The healthcare sector in J&K was restructured with a vision more than two decades ago. It was realised then that the GMC Jammu had far exceeded its patient capacity and could not bear the ever-growing healthcare burden of the region. Specialised institutions like the Super Speciality Hospital, Dental Hospital, and more recently the Bone and Joint Hospital, Jammu, were conceptualised precisely to decongest the GMC and provide quality treatment in specific medical domains. Unfortunately, this vision today lies in tatters, and the plight of the B&J Hospital epitomises official neglect, discriminatory planning, and misplaced priorities in public health.
The B&J Hospital, Jammu, inaugurated barely two years ago with much fanfare, was supposed to cater to the orthopaedic and trauma needs of ten districts of the Jammu division. Yet, it stands today as nothing more than a glorified extension of GMC’s Orthopaedics Department. While the Srinagar B&J Hospital has a sanctioned strength of over 2,400 staff members, including 16 professors, Jammu’s unit is gasping for life with only about 300 staff deployed from GMC, including a mere 3 professors. Worse, the hospital has no sanctioned staff or dedicated budget of its own, even after two years of operations. This shocking disparity cannot be brushed aside as oversight-it reeks of a deeper malaise of neglect and unequal treatment between two institutions of the same stature.
The inadequacies do not end with manpower. Of the five operation theatres constructed, only two are functional, while the others lack basic equipment. The building itself-completed in a single phase with curtailed costs of Rs 40 crore instead of the planned Rs 73 crore-suffers from seepage during rains, and crucial facilities like parking space were never provided. How could such a half-baked structure, without adequate staff, equipment, or operational readiness, be inaugurated as a “hospital” at all? This raises serious questions about the intent behind its hurried opening.
The human cost of this negligence is appalling. Patients arrive at the hospital with the hope of specialised treatment but are left waiting for days, only to be told to return to GMC Jammu for procedures. Instead of easing the load on GMC, this dysfunctional hospital has ended up worsening it. Trauma cases, accident victims, and orthopaedic patients-already among the most vulnerable groups-are the worst sufferers. Their pain, delays in treatment, and frequent referrals back to GMC expose the farcical state of planning. When an institution meant to decongest an overloaded hospital ends up transferring patients back, it defeats its very purpose.
Equally alarming is the silence of the authorities despite repeated red flags. A request for even 50 percent of the staff that has been sanctioned for Srinagar’s B&J Hospital has no takers. The issue has been flagged at high-level meetings, and even the Chief Secretary is reportedly aware of the crisis. Yet, files continue to gather dust in the corridors of the Finance and Planning Departments. If this is not administrative apathy, what else can it be called?
The situation is equally frustrating for the skeletal staff posted there. With such grossly inadequate manpower, doctors and nurses are forced to work under crushing pressure. They are unable to meet patients’ expectations, leading to rising frustration among attendants. Altercations are becoming frequent, and frontline staff often face the brunt of patient anger, for no fault of theirs. Unless the staff strength and infrastructure are improved, the hospital risks becoming a flashpoint of recurring conflicts rather than a centre of healing. It seems those at the helm view hospital buildings as mere showpieces rather than functional institutions meant to save lives. The deficiencies of B&J Hospital demand not just corrective measures but a deeper probe.
It is still not too late. The Government must immediately sanction adequate staff strength, release an annual budget, and equip the hospital to function as per its original mandate. Healthcare is not a matter of choice or luxury-it is a necessity, and the people of Jammu cannot be made scapegoats of bureaucratic inertia or discriminatory planning.
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