Around 87 years ago an Ahmedabad based philanthrophist, Sheth Vadilal Sarabhai, was inspired by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel to give Ahmedabad city, a life-line. The Sarabhai General Hospital started with 84 beds.  The Chinai Maternity Hospital, similarly donated by Sheth Nagindas Chinai began with 36 beds. These two hospitals have since 1931, been serving the public and are part of Ahmedabad’s history and heritage. Today they have expanded to 1200 beds and are a unique model of how government and citizens can work together to provide quality health care for the poorest of citizens.

 Our forefathers conceived a model of public-charitable health delivery that sought transparency and accountability. The Trust Deeds created by them have provided for an evenly balanced, independent Board of Management consisting of AMC Corporators and representatives of the original donor families. While the citizens of Ahmedabad created the hospital buildings, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation is required to use tax payer money to provide the running costs of these hospitals. All poor patients, irrespective of caste and creed are offered free or highly subsidized quality services. This responsibility, bourne by the AMC, the VSH Board of Management, citizens and staff of the Sarabhai and Chinai Hospitals, has seen 85 years of “glorious service”, as described by the Ahmedabad media.

 While welcoming expanded and improved public medical care for Ahmedabad’s citizens, there cannot be a change in the basic premise of the Trust Deed Agreements between the donor families and the AMC. This specifies that the State and local government have a responsibility to provide free or highly subsidized medical services to the poor.  The tenets of the Trust Deed Agreements were duly signed and honoured for past 77 years and will have to continue.

While welcoming change that works for development and evolution of this institution, we will not allow the AMC to run these hospitals to the ground, deprived of its assets, staff and beds.   

The current ruling party in the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has since 2012 sought to undo this model. On December 17th, 2018, AMC corporators on the VS Board of Management used the brute majority of one to reduce the bed strength in the VSH from 1200 to a mere 500. It is handing over the balance 700 beds, transferring the doctors and equipment of the VSH Trust to an unknown entity – the AMC created Medical Education Trust – constituting politicians and bureaucrats – who will run a new multi-speciality hospital in the VSH campus (on the basis of commercialisation and privatisation). This has been challenged by the donor family representatives in the Gujarat High Court where the hearings are ongoing. 

 I Jay Sheth, am the great grandnephew of Sheth Vadilal Sarabhai and we all do believe in the same values and breathe the same air, as our forefathers did. The precedent we set to Save VSH will benefit the future of our children, the community and especially those who have long been downtrodden.