Night shelters set up for patients’ families; to construct 3K bedded rest house: AIIMS
NEW DELHI: AIIMS on Friday told the Delhi High Court that it has provided land to DUSIB for construction of about 80 night shelters for families of patients sleeping on the streets amid the cold wave, and will also undertake the construction of a 3,000-bedded rest house for them.
Underscoring the institute’s “patient-centric” and humanitarian approach, the counsel for AIIMS informed that it has adopted several steps to provide immediate respite as it was committed to ensuring that no attendant was left without a dignified shelter in cold weather.
A bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia was hearing a suo motu petition initiated by the high court after taking cognisance of a news report on “pitiable condition” of patients and their kin staying on the streets while they awaited treatment outside AIIMS. Currently, there are 949 beds for the needy in three shelter centres, and as a long-term measure, a 3,000-bedded Vishram Sadan was proposed to be constructed on a 2 acre land in Ansari Nagar West with the help of an NGO in Ahmedabad, the court was told by advocate Satya Ranjan Swain.
The bench called upon the Delhi High Court Bar Association to raise funds for the Vishram Sadan, recalling the donations made by the Bar during the Punjab floods as well.
“Activate members of the Bar so that some kind of fund is created and donated (to AIIMS),” Chief Justice Upadhyaya said.
The court asked all the authorities to cooperate with AIIMS in the construction of the rest house, adding that it is expected that the facility would be constructed “within minimum time possible”.
The facility will go a long way in addressing the problems faced by the attendants of patients at AIIMS, it said.
On January 14, the Delhi High Court said the government must ensure adequate night shelters for patients’ attendants during the cold wave. Authorities reported tents, pagodas, blankets and amenities near major hospitals, with nodal officers monitoring round the clock. The court noted improvement, ordered constant vigil, scheduled a review meeting on January 24, and listed the matter for hearing on January 27. agencies
