A 73-year-old widow of a naval officer, already fighting a gruelling battle with cancer, now finds herself pitted against a faceless adversary: bureaucratic inertia. Sanjukta Misra's life-saving treatment has come to a grinding halt because the only hospital in Goa empanelled under the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) has suspended cashless services, leaving her and thousands of other veterans in the lurch.
A Desperate Fight for Survival
Sanjukta Misra, who lives alone in Chicalim's Jairam Nagar, requires fortnightly doses of chemotherapy and immunotherapy, each costing a staggering Rs 2 lakh. With the cashless facility suspended, she is utterly unable to afford this. Her treatment has been interrupted multiple times in 2025, with the latest stoppage occurring in November. "My last dose of chemo is pending since Nov, and immunotherapy has to continue for a year. If my treatment is stopped, how will I survive?" Misra told TOI.
Having relied on the promise of the defence ministry's ECHS scheme, her family never invested in private medical insurance. Her husband, who served at the naval headquarters in Delhi before retiring from the Indian Navy, passed away two decades ago. Her advanced age and illness make travelling to Mumbai for treatment an impossible ordeal.
Systemic Failure Affects Thousands
The crisis erupted when Manipal Hospitals, Goa's only multispecialty ECHS-empanelled facility, stopped cashless treatment services on November 30. The hospital cited non-payment of long-pending bills by the ECHS authorities, which have accumulated to a massive Rs 5.2 crore.
This decision has left over 10,000 ex-servicemen and their families in Goa and neighbouring districts without vital medical cover. Misra highlighted the widespread impact, noting she has seen hundreds of cancer patients and people from the Air Force and Army travelling from Sindhudurg, Belagavi, and Karwar who are now stranded.
Voices of Protest Meet Official Silence
The delay in clearing funds has sparked outrage among the veteran community. Former Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Arun Prakash (retd), who himself has been denied funds for his diabetes medication, has repeatedly flagged this "breach of trust" by the Ministry of Defence (MoD). He termed the suspension of medicare a "vital issue."
Colonel Shivaji Ranjan Ghosh (retd) condemned the situation, stating that aged veterans are being denied their right to medical care despite paying contributions for the scheme. South Goa MP Captain (retd) Viriato Fernandes raised the matter in Parliament and before the defence standing committee. However, veterans report that the defence ministry has maintained a "deathly silence" on the issue.
For Sanjukta Misra and countless others, the suspension of cashless treatment is not merely an administrative failure; it is a direct threat to their survival. They now wait, hoping for mercy and swift action from the very system they served.
