the goan I network
MARGAO
Hopes that the long-delayed South Goa district hospital will be commissioned by year-end may be dashed once again.
Reason: After its failure to hand over the hospital building to the Director of Health Services by September-end and now October-end, the Goa State Infrastructure Development Agency (GSIDC) has now set November-end as the fresh deadline to complete all civil works on the district hospital and handing over the building to the Health Director by November-end.
This means that the district hospital may not be commissioned this year for the simple reason that the Hospicio and health officials have been on record that they will require minimum one month’s time to shift the operations from Hospicio to the new district hospital, indicating that the hospital will be finally commissioned next year.
After work on the project suffered because of the delay in the payments to the contractor, the GSIDC has now issued instructions to all the contractors to complete the work by November-end so that the hospital building is handed over to the Health Director by November 30.
GSIDC General Manager, Jude Carvalho said the GSIDC has set a final deadline to all the contractors to complete their respective works in all respects by November-end so that the building is handed over to the Health Director.
Saying that the agency is serious in completing the balance portion of the work on the district hospital, he said the GSIDC has simultaneously started the process of conducting an inventory of the items in the new hospital.
While sources in the know informed that the medical equipment such as the OTs are presently in transit as they are being shipped from abroad, the GSIDC senior officer said all works, including the installation of the OTs will now be completed by November-end.
Jude went to the extent of saying that the GSIDC will complete all works coming with the scope of work, including pending work on the top two floors till the government comes out with a modified plan concerning these floors.
Hopes were raised around mid-July last that the South Goa district hospital will finally see the light of day by October after the GSIDC promised the Public Undertaking Committee of the Goa Legislative Assembly headed by Leader of the Opposition, Digambar Kamat on July 9 that the district hospital building will be handed over to the Directorate of Health Services by September-end.
Given that the promise made by GSIDC General Manager, Jude Carvalho in the presence of Health officials, Health Director Dr Jose D’Sa and Hospicio Medical Superintendent Dr Ira Almeida had pointed out that it would take one month’s time for the Hospicio to shift the operations to the new hospital.
