Early Times Report
Jammu, Apr 9: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has raised serious concerns over the non-functioning of key trauma care centres at Ramban and Udhampur along the Jammu–Srinagar National Highway, highlighting their failure to provide timely medical assistance to accident victims.
According to the CAG, the two Trauma Care Centres (TCCs) are grappling with an acute manpower shortage, with nearly 90 percent of sanctioned posts lying vacant, rendering the facilities largely ineffective during emergencies.
The staffing crisis has severely undermined the primary objective of these centres, particularly on a highway that has witnessed over 10,000 fatalities in road accidents over the past decade. In the last two years alone, more than 340 people have lost their lives in around 2,300 accidents on this stretch.
Data indicates that 1,056 accidents were reported on the highway in 2025, resulting in 170 deaths, while 1,300 accidents in 2024 claimed 173 lives.
The CAG report, recently tabled in the Legislative Assembly, noted that both centres have remained non-functional years after their establishment, pointing to serious lapses in planning, execution, and resource allocation.
The Trauma Care Centre at District Hospital Udhampur, established in 2016 at a cost of ₹4.58 crore, presents a particularly grim picture. Against a sanctioned strength of 34 posts, only three positions have been filled, leaving 31 vacancies.
Crucially, all posts of consultants and medical officers have remained vacant since inception, severely impacting its operational capacity. The observation was based on inputs from the Medical Superintendent of the Associated Hospital, Government Medical College (GMC) Udhampur.
A similar situation prevails in Ramban, where only six staff members are in place against 34 sanctioned posts approved in 2019. In the absence of adequate manpower, the facility is being diverted for other purposes, including a maternal ward, dialysis unit, District Early Intervention Centre, and operation theatre.
The findings underscore critical gaps in emergency healthcare infrastructure along one of the region’s most accident-prone highways, raising concerns over preparedness to handle trauma cases effectively. |
