SHILLONG, FEB 26: Public pressure broke the Medical Superintendent’s silence at civil hospital here as the District Medical and Health Officer ordered an inspection after residents complained of toxic sewage leaks affecting Khliehriat West village.
Families living near the hospital — the main public healthcare facility in East Jaintia Hills — said damaged drainage and leaking toilet tanks had made daily life unbearable.
“We cannot eat meals together, children cannot play outside, and the stench is constant,” neighborhood leaders said, warning of waterborne and airborne disease.
The Khliehriat Circle of the Jaintia National Council, said repeated complaints to Medical Superintendent Dr A Lakiang went unanswered.
“All of them were met with complete silence and inaction. No inspection was ordered, no repairs were made,” JNC general secretary Symboh Baiar Sumer said.
On February 25, the JNC submitted a petition to DMHO Dr D Shylla demanding inspection, urgent repairs, and a maintenance protocol.
Shylla responded promptly, and a joint inspection took place on Wednesday with JNC leaders and village headmen.
“The inspection confirmed the severity and the long failure of the hospital administration to address it,” Sumer said.
Dr Shylla assured that he would direct the Medical Superintendent to undertake repairs without delay.
The JNC warned it would monitor follow-through closely. “Should repairs not be carried out in reasonable time, we are prepared to escalate — petitions to the Health Department, MHRC complaints, and public agitation,” Sumer said.
“A government hospital that generates health hazards for its own community is institutional failure. The people deserve clean, safe living conditions now.”
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