PULWAMA: Deputy Commissioner Pulwama Kuldeep Krishan Sidha on Friday directed authorities to make the OPD and essential diagnostic services at AIIMS Awantipora functional before the onset of snowfall, stressing that ready departments should be opened in phases instead of waiting for completion of the entire campus.
During a visit to the institute, the DC assessed the progress of construction, healthcare facilities and allied infrastructure, and reviewed preparedness for the commencement of services.
Officials briefed him on the campus layout, planned OPD, IPD, Emergency and Trauma Centre, and the progress of construction and handover of buildings. AIIMS Awantipora is a 750-bedded tertiary-care hospital comprising 57 buildings.
Four buildings under Phase-II are targeted for completion by the end of November 2026, while major works under Phase-III, including Blocks 3 and 5, are scheduled for completion by June 2027. Finishing and commissioning works are to follow, with the aim of making departments and facilities ready next year.
Sidha stressed that laboratory and diagnostic services should be made functional alongside the OPD to ensure patients have access to essential tests from the outset. Officials informed him that water supply and power connectivity were available, with no major utility-related impediment to starting OPD services. Heating arrangements and other essential facilities were also inspected.
The authorities said lifts were at the final stage of completion, with safety checks, no-objection certificates and other mandatory formalities expected to be completed by the end of October.
The DC also reviewed sanitation and waste management arrangements, and called for proper segregation, collection and scientific disposal of medical waste. The disposal mechanism was to be finalised in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer, Pulwama.
He directed agencies to strengthen rainwater harvesting and drainage arrangements, increase the capacity of retention and collection tanks and keep drainage channels free from clogging to reduce the risk of flooding in the surrounding areas. Rainwater harvesting, he said, should also facilitate groundwater recharge.
During a visit to the proposed water supply scheme for AIIMS Awantipora, officials said the pump shed and filtration plant were about 95 per cent complete, with the remaining work and full operationalisation targeted by the end of the year.
The DC called for close coordination among agencies and timely resolution of pending issues to facilitate phased commencement of services.
He was accompanied by SSP Awantipora, ADC Awantipora, Joint Director Planning, senior engineers from various departments and other concerned officers.