The Dhanbad Municipal Corporation has built a shelter on the campus of Patliputra Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) in Saraidhela here for the benefit of relatives and family members of patients admitted to the hospital and also for homeless people living nearby.

The 60-bed three-storey shelter built at a cost of Rs 60.84-lakh comprises four large halls on the first and second floors, a large canteen, a storeroom, a caretaker’s room and a first-aid centre on the ground floor. Other amenities include nine toilets, three in each floor, and four washrooms. It is likely to become operational within a fortnight after furniture arrive.

Mayor Chandrashekhar Agarwal said, “This will be the second shelter of its kind and will be run by Safe Approach, an NGO appointed by the state urban development department.”

Municipal commissioner Chandramohan Kashyap said, “We are already running a similar centre near Golf Ground. The PMCH shelter will not only benefit relatives and family members of patients admitted to the hospital, it can also be used by homeless people living in the area. Necessary amenities like mattresses, bed-sheets, pillows and blankets will be provided to them.”

Safe Approach state coordinator Ajit Kumar Jha said, “We are camping at the shelter house since yesterday (Thursday) to oversee the arrangements. Eight mattress, bed-sh-eets, pillows and mosquito nets have already been provided.”

“We will allot beds to homeless people on the basis of need. We will also check their identity cards, if they have one, although it is not a must for providing shelter. One person can stay for four days at a stretch after which the bed will be allotted to someone who needs it more,” Jha said, adding that proper lighting and water arrangements have also been made.

President of Footpath Dukandar Roji Roti Uparjan Sangh Shyamal Mazumdar said, “Though it is a great move, we demand that the shelter is properly maintained.”