PMCH alumni association appeals to Nitish Kumar to preserve old buildings

A section of the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) Alumni Association has appealed to the Bihar government not to demolish old buildings of the PMCH which are close to heritage status and to preserve them as a part of the state capital's chequered history.

The government plans to upgrade the PMCH into a world class hospital and replace the old buildings with new structures.

The alumni association members say the buildings like the administrative block and Hathwa ward are some of the oldest structures on the campus and would complete 100 years of their existence soon. The association members have appealed to chief minister Nitish Kumar to reconsider the development plan and incorporate the old buildings in the heritage segment.

The government’s redevelopment plan to turn the PMCH into a world class 5,462- bed hospital will cost an estimated of ₹5,540 crore.

The PMCH has a long history. Developed in 1925 it was known as the Prince of Wales Medical College and was named after Edward VIII four years after he visited the country and the state as part of his royal tour in 1921.

The medical college traces its origin to the Temple Medical School set up in 1874 in Patna. It was later shifted to Muradpur area of the then Bankipur on the banks of the Ganga and was renamed as the Prince of Wales Medical College.

"The PMCH has not just been a hospital, offering medical treatment to the patients or grooming young medicos. It's been a living testimony of the different phases of development of Patna. The administrative block was the first construction on the campus and even Hathwa ward was developed soon. Very soon these structures would become 100-years old," said Dr Satyajit Kumar Singh, the PMCH Almuni Association president.

These deserve to be preserved for posterity. Otherwise they would find the original background of the hospital only in the history books, he added.

"We appeal to the government to consider this point and preserve a couple of old structures and develop modern buildings in the rest of the campus," he said.

Dr Singh said a delegation of doctors would be meeting the chief minister in this connection in the next few days.

JK Lal from the INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage), Patna chapter, said the PMCH has been a building of heritage significance. “Structures which are not yet over 100 years old, but have historical background, are considered the structures of heritage significance and are preserved. The original buildings of the PMCH should be preserved through restoration work," he said.

But not everybody is keen on preserving the ol structure. Dr Amarkant Jha Amar, the Indian Medical Association president, said the PMCH development plan has been a long pending demand. "Now that the government has started working over it, let the things get going. Hope it gets complete in the next five years," he said.

Another senior doctor, Dr BK Sinha said the PMCH badly needs the development work. "It's been old and badly damaged. Patients' lives are at risk at many buildings. Concern for heritage is good, but people need a world class hospital in state capital,” he said.