Coming soon:India's first floating hospital on the Brahmaputra

Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi on Friday dedicated the floating hospital to the people of Assam though it is in the very early stage of construction. Gogoi said it was a very good concept which if replicated in larger scale by deploying smaller floating clinics on motor boats, could go a long way in bringing the healthcare closer to those living in far flung areas that are not accessible through surface communication routes.

“We will need many more floating healthcare clinics on motor boats to serve lakhs of people who can be accessed only through river routes as the areas they live in can’t be connected through surface communication modes. This hospital ship which will have very limited capacity, could be a role model for a floating healthcare clinics on a wider scale,” Gogoi said.

The project was conceived by Sanjoy Hazarika, managing trustee of Centre for Northeast Studies and Policy Research. The non-governmental organisation has been running a unique project of 15 boat clinics in 13 districts of Assam with financial support from National Rural Health Mission and in coordination with Assam government.

The boat clinics have benefited over 10 lakh poor people living in river isles of Assam valley so far. The Population Foundation of India supports the C-NES boat clinic project in five of the districts to enhance the family planning outreach of the boat clinics.

“Once completed, the floating hospital will provide specialized healthcare services especially to mothers and children from river island community in Assam. Institutionalized safe deliveries will become a reality for a section of those people living far off areas,” Hazarika said.

The 130 feet long floating hospital will have three levels when completed. It will be equipped with a modern operation theatre, diagnostic facilities like portable X-Ray and ultra sound machines, recovery and delivery rooms, separate wards for male and female patients with five beds each besides other essential facilities.

The floating hospital has been designed by engineers from Kolkata and Guwahati with inputs from health professionals. M/S P Das and Company has been engaged to build the ship and the construction is going on in their shipyard at PanduPort in Guwahati.