Derelict dispensary becomes haunt of drug addicts

Govt officials deny the existence of dispensary as the crumbling structure remains a drug den

KARACHI:

A dispensary discovered in Site Town lying forgotten and abandoned has become a popular haunt for local drug addicts, but surprisingly the Sindh Government and the Karachi Municipal Corporation deny its existence.

The medical and paramedical staff of "Ismail Shaheed Dispensary" comes in only to mark their attendance, and this has been going on for years, according to sources. The walls of the dispensary's building have crumbled, while only one room is usable where official documents are kept, sources said, adding that the room is always kept locked by the staff.

The building presents the picture of ruins filled with used syringes, blood-stained clothes, and other stinking garbage. This "health facility" has become a super spreader of disease instead of treating ailing people. Taking advantage of the situation, some people have started using the dispensary building as a parking lot, triggering fears by local residents that land grabbers would occupy the land if the official apathy continued. The residents demanded that the health facility be made operational to provide relief as they have to transport their patients to hospitals several kilometers away even in emergency situations.

When approached by The Express Tribune, both the Sindh Health Department and the Karachi Municipal Corporation denied the existence of this dispensary.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, December 12^th, 2022.