Government Medical College Hospital visitors fleeced in name of pay and park

Thiruvananthaouram: Visitors to the Government Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram, have to pay for a fresh parking ticket, every time they leave the premises. Ajay S Kumar, a city student whose relative was admitted at the hospital says, “I feel this is exploitation.” The ticket is valid for three hours, but each time someone heads out, they will have to pay again. The fee of Rs 5 might seem petty, but for a person of little means every penny counts.

Ajay says he overheard a parking attendant say that they had already made a “profit of '100” from the tickets that morning. “Even if we are paying the money, there is no guarantee that the vehicles will be safe. The vehicles are kept in the open and there is no shelter either,” he says. When asked about the parking lot issues, hospital Superintendent Dr M S Sharmad said that he would look into it. Plans for a better parking lot were on the anvil, he added.

“We are thinking of introducing a multi-level parking system, as the parking space is not enough. We are considering putting a proper system in place, with an announcement mechanism so that the drivers can be reached out to,” he said. He added, “Now in the limited space available, vehicles from RCC and Sri Chitra are also parked. Then, the staff and doctors here also need to park their vehicles. The new system will address the issue of limited parking space,” he said.