Hospital rents coolers for patients ahead of Yogi's visit

Patients at the chaotic and run-down Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital in Uttar Pradesh’s Allahabad town were suddenly blessed with air coolers on Sunday when the mercury touched 48 degrees Celsius.

But little did they know that the air coolers had been installed in the wards not for them, but for the visit of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. All the air coolers, which were rented from a private tent house in the town, were removed almost immediately after Adityanath left the hospital.

Reports stated that the chief minister, who was on a visit to Allahabad on Sunday, went around different wards and also interacted with the patients to know about their problems.

The hospital authorities had installed air coolers in the wards apparently to impress the chief minister. The air coolers had stickers displaying ‘Junior Doctors’ Association’, to convey that they had been there courtesy the doctors.

“We thought that the coolers would be there permanently,” said an attendant. The district administration has ordered an inquiry, a source said.

On Saturday, the hospital administration forcibly discharged a seven-year-old gang-rape victim to prevent Adityanath from interacting with the victim’s family.

Earlier, officials had installed an air conditioner and sofa at the house of a BSF jawan, who was martyred in Jammu & Kashmir last month, in Deoria district during Adityanath’s visit.  However, they were removed after the chief minister left.