As the city residents shiver in the cold winter nights braving the occasional drizzle finding it difficult to keep themselves warm in the cozy confines of their homes and offices, there are several others striving on the freezing floors of the State-run Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) hospital here.
A large number of patients and their families coming in from the small villages and settlements of the neighbouring districts can be spotted sitting on the chilly corridors of different wards, including the night shelter home – Raen Basera that seems to lack the basic amenities such as light bulbs, beds and clean drinking water.
The supervisor of the night shelter stated that there are about 70 rooms in the building but with very few takers because of the charges applicable on the service and lack of basic facilities.
“We have 70 rooms to rent out to people at present and the charge is Rs 150 per room per day. We were directed to charge money by the administration since its inauguration and soon, the charges might increase. There are about six rooms on the ground floor too but that has not been allocated,” said Krishna Kumar Rai.
Meanwhile, Gopal Munda has come all the way from Jharanga, Odisha to seek proper treatment for his 5-year-old son Sudesh is struggling hard to pay the rent charges at the Raen Basera to save his 6-year-old daughter from the biting cold.
“My son is suffering from high fever and has been vomiting for the past three days. We have admitted him in the Pediatric ward’s unit II where he did not manage to find a bed and is lying on a thin mattress on the floor. It is difficult for us to survive the night on the floors of the corridor in this cold,” said Gopal.
Gopal further said that they can barely afford the charges for staying at the shelter home here and the several medical reports. “We have been told that the machines here are not functional and the blood and urine test needs to be done at the private lab Medall laboratories. We have spent around Rs 1,200 on his check-up and accommodation at the shelter only in one day. We have still paid the charges taken up a room at the shelter home for five days but there are no beds, mattresses, blankets, bed sheets or anything. There is no light bulb in the room and the corridor. The bathrooms also cannot be locked and lack light bulbs and even water sometimes,” added Munda.
Moreover, the BPl card holder Manish Kumar and his family has been lying on the corridor’s floor outside the Neurology department where his 12-year-old son Roshan is undergoing treatment because they cannot afford the charges at the Raen Basera here.
“We know how we have travelled all the way from Chatra and we are surviving on one meal a day. We spent Rs 2,000 on the CT-scan and that was all the money we had when we came here and how can we afford to stay at the night shelter home in a situation like thisIJ We will have to somehow survive on the freezing ground here braving the icy wind as Roshan needs to recover from the head and eye injury,” said Kumar.
However, no matter how grave the situation looks like with the dipping temperature and the queue of such poor, helpless families increasing at the hospital here, the entire situation looks quite ‘usual’ to the administration.
“Raen Basera was inaugurated to be outsourced in the first place and never to be thrown open to public for free of cost. The shelter will soon be handed over to a private player who had applied through tender and thereafter, well-managed by the same company. Then, we will be able to provide better facilities to the families coming in from neighbouring districts and States,” said Dr SK Chaudhary, Medical Superintendent.