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4 overhead water tanks found open at RMLIMS hospital block
These tanks may also be a source of drinking water for monkeys spotted nearby, reveals a reality check in Lucknow in wake of the Deoria medical college incident
LUCKNOW At least four of the 10-12 overhead water tanks on the terrace of the hospital block at Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences (RMLIMS) were found open, without any lids on them, leaving the water exposed to pollution, making it unsafe for drinking and use in hospital work, revealed a reality check by HT at government hospitals across the city on Thursday.
The water is being supplied to different wards, ICUs and OT complexes across the hospital block. These tanks may also be a source of drinking water for monkeys spotted nearby, it was found.
The exercise was undertaken in wake of “severe lapses in monitoring and security” on the campus of Maharshi Devaraha Baba Medical College in Deori after the sanitation staff found a decomposed body of a man in the college’s overhead tank, posing serious threat to public health.
“Covers of the overhead tanks are open during maintenance work...sometimes monkeys break the covers by jumping on them, but the repair job is undertaken immediately,” said Dr Bhuwan Chandra Tiwari, media spokesperson, RMLIMS.
The institute caters to around 1100 beds and has a footfall of 3,500 to 4,000 patients at the OPD daily.
Team HT also visited Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Hospital, Balrampur Hospital, Lok Bandhu Raj Narain Hospital and King George’s Medical University (KGMU) on Thursday. The team found that the overhead tanks placed on the terraces of these hospitals were properly covered and some were also locked, so as to prevent water from getting polluted.
Principal of the Maharshi Devaraha Baba Medical College in Deoria was removed from the post following “severe lapses in monitoring and security” on the campus after the sanitation staff found a decomposed body of a man in the college’s overhead tank.
The action came following ‘serious administrative lapses’ uncovered during an inspection by the Deoria district magistrate. The principal claimed that the tank was connected to only the toilets/bathrooms on the campus. Later, it was found to be connected to the kitchen and wards also, which was clarified by college officials.
