NEW DELHI: Persistent rain lashing the capital has put healthcare facilities under added strain. At Safdarjung Hospital, one of the largest government-run facilities in Delhi, waterlogging disrupted patient movement, forcing some to wade barefoot through knee-deep water to access treatment.
Videos surfaced on social media showing flooded corridors inside the hospital, where patients and attendants were seen clutching walls for balance while navigating submerged passageways.
One such video, which went viral on Wednesday, captured the corridor leading to Room Number 41 completely waterlogged, with stagnant water remaining for several hours. Officials from the hospital attributed the water accumulation to ongoing construction work.
“The waterlogging was caused due to an ongoing construction in front of the H-Block and got cleared within some time,” said a hospital official. He added that the affected area was the ground-floor passage connecting the OPD with the new emergency ward. However, officials maintained that patient care and health services were not significantly impacted.
Contrary to those claims, several patients and their families said they were forced to delay or abandon treatment plans as they struggled to navigate the flooded premises.
The corridor remained inundated through much of the day, creating difficulties for patients, especially the elderly and those with mobility issues.
In another incident, the National Institute of TB and Respiratory Diseases (NITRD) in Mehrauli faced a prolonged power outage lasting more than two hours on Wednesday afternoon.
The blackout, which began around 1 pm at emergency, left critical care patients on ventilator support at serious risk, as the institute lacked adequate backup power systems.
According to doctors, junior residents had to manually pump ambu bags to maintain airflow for patients during the outage. Power supply was restored after 3 pm, but the institute is yet to issue an official statement regarding the incident.