HYDERABAD: With the next High Court hearing on the future of the Osmania General Hospital (OGH) expected on Thursday, the OGH Conservation Group on Wednesday appealed to the state government to fulfil its promise of preserving the heritage block of the hospital.
Addressing the media here, conservationists appealed to the government to consider alternatives to pulling down the Nizam-era structure.
Historian Sajjad Shahid said that such historic structures tell us about our past, our present, our culture and what is good about it. He said that the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), established by an Act of Parliament, was fit for examining the heritage structure.
Dr Iqbal Jaweed, an alumnus of Osmania Medical College, referred to OGH as the “Taj Mahal” of the medical profession. Pointing out that one of the first chloroform trials was conducted at the iconic hospital, Dr Jaweed said that more discoveries could come if the hospital was protected.
Stating that several eminent personalities breathed their last at the OGH, he asked whether the government will destroy such a structure.
Journalist Sara Mathews said that governments have a notion that heritage structures are not public property. “We expect this government to be different from the real-estate government of the BRS,” she said.
Dr Asif Haneef asked why the hospital cannot be maintained when the city’s other historic structures like Chowmahalla Palace and Falaknuma Palace are being maintained. “If the heritage block is converted into a tourist destination, the revenue from visitors might be enough for its maintenance,” he added. “It would be unbecoming of a Chief Minister to go back on his word,” Dr Haneef said.
Doc alleges conspiracy
Dr Jasveen Jairath criticised the privatisation of public property and alleged that lobbies are conspiring to make the structure dilapidated. She described the propaganda that heritage conservationists want to save the building but not public health as a “devilish argument”.