to the old hospital at Baji Chowk here.
As part of the agitation, the activists staged road blockades and picketing at different places of the town disrupting vehicular movements. Besides, shops and other business establishments remained closed due to the stir.
Leaders of several organisations, including the District Bar Association, Chamber of Commerce, Chemist and Druggist Association, Journalist Association, Congress and BJP extended their support to the bandh call. They alleged that though the BJD had been winning all the Assembly seats and Parliament seat from Dhenkanal district for a long time, the ruling party in the State ignored the interest of the 12 lakh voters of the district.
Notably, the 85-year-old Dhenkanal Headquarters Hospital has been shifted to a seven storied building near the Dakhinakali road. But the hospital is functioning with manpower shortage and inadequate specialist doctors and staff. For diagnosis of diseases, even the facilities for Ultrasound, MRI, Endoscopy, CT scan, ECG and Echo are not available. On the contrary, the deserted old hospital building at Baji Chowk has turned a haven for anti- socials. The Government has not executed any project so far to use the old hospital building situated over three acres of land. The agitators also demanded that the new hospital be upgraded to a medical college and hospital.