MASSIV MARCH FOR BATTER MEDICAL FACILITY AT GEYZING HOSPITAL, ORY BY SIKKIM PROGRESSIVE FORUM

More than a thousand youth from different parts of the state hit the street of Geyzing today demanding provisions of better health facilities in the district hospital, Geyzing. The protest rally organized by Sikkim Progressive Youth Forum, an apolitical organization, had drawn massive numbers of people.





The lack of proper medical facilities in the district hospital, Geyzing have become a matter of exaperation for the people of west Sikkim since many years without any hope of improvement. The condition hospital has not improved despite the demands placed by the people for the improvement of the health based facilities in the hospital since a long time. Lack of specialist doctors, inadequate workforce and medical equipments in the hospital are some of the problems the hospital is still reeling under.   



The Sikkim Progressive Youth Forum  has demanded that state government must ensure proper medical facilities available in the hospital so that poor people do not suffer. The organization further demanded the state government to make provisions of necessary medical equipments (mainly the diagnosis machineries) in the hospital at the earliest. The facility of blood bank is other demand of the forum.





The protest rally took off from 9th mile, Geyzing in presence of heavy police personals ended at Geyzing bazar. The rally, mostly comprised of youth from different parts of the state marched around the town carrying placards and shouting slogans. One of the placards read, 'stop letting people die an animal death', another read, 'Make hospital corruption free, and we need a good hospital.





Bhanu Bhakta Sharma, a member of the forum in his short speech held the state government responsible for poor condition of the district hospital, Geyzing. He informed that the memorandum demanding improvement of medical facilities in the hospital was submitted to the chief minister of state, Pawan Chamling and the health minister A.K Ghatani by the forum on 4th of February this year, but the demand was never fulfilled.  He added that due to inadequate medical facilities, the poor people suffer a lot as they cannot afford the costly treatment in the hospital outside the district. "We as a bonafide indian citizens are entilted to basic health based aminities and as per the norms of the central government, a district hospital should have all the medical facilities available", Sharma said, adding that failure of the state government in maintaining the medical services in a better way would not be tolerated anymore. 





Sagar Sharma, another member of the Forum said that commercialization and privatisation of the district hospital, Geyzing should not be encouraged. He shared that due to lack of medical equipments and medicines in the hospital, the people are compelled to take the services of private diagnosis centres and medical shops opened nearby the hospital. He alleged that due to shortage of medicines in the hospital the private medicine shops are doing brisk business.  "We deserve better medical facilities. The poor patients have to bear the extra burden of medical expenditure due to unavailability of the facilities in the hospital. The state government boasts about providing free medical services to the people, but in reality we have to spend for even a small medical requirements", Sagar said. Warning the state government to either make proper provisions of medical facilities in the hospital or face the protest movement, Sagar said that if the demands are not fulfilled, the forum would continue the protest movement against the government in massive way. 





Rupen Karki said that it is due to lack of cerncern and despising attitude on the part of the state's health department the condition of Geyzing hospital is deteriorated to an extent where even a small medical cases cannot be treated and the patients have to be reffered to other hospitals outside the district. "We have launched a protest movement because the state government never tried to hear our grievances and never took up any initiative to better the medical services in west Sikkim. We would intensify our movement if our demands are not fulfilled at the earliest", he said.



Karki called upon the people to support the forum's initiative for a better hospital in the district. Claiming that the rally was organized for the public conncern, he termed the rally as truely apolitical.