The Maharaja Agrasen Civil Hospital in Hisar, approved for 300 beds, is functioning with only 200 beds, causing severe inconvenience to patients and raising concerns over the quality of healthcare services. The hospital also lacks critical equipment such as an MRI machine and a C-arm machine, and has only one radiologist to serve both the Hisar and Hansi civil hospitals.
Doctor Absenteeism and Inspection Findings
A recent inspection by health department officials revealed that approximately 35 of the 55 doctors posted at the hospital were absent from duty. Notices were subsequently served to the absent doctors. This absenteeism has compounded the challenges faced by patients seeking treatment.
Rodent Infestation and Infrastructure Woes
The hospital recently came under scrutiny after rodents were found feeding on the body of a woman kept in a freezer. The incident highlighted the poor state of maintenance. Additionally, the main entrance is closed due to renovation work, forcing patients to use a temporary, unpaved, and dusty pathway to access the facility.
Lack of Basic Amenities
Visitors have complained about the absence of clean potable water and affordable canteen facilities. The ultrasound centre remains closed on Tuesdays and Sundays because the sole radiologist visits the Hansi hospital on Tuesdays. A patient named Ravin, who visited on a Tuesday, was advised to undergo an ultrasound but had to go to a private centre, spending about Rs 1,000 for the test.
Historical Building Restrictions
The hospital, built in 1957, operates from the same building. Additional floors cannot be constructed due to restrictions imposed by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which protects the nearby historic Gujri Mahal. ASI rules prohibit construction within a 100-metre radius of protected monuments.
Patient Volume and Regional Dependency
With about 2,000 visitors in the outpatient department (OPD) daily, the civil hospital is a major government healthcare institution in Hisar district, attracting patients from adjoining districts and even Rajasthan.
Activist and Official Responses
Dr Ramesh Punia, a healthcare activist, stated that the hospital lacks super-specialists, cancer treatment facilities, an MRI machine, and has several ventilators lying unused. A newly procured C-arm machine is yet to become operational. He criticised the spending of about Rs 20 crore on maintenance over the past decade, calling it a waste of government funds, and alleged negligence by successive state governments.
Principal Medical Officer Dr Reena Jain acknowledged the space crunch preventing expansion from 200 to 300 beds but claimed the hospital provides the best possible services and that clean drinking water is available. She said the freezers would be restored soon after being taken up with the maintenance firm, and the C-arm machine would become operational shortly. She noted that the hospital has about 12 functioning ventilators, more than required. Dr Jain added that the construction of a new building is pending due to complications in transferring land from the Government Livestock Farm (GLF) to the Health Department.
