Hyderabad: More than a century-old Osmania General Hospital (OGH) turned a new chapter in its glorious history with Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy laying foundation stone for its new building.
The 2,000-bedded facility with 32 lakh square feet built-up area will come up on 26 acres at Goshamahal.
The new location is about three kilometers from the existing building of Osmania Hospital near Musi River.
The new building is estimated to cost Rs.2,700 crore and is expected to be completed in two years.
According to Health Minister C. Damodar Raja Narasimha said the cost includes construction of the building, infrastructure, and medical equipment.
Skywalks are also proposed on all four sides of the mega health facility so that people do not face problems in accessing the hospital through narrow lanes.
The hospital would feature 29 major and 12 minor operation theatres, equipped with advanced surgical infrastructure, including robotic surgery units and a dedicated transplant theatre. The design also integrates modern utilities such as a Sewage Treatment Plant (STP), and a biomedical waste management system, a high-tech laundry and an Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP).
Dilapidated condition of the existing building and space constraint was proving a major impediment for providing healthcare services to thousands of patients who come daily from various parts of Telangana and neighbouring states.
The Telangana government in 2020 ordered the closure of the old OGH building after it was inundated with rainwater and sewage. However, hospital operations continued from other blocks which were built later.
With this, the Congress party has fulfilled its promise made in the election manifesto in 2023 that if voted to power, it would construct new building without demolishing the old one.
In August this year, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy announced in the State Assembly that the new OGH building would be constructed at Goshamahal.
The new building will meet a long-pending demand of people and the hospital staff. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has also been urging the government to construct the new building of the oldest government-run hospital.
The Chief Minister promised that the new facility would be world-class and that it would give a big boost to public healthcare in Hyderabad and Telangana.
The new complex has been designed keeping in view the requirements of next 100 years. The highest priority has been given in designing the super-modern hospital to ensure comfort and needs of patients, and the attending families and visitors.
Conceived after the Musi floods of 1908, the Osmania Hospital was built by Mir Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam of Hyderabad State and named after him.
Designed by British architect Vincent Jerome Esch and Nawab Khan Bahadur Mirza Akbar Baig in the Indo-Sarcenic style, it was completed in 1919. Heritage experts say the domes of Osmania Hospital added to Hyderabad’s charms.
Osmania Hospital has been host to many a prominent medical conference, and research initiatives over the decades.
It used to serve over 3,000 outpatients and 1,200 inpatients daily, and the staff would perform 100 to 150 major surgeries and several hundred minor procedures daily, catering to a huge number of patients from different parts of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and neighbouring Karnataka and Maharashtra.
The existing space of 7.5 lakh square feet was proving insufficient for the growing needs of the people. The demands to demolish the existing structure and build new complex met with stiff resistance from heritage lovers and concerned citizens.
In 2015, then chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao had visited the hospital and announced that a new building would be constructed soon.
The Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association (HRDA) filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the High Court seeking the construction of a multi-storeyed hospital complex, including the hospital, nursing college, and hostel.
In July 2023, the government submitted an affidavit to the High Court, declaring its decision to demolish the OGH building and construct a new facility. This was strongly opposed by historians, heritage conservation activists and concerned citizens.
After BRS lost power in November 2023 elections, the Congress government fulfilled its poll promise.
