Health Secretary Dr. R. Rajesh Kumar Announces Soon-to-be-Issued Government Orders
Rudraprayag – In a festive season surprise, the Dhami government is set to offer two major health infrastructure upgrades to the people of Rudraprayag. Health Secretary Dr. R. Rajesh Kumar has announced that the Ukhimath Primary Health Center (PHC) will be upgraded to a Community Health Center (CHC), and Makkumath Health Sub-center will be transformed into a Primary Health Center (PHC). These upgrades are being implemented under the directives of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Health Minister Dr. Dhan Singh Rawat. The government order regarding this is expected to be issued soon.
As part of his two-day visit to Rudraprayag, Dr. Rajesh Kumar, who is also the District In-charge Secretary, inspected the Ukhimath PHC, which will now be elevated to a CHC. He also visited the Makkumath health sub-center, instructing the medical staff to ensure thorough medical examinations and proper treatment of patients. The health secretary shared that the work on upgrading these centers is progressing rapidly. Although Makkumath’s population is smaller than the required standard for a PHC, the decision to upgrade it is in line with the Chief Minister’s vision to provide better healthcare services to the rural population.
Dr. Kumar also conducted an on-site review of the disaster recovery work underway in the flood-affected regions of Sonprayag and Sitapur. He met with officials from the irrigation, public works, and other departments, emphasizing the need for inter-departmental coordination to accelerate the reconstruction and development efforts.
In July 2024, the region experienced heavy rainfall and landslides, damaging parts of the Kedarnath trekking route and the Gaurikund-Sonprayag highway. Dr. Kumar noted that the Kedarnath Yatra has resumed, and the alternate trekking route is now fully safe for pilgrims. The repair work on the primary trekking route is expected to be completed within a month. He added that ongoing flood protection efforts on the right bank of the Son River will be finished in 15 days, while the work on the left bank is still in progress.
The In-charge Secretary also inspected the Ghoda Paddav area in the Sonprayag market, where the damaged flood protection wall has been repaired. Additionally, the diversion work of the Mandakini River at Sitapur has been completed, and the flood protection measures for the Sitapur parking area are ongoing.
This significant boost to health services and infrastructure development comes as a timely gift from the state government, aiming to improve healthcare accessibility and accelerate disaster recovery in the region.