Velachery residents have urged the Greater Chennai Corporation to reintroduce withdrawn services and improve existing facilities, at the 30-bed Urban Primary Health Centre on Gandhi Salai in Velachery (Ward 179, Zone 13). Residents say the healthcare centre which was built in the early 1990s received good patronage until 2016. Now, with some of its services having been withdrawn, it does not receive the same footfall.
“It had a maternity ward with an operation theatre. Immunisation vaccines were administered to infants at the hospital. Now, this services are not available. Only blood and culture tests are done. Three years ago, a UPHC was opened in Adyar; since then, the services of the UPHC in Velachery have been withdrawn, one after another. It is said that the medical equipment at the Velachery UPHC were taken to Adyar. At a recent grievance meet organised by GCC, restoration of this healthcare centre was raised. A sizeable section of the population in Velachery would want to use this facility. Therefore, the healthcare centre has to be restored,” says S. Kumara Raja, president, Annai Indira Nagar Residents Welfare Association.
Residents also point out that termination of Metropolitan Transport Corporation service 18P has also contributed to the problem of poor patronage. “It is a year since the MTC service 18P (from the UPHC on Gandhi Salai to Broadway via Anna Salai) has been withdrawn. It was the only MTC service on Gandhi Salai. There is a stopover in front of the healthcare centre. Now, commuters have to walk up to Old Velachery Main Road to access MTC services. During the grievance meet, we requested that a small bus service connecting Guindy, Velachery and Taramani railway stations be introduced,” adds Kumara Raja.
