Due to the shortage of doctors in the mountainous districts of Uttarakhand like Pauri, Tehri, Uttarkashi, Chamoli and Rudraprayag across Garhwal region, primary health centres, community health centres and district hospitals are in a bad shape. The locals are at the receiving end of the mess with the proper medical care facilities remaining out of bounds for them. The efforts of the State government to provide good medical facility in the mountainous areas by appointing adequate number of doctors has failed to provide relief to the suffering people so far.
The refrain runs among the people that the State government is apathetic to provide proper medical facilities to them living in the mountainous region of Uttarakhand. This is despite the fact that this was one of the demands that was being raised relentlessly since the State was carved out of Uttar Pradesh over 15 years ago. Pauri being the district and regional headquarter of Pauri Garhwal district, only 63 out of the 267 sanctioned post of the doctors in the district are filled now. The people are asking the government to explain its claim of providing the people with the required medical facilities. “This is gibberish, as we are realising to our woe,” said one of the agitated person while castigating the State Government for its alleged apathy in the health front in the hilly region of the State.
Chief medical officer Dr Maneesh Agrawal said that the figure of just 63 of the 267 sanctioned posts of the doctors being filled now was correct. In- charge chief medical superintendent, District Hospital Pauri, Dr P K Chandola said aside from the posts of EMO, GDMO, cardiologist and physicians lying vacant in the district hospital, the same was the case with district female hospital.
The CT scan machine being installed a few years ago, no technician and qualified doctors has been appointed to run it. The radiologist working in the district hospital leaves the station to receive training at Doon Hospital in Dehradun every alternate week. The license of the established blood bank has not been renewed. This would be cleared after the WHO team visits it, it is said. The list is long and the people demand that the State government must address them promptly to keep the people tethered to the villages. Otherwise, the pace of migration would quicken in the coming days to the detriment of the long term interests of the State, they warned.