Jammu & Kashmir: Tall claims of providing proper Medicare facilities to people at their doorsteps have fallen flat. Free medicine and food to patients has been a distant dream despite flood of funds from centre in this regard. Ministers and leaders of the day even did not hesitate in assuring free treatment to serious disease like cancer etc.
Real News Agency
In a bizarre revelation by well informed sources, Government Medical College, Jammu, has been equipped by a Cobalt Radiotherapy Machines in its Oncology department but none of use to the patients due being non functional. Patients have to move out of state for treatment, which costs then burden of huge expenses along with tension of disease.
“We are sorry to say that government of Jammu and Kashmir is always parroting of good governance in poor economic conditions on one hand side and on the other one fails to understand as to why equipments and accessories fails after being launched or installed in the state institutes” rued a relative of patient working in CID department of J&K Police.
But, Minister of State for Medical Education Mr. Feroz Ahmad Khan while replying to a Calling Attention Notice by Mr. Ajatshatru Singh informed that there are two Cobalt Radiotherapy Machines in GMC, of which one is non-functional due to Cobalt Radioactive Source expiry, Second Radiotherapy Machine is catering requirement of the Patients, he added.
The Minister said the approximately cost of the equipment with necessary spare parts is Rs. 1.70 crore, adding that the allocated funds sanctioned for the purpose by the Government of India is yet to be released. Feroz said that a proposal for upgradation of existing facilities in the Regional Cancer Centre (RCC), GMC, Jammu amounting to Rs. 6 crore is under process and the same will be submitted to the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare shortly for funding.
“Government can spent hundreds of crores on the protection of separatists and millions and millions on rehabilitation of terrorists but is hesitant in spending Rs 7 to Rs 8 crores to make the Oncology department functional for the larger interest of people” said a citizen Mustafa Shaikh. If government is poor how come the ordinary people could be rich enough to bear the huge expenses incurred upon the treatment of fatal diseases, he asked.