Tamil Nadu government gets three months to equip hospitals

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has granted three more months to the State government for implementing its earlier order in full, with regard to providing ramps and fire-fighting equipment in high-rise hospitals.

When a PIL petition from Jawaharlal Shanmugam of Tiruvanmiyur came up before the First Bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose on March 2, a status report was filed by the health secretary.

It stated that the government had already accorded sanction for a huge sum for providing firefighting sprinkler system in the basement floor of the Tower Block I and II of the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital in Chennai.

Of the 203 multi-storeyed buildings in the tertiary care institutions (medical college hospitals), ramp facilities are available in 105. In the secondary grade institutions (district/taluk hospitals), the facility is available in 211 of 326 multi-storied buildings.

Inspection of private hospitals was conducted for a week from December 5, 2017, in Chennai by forming six teams, in which the petitioner was also a member. A total of 296 hospitals were inspected. The district-level teams have also been formed by the joint directors of health services and so far 67 per cent hospitals (1,977 out of 2,934) have been inspected.

The engineer-in-chief (buildings) had submitted a detailed estimate to the tune of `29.71 crore for construction of ramps and firefighting equipment for secondary care institutions. It was `55.92 crore for tertiary care institutions. The PIL prayed for more time to fully comply with the order.