ITANAGAR, Jun 28: Public leaders of Tirap district have raised objection to the proposal to shift the general hospital (GH) from district headquarters Khonsa to Charju, located some 12 kms from Khonsa.
In a representation to the health minister, a group of public leaders from the district claimed that on 25 June, “a few vested interested persons had conducted a confidential meeting for the same without the knowledge of the general public.
“But we, the concerned public leaders of Tirap district, have passed a resolution to retain the present existing general hospital at Khonsa,” they said.
Reiterating their objection, they said, “We, the public of Tirap district in general and Khonsa town in particular, feel that relocating the general hospital will be tantamount to depriving a large population of basic medical care. Shifting the general hospital to a remote location like Charju, with a scanty population of hardly 10 to 15 families, will be inhuman.”
They also claimed that “the site at Charju is not a secure location” and said that “the Tirap Degree College established there had to be relocated to Deomali after the kidnapping of the principal’s son by antisocial elements and due to the sense of fear in the staff.”
They also cited other instances of security threats in Charju.
The public leaders argued that Khonsa town has a population of approximately 20,000 persons who require medical facilities 24/7, and that relocating the GH “to a place with hardly any population and in a security risk area” would deprive a large segment of poor citizens of easy access to basic medical care.
“Moreover, the district headquarters cannot be without a hospital,” they said.
“The present site with 33620 sqr metre of land in the middle of Khonsa town is more than sufficient to establish and for further expansion of the hospital. The land itself is stable and multi-storey buildings can be constructed,” they said.
The public leaders further claimed that the villagers of Mke Khela, in the vicinity of the proposed site, have raised strong objection to the site for the GH in Charju, saying it could endanger the environment and lead to pollution of the Charjo river.
They also claimed that Charju does not have a police station, bank facility, postal facility, internet facility and educational institutions, “which are the basic requirements for the employees and establishment of any large institution.”
“A district headquarters without a hospital is an insult to the district. The people of Tirap and Khonsa town will not allow for the shifting of the hospital to any other location,” they said, and urged the minister to take serious note of the matter and retain the GH in Khonsa town “with all facilities of a general hospital.”
