Nearly a week after the Osmania General Hospital (OGH), Hyderabad was flooded with sewage water, the doctors of the hospital decided to hold a protest every day for an hour, demanding construction of a new hospital.
The decision was taken by the Telangana Government Doctors Association (TGDA) members during a meeting on Monday.
Following the meeting, which was held at the OGH Superintendent’s chamber, TGDA OGH unit decided to protest every day from 9.30 am - 10.30 am without disturbing the medical services.
All the students, employees and staff working in the hospital would be participating in the protest, TGDA announced. The protesting employees demanded the government to demolish the existing structure and construct a new building.
A representation in this regard was handed over to the interim Superintendent of OGH, Dr Pandu Naik.
Last week, on Wednesday, the general ward of the hospital was inundated with sewage water, causing embarrassment to the government. The incident led to a political row between the ruling TRS party and the Opposition. The OGH is the second biggest hospital in Telangana after Gandhi Hospital, which has been treating suspected COVID-19 cases.
Demolition of the hospital has been a longstanding demand of the doctors working at OGH.
In 2015, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, visited the crumbling hospital after reports of chunks of mortar falling off in the inpatient ward and posing a threat to the safety of patients and doctors.
The CM said that the building was unsafe and ordered for its demolition. However, after furore from historians and heritage enthusiasts, who said that the hospital was a heritage structure and opposed the decision, the government went back on its promise.
Since then, there have been several protests by doctors highlighting their plight and demanding construction of a new hospital.
In 2018, the then Health Minister C Laxma Reddy stated that all the hurdles pertaining to the heritage status of the building were cleared, and that the new building would be constructed soon. However, that never materialised.