CM Suvendu Adhikari says central hospital monitoring system will help get rid of ‘touts’
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari paid a surprise visit to Swastha Bhawan (State Health Department headquarters) on Thursday (July 9, 2026) and said that
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari paid a surprise visit to Swastha Bhawan (State Health Department headquarters) on Thursday (July 9, 2026) and said that the State hospitals have to be made from the control of “touts”. He also reviewed the progress of the hospital monitoring and central control system. Adhikari also promised multiple health facility upgrades across the State. He was accompanied by the Health Minister Dr. Sharadwat Mukherjee and other senior departmental officials. “We have live monitoring of the control room so that no ‘tout’ who is seen in any hospital premises, cannot be seen the next day. One of the biggest aims of this control room is to remove brokers,” Mr. Adhikari said.
He added that the system will help identify touts who misuse the system and exploit people in the hospitals. The CM also added that they will start a colour-coded badge system for all health workers based on their level of duties. “Sometimes there is news of medical mismanagement by unqualified staff. To ensure everyone can be identified, we are starting this system,” the CM added. He said that they will work towards better safety and security for healthcare workers. Mr. Adhikari stated that hospitals should be monitored completely, including the outside premises, kitchens, parking lots, fair price shops, and common areas, so that any adverse situations can be solved immediately.
Adhikari also said that the State-run hospitals are not equipped to handle major emergency health crises and that they have asked to increase the number of ICU beds for trauma care. “Provide a place for families of patients to stay, they should not be staying on roads. Make sheds and bathrooms for them,” Mr. Adhikari said. He also added that ICU beds are now at 112 per hospital and that they plan to increase it to at least 200 for each hospital. The State Health Minister said that this pilot project will slowly be launched across the State in all State, district, and sub-divisional hospitals, and all of them will be monitored from the Health Department headquarters.
Officials said that they hope that the program will become State-wide by the end of July. Meanwhile, in a related development, on Thursday (July 9, 2026), the family of a patient at the Midnapore Medical College and Hospital alleged that a female patient was administered expired saline in the State-run hospital. Mr. Mukherjee has said that the government will conduct an enquiry into the matter.
The BriefWire