MARGAO: In yet another embarrassment to the Health Department, a portion of the concrete sunshade of a window of the Old Hospicio Hospital building collapsed on Thursday.
The concrete slab damaged the glass window panes, which also came crashing down.
According to a medical officer at the hospital, Amita Loltikar, this was an unused section of the Old Hospicio premises and except for
the collapse of the sunshade slab, there was no other incident. Nobody was injured in the incident.
Lotlikar however added that as a precautionary measure, people who had come for an immunisation programme in the neighbouring building, were shifted to another section of the old Hospicio building.
However, citizens of Margao questioned the structural safety of the Old Hospicio premises.
They pointed to the irony that the Margao Urban Centre (UHC) had been shifted to the Old Hospicio premises in July last year.
This had to be done after one of the walls of the Margao UHC’s original heritage building, which is located opposite the Margao cemetery, had collapsed during the rains.
Incidentally, on Thursday, January 25, the collapse of the concrete structure occurred in the annexe building of Margao UHC’s new temporary building.
But due to this incident, as a precautionary measure, the Margao UHC had to be shifted once again, to another part of the Old Hospicio premises. Once the shifting of equipment was completed, the UHC activities and functioning resumed in the other section of the Old Hospicio premises.
Shadow Council for Margao (SCM) Convener Savio Coutinho, who was among the first to reach the spot, slammed the government and demanded that Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, who is presently the PWD Minister, needs to check upon the health of the Health Department.
Citizens pointed out that for the last several years, they had been highlighting the neglect of the old Hospicio premises and that a year ago, the Church had officially requested for part of the Hospicio premises to run a Health Care Centre under the NGO Caritas, but this was turned down by the government.
“Today we consider it a blessing in disguise that once again the Fr Miranda initiative will come to life with healthcare services. We request the government to make these premises a permanent Margao UHC,” Coutinho added.
‘Repairs on heritage UHC building yet to begin’
MARGAO: The group of Margao citizens lamented that more than six months had passed since the wall of the heritage building of the UHC collapsed, but the work order for the repairs is yet to be issued.
“We learn that the file of the repair work which is pegged at some 14 lakh rupees is being scuttled from one office to the other for a decision to issue the work order, since just a single bidder has quoted for the work,” said Coutinho.
Other citizens questioned why the government was delaying on the passing of this file at a time when other works such that of the National Games or preparations for the Prime Minister’s visit to Goa last year had been completed at great speed, but this important matter of repairing the old Margao UHC premises was dragging on.
“This very clearly reveals that this government has scant regard for public health and safety,” said Margao citizens.
