Construction of new building for Civil Hospital, Karnal delayed

The project of constructing a new building for the Civil Hospital in Karnal city is facing delays as the responsibility has been shifted from the Smart City team to the Health Department.

Site identified

• The administration has identified a 9.5-acre land in Sector-32 near Shaheed Udham Singh Chowk for the project
• Initially, a 13.5-acre plot was earmarked, but it was cancelled due to overhead power lines
• The existing building of the hospital is very old and does not have sufficient space for expansion
• It was originally known as King Edward Hospital. Its foundation stone was laid on April 17, 1911

Earlier, under the Smart City project, all formalities had been completed and even a budget of Rs 100 crore had been approved, but it has now been transferred to the Health Department, which awaits fund allocation.

Anish Yadav, Deputy Commissioner-cum-CEO, Karnal Smart City Ltd, said, “The administration has identified a 9.5-acre land in Sector-32 near Shaheed Udham Singh Chowk for the project. The land belongs to Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP). Now, the Health Department will have to bear the cost of the land as well as construction.”

Officials claimed that the HSVP had finalised the drawings through an agency.

Dr Ravinder Sandhu, Deputy Civil Surgeon, said the drawing of the project had been sent to the HSVP for final approval. After the budget was sanctioned, further process would initiate.

Initially, a 13.5-acre plot was earmarked, but it was cancelled due to overhead power lines, prompting the selection of the current site, he said.

“The proposed hospital building will have over 200 beds with modern amenities, including a cardiac unit, cath lab, MRI scan, CT scan, dialysis facility, de-addiction centre, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), administrative block, kitchen, laundry services, residential complex, Civil Surgeon’s office, Deputy Civil Surgeons’ offices and a training centre. It will have additional facilities such as a dedicated maternal and child health wing and a fully equipped emergency department,” said Dr Sandhu.

The demand for the new building arises as the existing hospital building does not have sufficient space for expansion. The existing building is very old and it was originally known as King Edward Hospital. Its foundation stone was laid on April 17, 1911. As per officials, in 2010, the Civil Hospital was converted into Kalpana Chawla Government Medical College (KCGMC) by the previous Congress government. The land was handed over to the KCGMC in December 2012. However, on April 13, 2017, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced the reinstatement of the Civil Hospital from the old building, and it was made operational on December 1, 2017.

Due to space crunch in the building, offices of the Civil Surgeon and Deputy Civil Surgeons are located elsewhere, causing inconvenience to public. It is being operated from a rented building for the past 12 years, causing a burden on the Health Department. Due to the distance between the Civil Hospital and the Civil Surgeon’s office, people who have to get a medical certificate face inconvenience. The Tribune