The ceiling near the retina examination room came down on Friday
Kottayam: Repeated ceiling collapses and other construction defects have been reported at the new general surgery block of Govt Medical College, Kottayam, raising concern over the safety of patients, attendants and staff using the building.
Patients and attendants said several bathrooms in the block are leaking, and that rainwater was seen flowing down the building’s pillars during the monsoon. A concrete piece also reportedly broke off from the fifth floor and shattered the windscreen of a doctor’s car. The block is in continuous use by patients, attendants and staff, and the repeated collapses have heightened the risk of accidents.
Similar incidents had occurred earlier, according to patients and attendants. In July, part of the first-floor ceiling collapsed in the corridor near the unit where surgical instruments are sterilised.