An extensive probe has been demanded in response to Sunday night’s power outage at Thiruvananthapuram’s SAT Hospital. A technical committee has been tasked with investigating the event by Health Minister Veena George, who has issued a warning that severe consequences will follow if any official is proven to be at fault. According to the preliminary investigation, the hospital’s internal electrical wing is to blame for the malfunction.
The primary supply could not be restored after repair, which resulted in a power outage. This posed a serious problem because the backup power system also failed. After bringing in a new generator, the PWD electrical wing was able to effectively restore the direct power supply on Monday morning, solving the issue. In order to prevent similar disruptions, hospital authorities have announced that further maintenance work, such as replacing contact switches on the panel board, will be carried out.
The high-tension power supplier, Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), has denied any blame for the outage and blamed the poor state of the hospital’s electrical infrastructure instead. K Krishnankutty, the minister of electricity, has reaffirmed that KSEB was not at fault. Rust on the hospital’s electrical equipment, according to KSEB authorities, indicated a lack of routine maintenance, which exacerbated the power outage.
The health department is embarrassed by the outage because SAT Hospital is a significant referral facility for women and children. Protests erupted in response to power outages that lasted longer than three hours, underscoring the vital necessity of a continuous power supply for healthcare facilities.
Thiruvananthapuram Deputy Mayor P K Raju described the episode, which attracted a lot of attention from the public, as a severe lapse by the hospital officials. In response to the circumstances, BJP and Congress council members also organized demonstrations. Although the hospital has two generators, a third generator provided by HLL is not being used, which begs the question of how ready the facility is for power outages.
The technical committee’s examination will ascertain who is ultimately in charge of the power outage and whether the accident might have been avoided with improved maintenance procedures going future. The minister of health has made it clear that after the inquiry is over, the proper steps will be taken. This episode serves as a reminder of how crucial it is for hospitals to maintain their vital infrastructure, particularly those that cater to vulnerable patient populations like women and children.
SOURCE :
INDIAN EXPRESS
