Chaos reigns in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir’s medical facilities as frontline doctors deliver a Republic Day strike ultimatum amid systemic breakdown. The announcement signals breaking point for a healthcare apparatus long starved of resources and oversight.
From operating theaters without anesthesia to pharmacies devoid of antibiotics, PoK’s 47 major hospitals operate in survival mode. The PoK Healthcare Workers Union reports 70% medicine stock depletion and 40% staff vacancies. ‘We’re practicing medicine by miracle,’ quipped veteran physician Dr. Riaz Malik during emergency union meeting.
Flashback reveals chronic mismanagement. Post-2005 earthquake reconstruction funds mysteriously vanished, leaving half-built facilities. Annual health allocations – a mere 3% of regional budget – prioritize political patronage over patient care. Winter conditions compound misery, with frozen pipelines bursting in unheated wards.
Community voices amplify urgency. ‘My diabetic father waits 12 hours for insulin that doesn’t exist,’ shares shopkeeper Imran from Poonch. Vaccination drives falter as cold chain storage fails repeatedly. Maternal mortality rivals sub-Saharan rates, robbing future generations.
The strike strategy leverages Republic Day symbolism, drawing inevitable India-Pakistan comparisons. Islamabad faces dilemma: concede demands risking budgetary precedent, or weather backlash from alienated PoK residents increasingly sympathetic to freedom movements.
Contingency measures falter under pressure. Private clinics cannot absorb public hospital loads; many lack specialist qualifications. Cross-LoC trade halts further isolate supplies. International Red Cross teams document violations of healthcare access rights under humanitarian law.
Doctor leaders outline non-negotiables: salary clearance within 72 hours, medicine airlifts, emergency power backups. Government sources hint at concessions but history breeds skepticism. As thermometers plummet and flu cases soar, PoK confronts health Armageddon unless decisive leadership emerges immediately.