Revamped Civil Hospital faces blackout before inauguration, raises questions over infrastructure

The revamped Civil Hospital, set to be inaugurated by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday morning, suffered a power outage on Monday evening, causing difficulties for hospital staff treating patients in the dark. The incident has exposed infrastructure issues at the hospital, raising questions about the much-publicised renovation.

As news of the power failure spread, senior AAP leaders were informed, prompting hospital authorities to call Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) officials to rectify the fault. Interestingly, ahead of the scheduled inauguration, AAP had put up large posters of Kejriwal and Mann around the hospital to showcase the revamp, but the power outage has instead brought embarrassment to the party leadership.

Meanwhile, Union Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu took a jibe at AAP over the incident. He uploaded a video showing patients being treated in the dark and criticised the state government for its failure to provide basic infrastructure.

“Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann arrived in Ludhiana with grand promises of development, including the renovation of the Civil Hospital. But today, the hospital faced a complete blackout, exposing the true face of their incompetent governance. Empty publicity stunts cannot hide the suffering of the people. Punjab deserves better,” Bittu tweeted, attacking AAP for focusing on optics rather than real improvements.