Mumbai: As the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) moves ahead with its plan to hand over healthcare services including the newly constructed Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya Shatabdi Hospital in Govandi to private operators, residents and health activists from Mankhurd, Chembur, Trombay, and neighbouring areas are preparing for a mass protest. Local groups have warned they will boycott any civic election candidates who fail to oppose the BMC’s proposed public-private partnership (PPP) model, with municipal polls expected in January 2026.
Bids Under Scrutiny
The civic body has received three bids to operate the Govandi Shatabdi Hospital, of which one was rejected on technical grounds. The two bidders still in the race are Terna Public Charitable Trust and The Surabhi Education Society. Residents have raised objections to Terna’s participation, alleging links to relatives of a senior leader from the ruling party.
Activists Warn of Rising Healthcare Costs
Former Samajwadi Party corporator Ruksana Siddiqui, who has opposed the move for years, said the hospital was built using taxpayers’ money and should not be handed over to a private operator. “A similar model was adopted in BEST, and we now see an increase in accidents. Initially, the hospital will function normally under PPP, but gradually the services will become costly,” she said.
Ruksana Siddiqui, Former Corporator has been oposing privitisation of health services |
Siddiqui had earlier exposed irregularities at the Govandi hospital including an instance where a sweeper was made to conduct ECGs on patients.
Mass Protest Strategy Planned
Baban Thoke, coordinator of the Revolutionary Workers’ Party of India (RWPI) and the Mumbai Aspatal Bachao, Nijikaran Hatao Kruti Samiti, said the organisations will meet soon to finalise their next steps. “We will launch a mass-level protest against the PPP model, as our administrative efforts have yielded no results. We will also ask civic poll candidates to publicly declare their stand and raise their voice against the PPP model during their campaigns,” he said, adding that they will campaign against any candidate who refuses to support the cause.
Civil Society Joins Opposition
The Govandi-based Al Abbas Charitable Trust has also submitted its objections to the municipal commissioner. In its letter, the trust said it “categorically opposes the privatisation proposal” and demanded its immediate withdrawal “in the larger interest of public health, constitutional accountability, and human dignity.”
BMC Issues Clarification
In response, the BMC clarified that no organisation has been appointed to operate the Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya Shatabdi Hospital under the PPP model. The civic body stated that it has only invited an Expression of Interest (EOI) and has not begun any tender process. The EOI draft specifies that a final tender will be prepared after consulting experienced institutions for establishing a medical college. Therefore, claims circulating in the media and on social platforms that the hospital has been handed over to a private entity are “baseless and factually incorrect,” the BMC said, adding that only institutions with relevant experience will be considered when the tender process begins.
