Ceiling Slab Collapses at V N Desai Hospital Pediatric OPD in Santacruz
A portion of a ceiling slab collapsed on the second floor of the civic-run V N Desai Hospital in Santacruz on Saturday, raising fresh concerns over the structural safety of the building. The incident occurred in the pediatric outpatient department (OPD) area, but no injuries were reported.
The second-floor pediatric OPD was operating as a temporary facility. Services had been shifted there for the past four to five months because the actual pediatric OPD on the first floor was undergoing renovation.
The incident occurred just weeks after hospital authorities had assured the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) that leakages and structural deficiencies in the building would be rectified before the monsoon. Last year, the commission had taken cognisance of severe leakages on the newly renovated third floor. The SHRC subsequently closed the matter after the hospital administration submitted an undertaking promising that corrective measures would be completed before the rains.
Hospital sources stated that the slab that fell was part of the recently renovated second floor. This has intensified concerns regarding the quality of the renovation work being carried out at the facility.
Sources in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) revealed that the Health Infrastructure Cell (HIC) had already written to hospital authorities recommending the evacuation of portions of the building. This recommendation was meant to facilitate comprehensive repairs and renovation, but the proposal was not implemented.
V N Desai Hospital has been under scrutiny for recurring infrastructure problems despite crores of rupees being spent on renovation and waterproofing works. Over the past few years, the hospital's renovation and repair works have cost around Rs 16 crore.
Health activist Chetan Kothari stated that last year, newly renovated wards on the third floor developed severe leakages, forcing patients to be shifted again. Although officials had recently claimed that nearly 80 percent of waterproofing works had been completed and that such incidents would not recur this monsoon, Saturday's collapse has renewed safety worries.
Hospital Superintendent Dr. Mayura Ingle was unavailable for comment and did not respond to calls or messages regarding the incident.
