With 16,000 vacancies, violent clashes, and a public losing faith, the government’s claims of progress ring hollow in hospitals where hope is running out.
Suhail Khan
Srinagar, July 24 : Access to quality healthcare remains a top priority for the Jammu & Kashmir government. However, improvements in institutional functioning and infrastructure have yet to materialize in both government and private hospitals across the region.
Every day, new issues plague Kashmir’s healthcare institutions—whether private or government-run—often making headlines. Once again, a healthcare institution has come under scrutiny, this time for its controversial handling of a situation, leaving the public to suffer. The topic has sparked heated debates everywhere—from mosques to households, cafes, and social media—flooding discussions with concerns over healthcare.
On Wednesday, protests erupted at SMHS Hospital in Srinagar after a doctor was allegedly assaulted by a patient’s attendant. The incident triggered widespread condemnation and demonstrations from the medical community.
Hundreds of doctors from Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar and its affiliated hospitals gathered to express outrage and demand strict action against the accused.
A CCTV video of the assault, showing a man slapping the doctor inside the hospital, went viral on social media, raising serious concerns over the safety of healthcare workers.
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1AqQ9pfgjW
GMC Srinagar issued a statement condemning the attack, emphasizing that hospitals are public assets meant for patient care. “Healthcare staff work round the clock to serve patients. We urge attendants to cooperate and act responsibly,” the statement read.
The GMC administration confirmed that legal action had been initiated regarding the July 22, 2025, incident. A senior police officer stated that an FIR (No. 11/2025) was registered on July 23, 2025, and investigations were ongoing.
Doctors have called on authorities to ensure justice and implement stronger measures to prevent such incidents in the future.
However, the story does not end there—it takes a more troubling turn. Healthcare services at SMHS Hospital came to a grinding halt as doctors went on strike, leaving patients in distress.
What Really Happened?
Dr. Shahnawaz recounted that the incident occurred around 12:15 AM on Tuesday. “I was at the medical reception when the patient was brought in. After assessment, his vitals were not recorded, and he was sent to the triage room for further evaluation. Unfortunately, the patient later died,” he said. “After his death, an attendant in his 40s kicked me. At night, there are no consultants, CMOs, or security personnel, making it extremely risky for us to work under such conditions. We are here to serve patients, not to be assaulted. We demand a thorough investigation and legal action against the perpetrator.”
According to the deceased’s family, the incident followed the death of Javid Ahmad, an employee of the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC), due to alleged medical negligence at SMHS Hospital.
Javid’s family claimed he had been experiencing chest pain and was brought to the hospital, where both the patient and attendants pleaded with doctors to keep him on oxygen. However, they alleged that doctors repeatedly refused.
The family further stated that when Javid’s condition worsened, the same doctor who was later assaulted allegedly ignored his deteriorating state and asked for medicine to be brought from outside. Once the medicine was procured by Javid’s brother-in-law, he reportedly passed away—while doctors were seen laughing. In anger, the brother-in-law slapped the doctor.
While the family acknowledged that assaulting a doctor was wrong and sought an apology, they maintained that alleged medical negligence led to Javid’s death, as reported by a news agency KNO.
Why Do Such Incidents Frequently Make Headlines in Kashmir’s Healthcare Sector?
Are the government’s claims of achieving significant progress in healthcare truly unfounded? Or is there a deeper, untold story?
Earlier this year, Health Minister Sakina Itoo revealed in the Legislative Assembly that nearly 16,000 posts for doctors and paramedics remain vacant in Jammu and Kashmir.
According to details obtained by Kashmir Despatch, Directorate of Health Services Jammu: 980 gazetted and 2,937 non-gazetted posts vacant.
Directorate of Health Services Kashmir: 420 gazetted and 1,574 non-gazetted posts vacant.
AYUSH: 45 gazetted and 190 non-gazetted posts vacant.
National Health Mission (NHM): 305 gazetted and 1,422 non-gazetted posts vacant.
In total, 7,873 vacancies exist across both directorates.
Vacancies in Government Medical Colleges
-GMC Srinagar & Associated Hospitals: 347 gazetted and 1,984 non-gazetted posts vacant.
GMC Jammu & Associated Hospitals: 362 gazetted and 1,392 non-gazetted posts vacant.
GMC Anantnag: 91 gazetted and 283 non-gazetted posts vacant.
GMC Baramulla: 232 gazetted and 357 non-gazetted posts vacant.
GMC Doda: 154 gazetted and 225 non-gazetted posts vacant.
GMC Kathua: 121 gazetted and 188 non-gazetted posts vacant.
GMC Rajouri: 173 gazetted and 232 non-gazetted posts vacant.
GMC Handwara: 107 gazetted and 737 non-gazetted posts vacant.
GMC Udhampur: 210 gazetted and 545 non-gazetted posts vacant.
Additionally, 65 gazetted and 274 non-gazetted posts are vacant under NHM in these colleges. The total vacancies in all medical colleges across J&K amount to 8,079, bringing the overall vacancies in the health department to approximately 16,000.
The Health Minister claimed that despite vacancies, hospitals function smoothly with adequate staff. *“To address shortages, vacant posts are filled on an academic arrangement basis until regular appointments are made,” she said. “Staff availability is supplemented through NHM. In November 2024, 365 Medical Officers were appointed and posted in understaffed areas.”
She further stated that Government Medical Colleges have sufficient faculty, and vacant entry-level posts have been referred to the Jammu & Kashmir Public Service Commission (JKPSC) for recruitment. Until regular appointments are made, positions are filled via academic arrangements under SO 364 of 2020 to ensure patient care and academic activities continue.
Despite these claims, the public remains deeply disappointed with the healthcare sector in Jammu & Kashmir, rejecting both the central and state governments’ assertions of progress.
From districts to cities, concerns over inadequate healthcare grow more severe by the day, compounding the existing crises and adding to the hardships in one of the most basic necessities—health.
Nisar Ahmad Dharna, Senior Journalist:
“I have personally experienced how broken Kashmir’s healthcare system is—how heartless, egotistical, and unprofessional its doctors can be. Two deaths in my family—my brother-in-law (who suffered at SMHS for over a month before dying at AIIMS Delhi) and my aunt (who endured months at Barzulla with two failed surgeries before being left to die at SMHS). Additionally, a young law student, declared COVID-positive, was left to die at CD Hospital despite suffering a major brain injury in a road accident. All of them suffered due to medical negligence. My 75-year-old aunt’s flesh rotted after two failed surgeries, leaving a gaping wound. She was eventually abandoned, with no doctor willing to see her for days. Even my daughter would have suffered had I not sought treatment outside Kashmir. A simple eye issue (corrected with glasses in Hyderabad) was nearly misdiagnosed as meningitis at SMHS, where doctors recommended a lumbar puncture. The bottom line? Kashmir’s hospitals are mostly run by incompetent individuals in white coats—with only a handful of exceptions.”
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/14GRJHoogYm
Faraz Ashraf, Journalist:
“A doctor at SMHS was slapped—shameful, no doubt. But doctors protest by shutting down emergency services. What about their oath? What about patients? And then, they attack journalists covering the protest. The irony is dead—condemn assault, then assault the media. Bravo, ‘saviours in white’!”
Waseem Majazi, Social Media User:
“Another disheartening day in Kashmir, where hope feels like a distant luxury. I took my grandmother to SMHS for her scheduled surgery. Despite arriving early, we faced endless delays—police blockades, VIP protocols, and an Army truck forcing us to crawl at 30 km/h. At the hospital, staff shouted at an elderly man, who walked away in despair. When I inquired about my grandmother’s surgery, I was told, ‘No surgeries today—doctors are on strike.’ My grandmother, who had waited so long, said nothing—just stared out the window, as if she had long accepted that in this land, hope itself is on strike.”
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/15ct6c1dw6
Notably, SMHS Hospital, a major tertiary care facility in Srinagar, is bursting at the seams with patients. Yet, neither its infrastructure nor its staff can cope with the demand.
-Daily footfall exceeds 10,000 patients.
Over 400 posts for doctors and paramedics lie vacant (as revealed by an RTI filed by activist M.M. Shuja).
Estimated bed strength: ~250 (unverified).
Despite claims of infrastructure upgrades—including a ₹50.24 crore Emergency Theatre—there is no official data on staff availability. If such records ever existed, they have since been erased.
Meanwhile, authorities at SMHS today dismissed claims of a halted healthcare system as baseless.
Addressing the media, the GMC Srinagar administrator stated that no emergency services were halted at the institution. He emphasized that work continued smoothly despite the assault on the doctor.
