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Time of India
4 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
Take action against deteriorating medical facilities in state: HC to UP govt
1 2 Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court on Friday directed Uttar Pradesh govt to take immediate action against deteriorating medical facilities in the state before things go out of hand. Hearing a PIL relating to medical facilities in the state, Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal said while the Uttar Pradesh govt has developed medical infrastructure in the state capital people living in other cities are being denied medical help. "It seems that entire focus of the govt is in developing medical infrastructure in the state capital. People living in other cities are being denied medical help. They have to run either to Lucknow or Delhi for treatment. It is the taxpayers' money which should be evenly spent across the state of Uttar Pradesh and not a particular city should be developed as a medical hub neglecting others," the court noted. Justice Agarwal directed principal secretary, medical education, UP to appear before the court on July 1, 2025, and apprise it about the efforts undertaken by state govt for improving overall condition of 42 medical colleges of the state and hospitals attached therein. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Trade Bitcoin & Ethereum – No Wallet Needed! IC Markets Start Now Undo Besides, the court also directed the principal secretary to visit all state medical colleges by the next date to gain a firsthand knowledge of the requirements of the hospitals attached to medical colleges. It also directed Prayagraj's district magistrate, police commissioner, as well as municipal commissioner, Nagar Nigam, Prayagraj, superintendent in charge and deputy SIC, Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital, Prayagraj and chief medical officer, Prayagraj to remain present before the court on the next date. In addition, it also directed the principal secretary to file an affidavit disclosing the entire budgetary allocation to all medical colleges of the state including that of SGPGIMS, KGMU and RMLIMS. The court also directed the official to place before the state govt for consideration of upgrading of medical facility at Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital (SRN), which is associated hospital of Moti Lal Nehru Medical College, Prayagraj from existing 1250-bed to at least 3000-bed keeping in view the next Kumbh to be held in 2031. "The official concerned must apprise the govt about the poor medical facilities available in Prayagraj compared to Lucknow and Gorakhpur. Prayagraj, an important religious place where tourists are coming from all over the world and is also having a large local population, is being neglected for last several years with little or no medical facility," the court added. It also directed the principal secretary to inform the court about the strengthening of the primary health centres across UP, as they are practically in a non-working condition which is putting great pressure upon the hospitals attached to medical colleges. The court also directed the official to place the matter before the state govt for consideration of setting up, if necessary, an institute like SGPGIMS in the Prayagraj region to cater to the needs of neighbouring districts, as patients from the medical colleges are being referred to SGPGIMS, Lucknow or to Delhi, as there is shortage of facilities and medicines. It has been apprised that though the doctors are present but due to lack of infrastructure and non-availability of medicines, patients could not be treated in these medical colleges, which is putting great pressure on the state and national capitals, the court added.
News18
4 days ago
- Politics
- News18
‘Classic Case': Allahabad HC Raps Waqf Madrassa for Encroaching On National Highway Land
Last Updated: 'It is a classic case where the land of NHAI has been encroached upon and Madrassa along with Masjid and certain other constructions have been raised,' the court noted The Allahabad High Court recently criticised Waqf Madrassa Qasimul Uloom for illegally constructing on and claiming ownership of a portion of land belonging to National Highway No. 73, dismissing its plea to restrain authorities from demolition. A bench of Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal observed that the madrassa, which claimed to operate a mosque and provide education to underprivileged children on the premises, had failed to provide any evidence that the land in question was a registered waqf property. 'It is a classic case where the land of NHAI has been encroached upon by the plaintiff and Madrassa along with Masjid and certain other constructions have been raised and the property is being claimed to be a 'waqf'," the court noted. In 2011, the Waqf Madrassa Qasimul Uloom (the petitioner) filed a suit seeking an injunction against the State and police authorities from dismantling structures allegedly part of the religious institution. Among the constructions was a police outpost, which had become defunct and locked up. The madrassa claimed it had leased the space to the police for a meagre rent of Rs. 34 per month. However, the state contended that it discovered only in 2014 – through letters from the Public Works Department and the National Highway Authority of India – that the site stood on national highway land and was obstructing proposed road widening under the National Highways Development Programme, Phase IV-B. Following this, the state sought to amend its earlier defence to reflect the discovery, prompting the petitioner to approach the high court, arguing that such an amendment would amount to withdrawing prior admissions. The court also underscored the statutory prerequisites for a valid waqf, noting that the petitioner had neither registered the property under the Waqf Act, 1995, nor provided a waqf deed or survey listing to substantiate its claim. 'The plaintiff made construction over the land of National Highways and had let out the structure to different persons and was realising the rent treating it to be property of waqf Madarsa. It cannot be said to be a case of 'waqf by user' as the owner of the property in dispute is the National Highway Authority of India, which is under the control of the Central Government, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways," the court stated emphatically. Therefore, the writ petition was dismissed, upholding the decisions of both the trial and revisional courts that had earlier permitted the State's amended defence. First Published: May 30, 2025, 15:26 IST
Hindustan Times
24-05-2025
- Health
- Hindustan Times
HC slams SRN Hospital for ‘pathetic condition', says better to call it ‘mortuary'
Coming down heavily on the Swaroop Rani Nehru (SRN) Hospital in Prayagraj for its 'pathetic condition', the Allahabad high court said that it would be better to call it a 'mortuary' instead of a hospital. 'Prayagraj is under the grip of medical mafia. Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital attached to Motilal Nehru Medical College is in a pathetic condition. The poor and helpless patients are being dragged by touts planted by the medical mafia to private medical setups, and are not being treated in the hospitals attached to the medical college,' the court said. 'The government medical setup is under a great threat by the private medical mafia of the city,' the court added. The high court took serious note of the report submitted by the two amici curiae, who inspected SRN Hospital and submitted their report highlighting inadequate facilities and non-availability of doctors in the outpatient department (OPD). Hearing a PIL, justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal on May 23 issued a slew of directions to improve the condition of SRN Hospital, directing the principal secretary, medical health, to apprise the state government of this order and place the same before the chief secretary and, if needed, before the chief minister for his due consideration. 'Prayagraj just witnessed Mahakumbh in the months of January-February, 2025. Swaroop Rani Hospital is just one km away from the mela area. According to a state estimate, around 66.30 crore pilgrims took holy dip at Sangam. The medical infrastructure of the city is in a shambles. It was by the grace of God that no untoward incident happened, otherwise there was no medical facility available for treatment of the patients,' the court said. 'Prima facie, this court finds that the nexus between private medical mafia, medical officers and staff of the Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital has practically crippled the infrastructure and working condition,' the court noted. 'The state and district administration are totally failing in providing basic medical facilities to the residents of Prayagraj who have just witnessed the successful Mahakumbh-2025 in the city. The earlier affidavit filed by the principal secretary, medical health, demonstrates that cities like Lucknow, Kanpur and Gorakhpur have hospitals with a capacity of more than 2,000 beds, but Prayagraj has a capacity of only 1,750 beds despite the fact that the biggest religious fair on earth was held here in January-February, 2025,' the court added. The court also slammed public representatives hailing from Prayagraj, saying, 'The representatives of people in the parliament and state legislature from Prayagraj are also not taking any keen interest in the welfare and well-being of citizens. There are ministers in the Uttar Pradesh cabinet from Prayagraj, but they have not paid any attention to the deteriorating condition of the hospital attached to the medical college.' While issuing a slew of directions to improve the condition of SRN hospital, the high court also directed the district magistrate, who was present in the court, to constitute a team of officials to monitor and keep a tab on professors, assistant professors, associate professors, readers, and lecturers of the medical college indulging in private practice. Directing that the PIL be put up for the next hearing on May 29, the court also asked the DM to ensure that doctors attend the OPD regularly from 8am to 2pm.
Time of India
24-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
‘Hospital or mortuary': HC slams SRN for deplorable condition
Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court has come down heavily on the condition of Swarup Rani Nehru (SRN) Hospital, calling it a "mortuary" instead of a hospital. "Prayagraj is under the grip of medical mafias. Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital attached to Motilal Nehru Medical College is in a pathetic condition. The poor and helpless patients are being dragged by the touts posted by private medical mafias in the hospital to private medical set up and are not being treated in the hospitals attached to the medical college," said Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal. The court took a serious note of the report submitted by the two amicus curiae, appointed by the court, who as per direction of the high court inspected SRN and submitted their report highlighting the inadequacy of facilities in the hospital and non-availability of doctors in outpatient department (OPD). It was noted that basic amenities like water, fans, and air-conditioning were missing in the hospital, while doctors were frequently absent. Brokers from private diagnostic centres were seen roaming within hospital premises, allegedly luring patients away for profit. Hearing a PIL, Justice Agarwal on May 23 issued a slew of directions to improve condition of SRN and also directed the principal secretary to apprise about this order to state govt and place the same before chief secretary and if needed before chief minister for his due consideration. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Egypt: New Small Electric Car For Seniors. Prices Might Surprise You. Electric Cars | Search Ads Undo "Prayagraj has just witnessed Maha Kumbh in Jan-Feb, 2025. Swaroop Rani Hospital is just one km away from the mela area. According to estimate, around 66.30 crore pilgrims took dip in Sangam. The medical infrastructure of the city is in shambles. It was by the grace of God that no untoward incident happened otherwise there was no medical facility available for treatment of the patients," the court added. "Prima facie, this court finds that nexus between private medical mafias and medical officers and staffs of the Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital has practically crippled the infrastructure and working condition," the court added. "The state and district administration are totally failing in providing the basic medical facilities to the residents of Prayagraj who have just witnessed the successful Maha Kumbh in the city. The earlier affidavit filed by principal secretary, medical health demonstrates that cities like Lucknow, Kanpur and Gorakhpur have hospitals with a capacity of more than 2000 beds but Prayagraj has only medical capacity of 1750 beds despite the fact that biggest religious fair on the earth was held in Prayagraj," the court further said. The court also came down heavily on the public representatives hailing from Prayagraj. "The representatives of people in the parliament and state legislature from Prayagraj are also not taking any interest in the welfare and well-being of the citizens. There are ministers in the Uttar Pradesh cabinet from Prayagraj, but they have not paid any attention to the deteriorating condition of the hospital," it said. The court also directed the district magistrate, who as per court's direction was present in the court, to constitute a team of officials who would monitor and keep a check on hospital staff indulging in private practice. While posting the matter on May 29, the court also directed the DM to ensure that the doctors attend the OPD regularly from 8 am to 2 pm. The residents of the Prayagraj must also be apprised of the doctors who would be holding the OPD during the week, the court added.
Time of India
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Allahabad HC clears way for Sambhal mosque survey: Here's what court said in its verdict
PRAYAGRAJ: Allahabad high court dismissed on Monday the Sambhal Shahi Jama Masjid committee's petition challenging a Nov 19, 2024 trial court order directing an advocate commissioner to survey the structure, the subject of a suit claiming that the mosque was built in 1526 after demolishing a temple, reports Rajesh Kumar Pandey. While upholding the trial court's survey order, Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal vacated the interim stay on the Hindu plaintiffs ' suit. The mosque committee had asked for the suit to be dismissed on the ground that the Hindu side's claim to the site was prima facie barred under the Places of Worship Act, 1991. The legislation prohibits conversion of any place of worship and mandates maintaining the religious character of any such site that existed on Aug 15, 1947. HC: Plaintiffs only seeking right to access to Sambhal site This is not a case where any conversion of place of worship is taking place or the religious character is being changed. The plaintiffs have only sought right to access to a protected monument, declared in 1920 under Section 18 of Ancient Monument and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, the 45-page judgment states. In its petition, the mosque committee contended that the civil judge (junior division) ordered the survey "hastily" and "without issuing notice". Based on the Nov 19 directive, a survey was conducted that very day and another one on Nov 24. Later that month, SC stayed proceedings in the trial court until the mosque committee's petition against the survey order was heard by an HC bench. Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) said in its submission to the bench that the mosque had been designated as a protected monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. This effectively means that its status is governed by preservation laws rather than religious classification. ASI also mentioned that nowhere in official records was the mosque described as a religious place. The Hindu plaintiffs contend that the disputed Sambhal mosque stands at what used to be site of an ancient Harihar temple dedicated to Kalki, last avatar of Vishnu. The suit claims in 1526, on orders of Mughal emperor Babar, the temple was partially demolished and a mosque built over it.
