Gurgaon: The city will get eight new sub-health centres (SHCs) and three new primary health centres (PHCs) this financial year.The new PHCs will be set up in Ransika, Reethoj and Sidharwali villages, health minister Arti Singh Rao announced while inaugurating healthcare projects worth around Rs 2.86 crore in Gurgaon on Thursday.Besides, Daulatabad and Wazirabad PHCs will be upgraded into community health centres (CHCs), Rao said, adding that a new PHC has been proposed in Baghanki and an SHC in Ghamroj village to improve healthcare access in rural areas. She said the upgradation of two PHCs into CHCs will help provide specialist healthcare services, better treatment facilities and modern medical equipment within the district itself.The announcements are part of Haryana govt’s “push to strengthen” healthcare infrastructure in the rapidly growing district, the minister said. Speaking at a programme held at the PWD Rest House, Rao said, “Gurgaon, being Haryana’s most populous district, requires continuous expansion of healthcare services due to rapid urbanisation and increasing population pressure.”The minister directed health department officials to regularly monitor all ongoing healthcare projects and ensure timely completion while maintaining quality standards in construction work. She also instructed officials to periodically review all healthcare expansion projects and ensure there is no negligence in implementation.“The govt is continuously working to strengthen healthcare infrastructure so that people can access better, affordable and quality medical facilities,” she said, adding that healthcare reach in both rural and urban areas is being expanded through new hospital buildings, SHCs, block public health units (BPHUs) and modern medical facilities.Rao said Gurgaon has the highest number of sub-centres in Haryana, helping provide primary healthcare services closer to residents in rural areas. Among the projects inaugurated on Thursday was a BPHU at the sub-divisional civil hospital in Helimandi built at a cost of around Rs 50 lakh. The unit will function as a diagnostic hub for Pataudi block and offer testing facilities for haemoglobin, ESR, random blood sugar, dengue, malaria and blood grouping.The minister also inaugurated a new SHC building in Chandu village constructed at a cost of over Rs 89 lakh. New SHC buildings in Noorgarh and Mahchana villages, built at costs of over Rs 81 lakh and Rs 64 lakh respectively, were also inaugurated. Rao said the govt’s priority is to ensure modern and quality healthcare facilities reach people at the local level. Officials said the projects are expected to improve both access and quality of primary healthcare services in rural areas.Rao said the state govt under chief minister Nayab Singh Saini is bringing “historic changes” in the health sector with a focus on expansion of infrastructure, availability of modern medical equipment and improvement in healthcare delivery.Despite being Haryana’s most populous and one of its fastest-growing districts, Gurgaon still does not have a full-fledged civil hospital with advanced tertiary care infrastructure, forcing a large number of patients to depend on private hospitals or seek referrals to Delhi and other govt facilities. The existing civil hospital in Sector 10 has long faced concerns over inadequate capacity amid rising patient load.
