The 'other' Sri Ram of Ayodhya, serving poor since 1900

Ayodhya: For centuries, people of Ayodhya have been praying to Lord Ram for their well-being but there has been another 'Sri Ram' in the holy city, providing relief and succour to the poor and the sick and healing wounds for more than 120 years.

The Sri Ram Hospital housed in its heritage building, located less than a km away from the newly-built grand Ram Mandir, sits along Ram Path in the heart of the temple town.

An old marble plaque embedded on a wall in the main block bears an inscription - "This hospital built and endowed for the poor of Ajodhia by the Hon'ble Rai Sri Ram Bahadur was begun upon 5th Nov 1900 when the foundation stone was laid by the Hon'ble Mr J Hooper, ICS, Commissioner of Fyzabad Division."

The inscription further reads that it was 'opened to public use on 12th April 1902 by HH Sir James Digges Latouche, KCSI, Lieutenant Governor of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh'. Another plaque bears the same inscription in Hindi and Urdu.

"As it's in Ayodhya and located close to Ram Janmabhoomi site, a very large number of people think it is named after Prabhu Shri Ram. Its founder Sri Ram, was a philanthropist who established this hospital which gets patients from Ayodhya and Faizabad towns, and also from Gonda and Basti districts," the hospital's administrative officer Yash Prakash Singh told PTI here.

"Though the hospital is under the Uttar Pradesh government and treatment is free, many people 'also think it is a private facility", he said.

Since its inception, the hospital, now officially called Rajkiya Sri Ram Hospital, has served the poor and the needy, and as life comes full circle for Ayodhya with the building of the Ram temple, it is also serving devotees with renewed vigour, in case they need medical aid.

The consecration ceremony at the temple took place on January 22 and its doors were opened to the public from January 23 onwards. Lakhs of devotees have had darshan since then.

"On the first day of opening, a devotee who had fainted was brought to our hospital in an ambulance and given medical assistance, other devotees who had complained of breathing issues, or those who had got wounded in the milling crowd were also attended to, Singh said.

The hospital is situated at a walking distance from the main ornamental gateway leading to the Ram temple complex.

"Earlier the colour of the old building of the hospital was pink. But, in sync with the uniform facade look of buildings along Ram Path, its colour recently was changed to yellow, the administrative officer of the 120-bed" Sri Ram Hospital said.

Singh said the construction of the new temple is a 'blessing for Ayodhya' and Sri Ram Hospital has practically witnessed the dramatic changes over the last century or so, from close quarters.

"Being at this hospital, I myself have seen the period of dispute, the turbulent phase when Babri (mosque) was brought down in 1992, the time when Ram Lalla was in a makeshift temple, the Supreme Court verdict in 2019, and now when the deity resides in the holy sanctum sanctorum of the grand temple'," he said.

"The boundary on the back side of the hospital campus, touches the boundary of the temple complex area. A sentry guarded a post that was situated close to our boundary,'' Singh recalled, adding Sri Ram Hospital is 'still under 'yellow zone' of security'.

Such is the close link between 'Prabhu Shri Ram', and Sri Ram, the man who built this health institution, he said.

While the hospital records mention the name and contribution of its builder and benefactor, hardly any document in its records speak of his personal life.

''He was a well-known person of that time ('us zamane ke wo bade aadmi thhey'). Not much is known about his life though, as we looked into our records but in vain,'' Singh said.

People from the old generation know that the hospital is named after the man who built it, and some in the new generation are also aware of its provenance, but in Ayodhya, the name 'Shri Ram' essentially evokes the image of Lord Ram, so that could be one reason why many assume it's named after the deity, he added.

The erstwhile Faizabad district -- with Faizabad and Ayodhya as twin cities within it -- was renamed to Ayodhya district in 2018.

Sri Ram Hospital is the main government hospital in the temple town, and Bhagwan Rishabhdev eye hospital of Ayodhya city is also attached to it, the Sri Ram Hospital's administrative officer said.

District hospital (for male) and district hospital (for female) are located in Faizabad town, besides the medical college hospital at Darshan Nagar.

Historical gazetteers on old Faizabad district also document these old hospitals.

''There is also a first class hospital given to the town by Rai Sri Ram Bahadur of Rasulpur and called by his name,'' reads Fyzabad: A Gazetteer being Volume XLIII of the District Gazetteers of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, published in 1905.

The 1960 gazetteer on Faizabad also mentions Sri Ram Hospital.

''The building of the hospital was constructed and endowed in 1902 by Sri Ram, a leading advocate and talukdar of Rasulpur. It started functioning from April 12, 1902, since when it was under the District Board from which the State Government took it over in May 1949. An X-ray plant was installed in 1953,'' it says.

Singh said the hospital provides treatment in medicine, pediatrics, orthopaedics, dermatology, ENT, dentistry, ophthalmology, among other fields, besides offering general services and emergency services.

"There is also a plan for expansion of facilities at the hospital," he said.