The sole community health centre in the border area of Joshimath has continued to function without doctors.
With the Government failing to provide doctors here, the public is forced to visit costlier and even distant private clinics and hospitals to seek medical treatment. This centre is all the more important as patients from Badrinath are also brought to Joshimath. In case of mishaps during the Char Dham Yatra season, the injured persons are administered first aid here and then referred to other centres for treatment.
A total of 13 posts of medical officers are approved for the Joshimath health centre. Of these nine posts are vacant with only four doctors working at present and of the four doctors, a lady doctor has been absent for the past five months. According to information given by the department, the lady doctor was on leave from June 18, 2012 to September 24, 2012. However, she is yet to resume her duties. Officials state that a notice was sent to her but she has remained absent. At a time when this health centre is suffering from a severe shortage of doctors, the prolonged and unexplained absence of the lady doctor raises questions at the functioning of the department.
At present Dr Viraj Shah is posted as the medical superintendent, Dr Rachna Dimri as the lady medical officer and Dr Satish Chandra Singh as radiologist while the posts lying vacant include those of the surgeon, child specialist, orthopaedic, pathologist, dentist, anaesthetist, two pharmacists and two nurses. Apart from this the CHC is also facing a shortage of medicines. There have been no vitamins for the past couple of months for the children being brought to the family welfare centre. Sources informed that in view of the Char Dham Yatra season, slated to start later this month, four doctors are expected to be deployed here. The municipal council chairperson Rohini Rawat said that a letter has been submitted to the director general of Health, informing him about the problems being faced in the Joshimath CHC.