NRIs should cater to area residents: Former Governor
Former Governor of Manipur Gurbachan Jagat gave a clarion call to all NRI Punjabis to come forward and work in collaboration with panchayats.
Speaking at the inauguration of Kartar Memorial Hospital at Taggar village, built by NRI Onkar Singh Taggar in memory of his father Capt Kartar Singh, he said the need of the hour was to make plans to cater to area residents.
The former Governor said, “There is a dire need to construct old age homes in villages and towns of Punjab.”
He said, “As youngsters have migrated to the US, UK, Canada and several other countries, a large number of senior citizens have been left alone in villages and towns. Initially, they stay in regular touch with their parents and when they have their kids, they call their parents to take care of them. But as soon as the kids grow up, they are completely westernised. The old parents feel neglected and come back to stay alone. Since there’s no one to take care of, there is a dire need of old age homes in villages and towns of Punjab.”
Praising Taggar for coming up with a multispeciality hospital in Hoshiarpur, Gurbachan Jagat said no one had earlier paid attention in this direction. He urged the NRIs to hold group meetings and discuss how can they contribute to the development of their respective villages and areas.
Iqbal Singh Lalpura, Chairman of the National Minority Commission, said if everybody acted in this manner, a lot could be done for the development of the state and its people.
Taggar, who is a chairman of the hospital, said his aim was not to earn profit but to provide best healthcare facilities to the residents at the lowest rates.
In the first phase, the 80-bed hospital has 11 doctors, 30 nurses and 25 support staff providing outpatient and inpatient services in general surgery, physiotherapy, gynaecology and paediatrics. In the second phase, othro services would be made available and a diagnostic centre would be started. Cardiology and ophthalmology departments would be started next year.
