Srinagar, Mar 26: Is newspaper selling environmental hazard? Well the authorities at SKIMS Medical College Hospital Bemina think so. Unmindful of alleged inconvenience faced by patients and their attendants, frequent waterlogging, mounting garbage heaps and movement of stray packs, asses or horses around; authorities have banned the sale of newspapers within the hospital premises. While drawbacks could be many in the first instance the verbal diktat has snatched livelihood of Muneer Ahmed Khan, a father of two kids who had been selling newspapers inside the hospital to run his family of four. The poor man in 30s was selling newspapers at the SKIMS hospital for the past over a decade. But today he was denied entry into the hospital right at the main gate where horses and other stray animals are often seen taking rest, which makes movement of humans difficult. “The security personnel at the gate denied me entry into hospital stating that I couldn’t sell newspapers inside. Initially I couldn’t believe but when I somehow contacted some hospital officials they said the ban was a reality,” Khan said adding he has lost his only source of livelihood. “I earn hand-to-mouth, don’t have any savings and so feed my family from day’s earnings… Today I have nothing to feed my children,” the newspaper hawker said with moist eyes. “Nobody will buy newspaper outside the hospital as the right place was just inside near the entrance,” he said adding today his only business was losses. “I have lost everything as nobody procured newspapers,” he added. Some junior doctors while ridiculing at the ban said the SKIMS Hospital and the adjoining medical college have lost accountability over the years. “Everything is messy as the SKIMS affairs in general lack accountability… While millions are spent by SKIMS Babus on shady deals including illogical civil works, this poor man has been snatched of his livelihood,” said a female medico, asking not to be identified. The hospital Medical Superintendent admitted to have stopped the sale of newspapers inside the main gate. “We are doing it to keep the hospital environment good and clean,” the Medical Superintendent told Greater Kashmir. However, he quickly added: “But we are not objecting to his selling(newspapers). We cannot snatch anyone’s bread. But hospital is not a business centre, we are objecting to sales inside telling him to go for sales outside the gate.” “Gate is very adjacent to the spot where he was selling (news)papers…When we cannot allow Masala Wala inside, how can we allow hawker to sell newspapers?” the medico asked. When told that other hospitals like SMHS allow sale of newspapers, he said: “We disallow Masala Wala and fruit seller to go inside.” Asked how would newspaper hawker pollute hospital environment, the Medical Superintendent said: “He sits at parking place where lot of people gather around him.” Last
Posted on: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 02:56:54 +0000