Kalwa civic hosp revamp stalled over lack of funds

Thane: A year after 18 people died within a 24-hour span in Thane Municipal Corporation-run Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Memorial (CSMM) Hospital in Kalwa, the promised revamp remains on paper as the state govt is yet to release the promised funds, said officials.
Immediately after the Aug 13 2023 tragedy, the then Thane municipal commissioner Abhijit Bangar had, following an approval from chief minister Eknath Shinde, announced that the number of beds would be increased from the existing 500 to 1,000 beds.
The medical college was also to be relocated from Kalwa to an independent 12-storey building, which served as a Covid centre, located 3km away in Majiwada, Thane. This relocation, the officials said, would create additional space at the Kalwa hospital and increase space for patients/beds. Furthermore, the corporation was also planning to remodel the existing layout, optimise the available space and undertake structural repairs.
TMC’s public works department sent a proposal to the state urban development department, but even a year later, the project — estimated to cost Rs 136 crore —is yet to commence as the funds haven't been released.
“We have written to the state urban development department and expect it to release funds at the earliest,” said the official. When contacted, CSMMH dean Dr Rakesh Barot confirmed the developments but declined to elaborate further.
CSMM Hospital, located along the Thane Belapur Highway, is the only fully-fledged operating municipal hospital in Thane corporation limits. It caters to over 1,200 OPD patients in addition to scores of patients from Thane city, various parts of the district and the neighbouring region. A former NCP corporator said, “Facilities such as medical stores and laboratories are ill-equipped, outsourced, or shut, while many costly machines are still inoperative. Often patients are referred to Mumbai hospitals.”