Activists Demand Hospital, 108 Ambulance Revival and End to Drug Shortage in Area
Key Points:
- BJP torch rally in Musabani protests collapse of healthcare services in Jharkhand
- 108 ambulance service described as defunct; hospital promise still unfulfilled
- Dr. Sunita Devdoot Soren leads rally from hospital chowk to bus stand
MUSABANI — The Bharatiya Janata Party held a torch rally in Musabani on Sunday evening to protest the deteriorating state of healthcare services in Jharkhand, with party workers demanding the revival of ambulance services, resolution of medicine shortages, and establishment of a hospital in the area.
The rally began at Musabani Hospital Chowk and passed through the main market before culminating in a public meeting at the bus stand. Workers carried torches throughout the procession, raising slogans such as “Health Minister, come to your senses”, “Restore the 108 service”, and “Give the public healthcare facilities.”
Addressing the gathering, BJP leader Dr. Sunita Devdoot Soren said the state’s healthcare system had completely collapsed. She said patients were getting neither timely treatment nor essential medicines at hospitals. The 108 ambulance service, she alleged, had nearly ground to a halt, leaving poor and needy patients in serious difficulty.
Moreover, Dr. Soren pointed out that the health minister had previously announced the opening of a hospital in Musabani. However, she said, no concrete steps had been taken in that direction to date. The BJP demanded that a primary health centre or hospital be established in Musabani at the earliest so that residents of the area could access better medical facilities.
Among those present at the programme were BJP Mandal President Jayant Ghosh, former District Twenty-Point Programme Chairman Dinesh Saw, Deepak Gop, Pintu Namata, Joba Sardar, Swapan Sinha, Birman Lama, Satyanarayan Pushti, Ashok Paswan, Sanjay Mahanti, Badal Lama, Manoj Rajak, Rajesh Giri, Mansa Patar, Kishore Patar, Shaymu Sardar, and Santa Brinet, besides a large number of party workers.
East Singhbhum district, of which Musabani is a part, has seen rising public discontent over civic and health infrastructure gaps in recent months. The 108 emergency ambulance service, managed under a government contract, has faced disruptions across several districts in Jharkhand during this period. Meanwhile, BJP leaders have repeatedly raised governance failures as a political issue ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls.
