'Hospital should get the priority'

“If Namma Metro project is taken up as per the original plan, we will have to close down the hospital for a long duration,” said Dr C N Manjunath (in pic), Director, Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research.

“The original plan was to build the station within the premises of the hospital and we were against it. There is not enough space in the parking lot, we have an underground oxygen plant and also a diesel plant. Any construction can be disastrous,” he added.

The main issue, according to Dr Manjunath, was the lack of open space in the hospital. “We have just 120 to 130 mts of open space. The station will encroach upon the outpatient department and also the angiogram facility,” he said.

His second concern was the amount of dust that the Metro construction would generate. “Micro dust is something we can have no control over. During excavation and other work, the dust will lead to infection in patients,” he said.

A Metro station means a lot of activity and train movement will have an adverse impact on patients, Dr Manjunah said. He quoted the example of Vani Vilas Hospital which too has a Metro corridor coming up close to it. “During the Metro work there, the hospital building developed cracks. The same might happen to our hospital too,” he said.

When asked about the fate of the nearby residents who stand to lose their houses due to realignment, he said: “In such a scenario, a hospital should be given priority.”