Protest marchers seeking better health services detained in Doon, anti-liquor campaign continues at Rishikesh

Protest marchers seeking better health services detained in Doon, anti-liquor campaign continues at Rishikesh

S.M.A. KAZMI

Dehradun, Nov 3

While, the state of Uttarakhand is celebrating its’ 25 year of existence during the week as President of India Draupadi Murmu addressed a special session of state assembly, today, eulogising the development of the state, on the other hand protests by the common people seeking better health facilities and anti-liquor campaign continue in the state.

Marchers seeking better health facilities in rural particularly mountainous areas who had been marching from Chaukhutia in Almora district, were detained by the police on the outskirts of Dehradun due to the visit of President of India. They were bundled to the dharna sthal at Ekta Vihar and let off in the afternoon after the President of India left for Nainital. The marchers covering 300 kilo meters on foot got tremendous support from common people, civil society and opposition parties particularly left organisations plan to hold a demonstration at Gandhi Park, Dehradun on November 4 to highlight their demands.

The state government which had announced upgradation of facilities at Chaukhutia Community health centre following large demonstration by people where women outnumbered men, today again reiterated that it’s resolve to improve health and medical facilities in the hills. The state government announced that the Community Health centre at Chaukhutia has been upgraded from 30 beds to 50 bedded hospital with an x-ray machine. Already the government had appointed two specialist doctors last week at the CHC. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said in a statement that his government is committed to improve health services in the state.

On the hand, a protest against a liquor vend at Dhalwala area in Rishikesh has caused a massive embarrassment to the state BJP government. The people of Rishikesh had started a fast unto death last week following murder of an handicapped youth near the liquor vend. Following the public protest administration had to deploy police force in front of the liquor vend inviting ridicule in social media forums. The people alleged that the vend has been constructed violating bylaws and demanded its’ immediate closure.

The Tehri district administration today evening took action by demolishing a part of the vend which was allegedly built violating bylaws. The protestors considered the move as their victory.

Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand unit of Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist) party wholeheartedly supported the 300+ km padyatra from Chaukhutia area of Almora district to state capital Dehradun, with a demand for better health services for the general public particularly in the hilly regions of Uttarakhand.

Mukesh Semwal, secretary of SUCI in a statement said that the padyatra received tremendous support from the public at large, who are sufferers and feel the pain of the worst health services in Uttarakhand, especially in hilly areas.

“The pathetic condition of public health services can be easily judged in the PHCs, CHCs, and even District Hospitals which have been turned into mere referral centers, referring to all serious and critical patients to higher centers like Dehradun and Haldwani. Thereby filling the coffers of the corporate hospital sharks who are waiting to empty the general public’s pockets. This nefarious design or double standard in health services is known to the public at large in Uttarakhand, whereas political leaders, bureaucrats and their family members are getting the best health facilities even abroad, by courtesy of the Uttarakhand government,” he added.

“The BJP government, led by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, which craves publicity, portrays a rosy picture of the state including its health services, but the common public know from their day to day experiences about the dark reality of the health system in the hills of Uttarakhand,” Mukesh Semwal charged.

The SUCI (Communist), appealed to all like-minded organizations, political parties and concerned citizens of Uttarakhand to support the people’s movement, ‘ Operation Health’, and let’s form ‘people’s health committees’ in every Villages and towns of Uttarakhand to safeguard the fundamental right to health and stop the attempt of the government to paving way for corporatization of health services.