E-Paper
AC of Aundh District Hospital ICU not working for over a week
In the absence of air-conditioning, staff have opened doors and windows and removed curtains to allow ventilation. Doctors said that the HVAC system plays a crucial role in maintaining indoor air quality and reducing the risk of hospital-acquired infections.
PUNE: It’s been more than a week since the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system of the intensive care unit (ICU) at Aundh District Hospital (ACU) stopped working following a motor malfunction, causing critically-ill patients added inconvenience and discomfort and raising concerns over infection control and infrastructure maintenance at the government-run facility.
With the ICU - which has 14 beds for both male and female patients - currently running at almost full occupancy, patients who are already critical are forced to endure the heat and humidity, likely worsening their condition. “There are no proper alternative arrangements like fans in the ICU,” said the relative of a patient admitted to the ICU.
In the absence of air-conditioning, staff have opened doors and windows and removed curtains to allow ventilation. Doctors said that the HVAC system plays a crucial role in maintaining indoor air quality and reducing the risk of hospital-acquired infections, particularly in ICUs where patients are highly vulnerable.
However, it is laxity on the part of the public works department (PWD) which is to blame for this condition; officials said. The air-conditioning system in the ICU is an older unit that was installed when the ICU was set up during the Covid-19 pandemic. Maintenance has been irregular due to budget and technical constraints. PWD officials responsible for maintenance of the system confirmed that repair work is underway and that the problem will be solved at the earliest.
Dr Nagnath Yempalle, Pune district civil surgeon and head of ADH, said, “The motor of the AC unit has failed, which has been given for repair to the PWD. We have been informed that the repair process has started, and the issue will be solved in a couple of days. The system is expected to be restored soon,” he said.
According to officials, this is not the first time that the AC at ADH’s ICU has stopped functioning. Earlier in September 2025, a similar breakdown of the AC was reported for almost a week. It was only after the hospital authorities approached the district collector, Jitendra Dudi, that the AC was made functional on a priority basis, officials said.
