Orthopedic building under construction Srinagar B&J Hospital misses June deadline

Orthopedic building under construction Srinagar B&J Hospital misses June deadline

The under-construction 120-bed specialized orthopedic unit building at the Bone and Joints Hospital in Srinagar, which was expected to be completed in June, has missed this year's deadline raising eyebrows over the pace of work.

The 120-bed specialized orthopedic unit, an additional hospital block of the valley's only orthopedic tertiary hospital, is being developed by the J&K Economic Reconstruction Agency, Jhelum Tawi Flood Recovery Project (JTFRP) in collaboration with the World Bank.

Hospital officials said that the new hospital building is designed as a G+ structure, incorporating modern equipment in its construction. Construction began in 2019 and has missed multiple deadlines.

"The deadline for this year ended in June and it was scheduled to be handed over but it missed another deadline," officials said.

Notably, this is the first time in North India and Jammu and Kashmir that the new hospital building will have a pneumatic transit system. "We have used completely hygienic and anti-bacterial ingredients in OT," they said.

Officials said the new hospital building will have a state-of-the-art modular operation theater (OT) which is coming for the first time in Jammu and Kashmir.

Specialized orthopedic units will greatly impact patient care and people will get state-of-the-art facilities. Officials said, this is the first time they are using viscous fluid dampers in any structure.

The design of the hospital was finalized after extensive consultation with health infrastructure experts, health departments and hospital administration combining their inputs.

The facility was sanctioned with an aim that the hospital would be at par with the standards of leading hospitals in India as well as outside the country.

Medical Superintendent Bone and Joints Hospital, Barjulla, Srinagar, Dr. Shabir Siddiqui said the hospital authorities have taken up the matter with the concerned agencies and have requested to complete the construction work on time for the sake of patient care.

With the completion of the new block, the hospital is expected to decongest and improve trauma and orthopedic services in the valley. The hospital brings in patients from Kistiwar, Chenab Valley and Ladakh, a region of great importance in healthcare.

Earlier, the hospital had 200 beds but when it caught fire in March 2022, the number of beds was reduced to 150 and the hospital was overcrowded.

"The building should be handed over immediately and completed as soon as possible so that the patients have a sign of relief," said MS.

Hospital officials said the new building will push patients further and benefit patients immensely. Despite the delay the new deadline is now December 2024.

The existing hospital building was damaged in the 2014 floods which subsequently prompted the construction of an additional block which was approved in 2015.