Fate of Rs9b hospital in limbo

The fate of the only maternity hospital in Rawalpindi is hanging in the balance for the last 17 years due to political uncertainty. In 2006, former interior minister Sheikh Rashid laid the foundation stone of the project, which had to be completed within one-and-a-half years at a cost of Rs2 billion.

However, due to paucity of funds and then the change of governments, the work on the project almost stopped. The work restarted when the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf came to power in 2018. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a health official said that the mother-child hospital was inaugurated in 2006 at a cost of Rs2 billion.

The health facility consists of 200 beds and is adjacent to TB Hospital. However, the healthcare facility is becoming an unfortunate project of Rawalpindi, he added. At present, the total cost of this project has increased to Rs7 billion, he said, adding that it had to be the only modern hospital in Rawalpindi to provide latest treatment to mothers and their children.

According to the plan, the hospital would have 15 state-of-the-art operation theaters, a nursing hostel, modern machineries and facilities. As soon as this hospital became operational, the gynecology department had to be shifted from all allied hospitals in Rawalpindi to this hospital, but this couldn’t happen.

The official said that former prime minister Imran Khan again inaugurated the hospital in 2019 and gave an additional grant of Rs1 billion. Khan directed the department concerned to complete the project by April 2022 so that women could benefit from best facilities. Once the facility is operational, a huge load of patients from all other hospitals can be transferred to it, said the official, adding that the hospital is 95 per cent complete.

The OPD of the hospital, wards, indoor, labour room, operation theater, emergency, laboratory, blood bank, staff offices, nursing hostel, parking area, lawn, doctor’s hostel and other exterior structures of the main building have been tiled. The hospital has fully centralised air-conditioning system and all electrical work has been completed.

During the PTI government tenure, Sheikh Rashid used to visit the hospital two to three times a week and inspect the progress of work on the project. But the pace of work on the project has slowed down now, making it clear that the health facility project may once again be delayed due to political animosity.