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  • By Mansoor Peer
  • Comments 0
  • 30 Mar 2026

HEALTHCARE UNDER STRAIN: Surgical delays in J&K hospitals push patients to private sector

Srinagar, Mar 29: Poor patients across Jammu and Kashmir are bearing the brunt of prolonged delays, with many forced to wait months for essential surgeries, compelling them to turn to private hospitals and undergo treatment at their own expense. With no timely relief in sight, desperate families are turning to costly private hospitals, draining their savings and pushing them into financial distress. Fayaz Ahmad Lone, an attendant from Ganderbal, said his wife, who is suffering from gallstones, has been unwell for over two weeks. A few days ago, he took her to District Hospital Ganderbal for a check-up, where doctors scheduled her surgery eight months later. “When I was given such a long appointment, I requested the doctor to expedite the surgery within a week, but was told that the hospital is overburdened. Patients are suffering. How can anyone wait for eight months? This needs to change. Poor people are suffering and may even die,” he said. Fayaz was later forced to get the procedure done at a private hospital on Sunday. “I am a labourer and have four daughters. What could I do? I had to borrow Rs 20,000 from a friend. This is injustice. If we have the PMJAY scheme,

why has the government restricted these procedures to public hospitals only?” he said. Many patients like Fayaz’s wife are facing long waiting periods, even up to one year, for routine surgical procedures such as gall bladder removal and piles surgery in government hospitals, raising serious concerns about access to timely healthcare. Bashir Ahmad from Srinagar is another distressed attendant, worried about his wife, who is suffering from gallbladder stones. Two days ago, he took her to a government hospital in Srinagar and is now anxious about the surgery date she will be given. “I am a poor man. I asked a private hospital how much they would charge, and they said Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000 for the procedure. What can poor people do? People are being forced to visit private hospitals for treatment,” he said. Gulzar Ahmad Wani, a resident of Khrew Pampore, said he had to struggle to secure treatment for his mother. “I had my own gall bladder surgery done in 2022 at a private hospital in Srinagar under the PMJAY (Golden Card) scheme,” he said. He added that this time, the same hospital refused to perform the procedure for his mother, stating that such surgeries are no longer

available for Golden Card holders. “When I approached GMC Anantnag, I was given a date of October 2026,” he said. In another case, Sitara from Gool Gulabgarh in Reasi district said she has been given a date of November 2026 at a hospital near her home for piles surgery. “I cannot afford treatment at private hospitals, and waiting this long is worsening my condition,” she said. Patients said that reduced participation of private hospitals under the Golden Card scheme has further burdened government facilities, leading to an unprecedented backlog. The issue dates back to March last year when the State Health Agency, Jammu and Kashmir, decided to reserve four surgical procedures exclusively for public hospitals under the PMJAY, thereby excluding them from private healthcare facilities in the Union Territory. The procedures reserved for public hospitals include appendectomy, cholecystectomy, hemorrhoidectomy, and fissure in ano. In Jammu and Kashmir, private healthcare providers have also voiced concerns over the issue. The burden on government hospitals has prompted patients to demand expansion of surgical capacity in the public sector. Patients said the delay is not just an inconvenience but a matter of deteriorating health and financial hardship, as access to affordable and timely treatment remains uncertain.

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