Jammu: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday inaugurated two hospitals of 100 beds each in Baltal and Chandanwari built by the DRDO and the Jammu and Kashmir administration ahead of the annual Amarnath Yatra.
According to officials, the hospitals are equipped with all modern facilities to provide treatment to the pilgrims.
Jammu and Kashmir Health and Medical Education Secretary Bhupinder Kumar said the administration provided Rs 13 crore for building each hospital.
“Setting up of twin hospitals at Batal and Chandanwari within 15 days is wonderful. I feel indebted to all those who completed this work in the shortest period. It was appreciable,” Sinha said.
The LG said these makeshift state-of-the-art hospitals, built by DRDO, will help in providing better and round-the-clock healthcare facilities to the pilgrims and to those engaged in Yatra management.
The LG expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Ministry of Health for providing all necessary resources for these hospitals.
Baltal and Chandanwari Hospitals are equipped with the most advanced equipment, separate block for doctors and nursing staff, ICU wards, oxygenated wards and triage areas and other required inventories for all critical medical care, he added.
“J&K government has laid great emphasis on the healthcare of pilgrims and the local community involved for arrangements of pilgrimage,” the LG said.
He directed the health officials to prepare a proposal for permanent hospitals at Baltal and Chandanwari. Soon base camps will have sustainable healthcare facilities, he added.
The LG directed the officials to ensure strict enforcement of all the health-related SoPs with special focus on sanitation and cleanliness in and around the hospitals. “It is our collective responsibility to make the pilgrimage of the devotees more convenient and hassle-free,” he added.
He urged the doctors and nursing staff to serve the people with compassion. He also wished the pilgrims and entire management team health, happiness and prosperity.
Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, Chief Secretary; Bhupinder Kumar, Secretary, Health and Medical Education Department; Vijay Kumar Bidhuri, Divisional Commissioner Kashmir and senior officers of DRDO, Shri Amarnath Shrine Board and civil administration attended the inaugural ceremony.
The 62-day-long pilgrimage to the cave shrine situated at an altitude of 3,880 meters in the south Kashmir Himalayas will commence on July 1 and conclude on August 31.
Pilgrims will embark on the Yatra via two routes — the traditional 48-kilometre Nunwan route, in south Kashmir’s Pahalgam, and the shorter 14-kilometre Baltal route in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal.
The first batch of pilgrims will depart from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu on June 30. They will travel on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway before reaching their designated base camps in Pahalgam and Baltal.
