• Source:JND
Add as a preferred

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi has decided to reverse its decision to shut its services for outdoor patients till 2.30 pm on January 22 due to the grand consecration ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya. 

“The Outpatient Department shall remain open to attend patients with appointments tomorrow, Monday 22nd January,” AIIMS New Delhi said in a statement.

The decision comes a day after AIIMS Delhi, and Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in the national capital announced a half-day closure of its offices and institutions on January 22 as the ‘pran pratishtha’ ceremony at Ayodhya Ram Temple will be celebrated across the country. However, the move sparked massive controversy. 

"The Government of India has declared Monday, January 22, 2024, a half-day closing till 14.30 hrs, vide OM ref: F.No.12/7/2023- JCA, DOPT dated January 18, 2024, as Ram Lalla Pran Pratishtha at Ayodhya will be celebrated across India," AIIMS said in a circular on Saturday. However, the premier medical institute clarified that all ‘critical clinical services’ shall remain functional. 

The announcement by AIIMS sparked a massive controversy with people highlighting the fact that patients wait for weeks, and sometimes, months to get an appointment at the premier medical institute.

However, in a fresh notification issued on Sunday morning, AIIMS clarified that the OPD "shall remain open to attend to patients with an appointment in order to prevent any inconvenience to them and to facilitate patient care".

Several opposition MPS criticised the decision to close down government hospitals in the national capital on the day of the grand consecration ceremony in Ayodhya. Shiv Sena  (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said, “Hello humans. Please don’t go into a medical emergency on the 22nd, and if you do schedule it for post 2 pm since AIIMS Delhi is taking time off to welcome Maryada Purushottam Ram.”

Trinamool Congress leader Saket Gokhale also hit out at the central government over the closure of AIIMS till afternoon and claimed there are “literally people sleeping outside in the cold at AIIMS gates waiting for an appointment”.