Baramulla, Nov 10: A malfunctioning lift at Government Medical College (GMC) Baramulla on Monday caused severe inconvenience to patients and attendants, prompting outrage after video clips of the scene went viral on social media.
Visuals from the hospital showed attendants struggling to push wheelchairs and carry patients on stretchers up the stairs, drawing sharp criticism from locals and netizens.
Netizens expressed strong resentment over the incident at North Kashmir’s only tertiary care hospital, calling it a reflection of poor maintenance and weak accountability in the health sector.
“It is unfortunate. Such incidents show how poor maintenance can risk patient safety. Authorities must ensure constant monitoring,” a user wrote.
Another user commented, “Every week we hear promises of better healthcare, but on ground, even a lift repair becomes a crisis“, adding “If this is the condition of a government medical college, what can we expect from smaller hospitals?”
Meanwhile, despite repeated attempts from KNO, the GMC Principal could not be contacted as the official did not answer phone calls.
However, GMC authorities, taking to their social media handle, acknowledged that the lift had gone out of order due to a technical fault and that repair work was underway. “The lift was rendered non-operational because of a technical issue. Repair work has already started and services will be restored soon”, it stated.
The incident in the meantime has renewed public criticism over poor infrastructure upkeep in major hospitals, with many online users demanded immediate action and a permanent maintenance system to avoid such lapses in the future—(KNO)
