FAISALABAD: Finding Jhang Road blocked due to a cultural festival of the Government College University Faisalabad, scores of people faced problems on Wednesday and Thursday to reach the Children’s Hospital.

The hospital administration said they would raise the issue with the district administration and university officials about the road blockade.

The university and the hospital share the main entrance on Jhang Road, which remained blocked due to parking of vehicles.

Due to the blockage, people faced problems to take their children to the hospital. The 1,000-bed hospital treats children from Faisalabad and Sargodha divisions. Hospital officials said they were not against the festival but the university and the traffic police officials should have facilitated patients. Even in wars, hospitals’ sanctity is ensured. The hospital official said scores of parents had to find alternative ways to reach doctors. Festivals turned ugly on both days.

On the first day of the festival, students thrashed each other in the presence of the university security guards.

Similarly, on the concluding day, students thrashed two employees of a swing installed at the new campus. One of the employees fell unconscious due to beating by the students. Footage of the beating went viral online. One of the university security guards tried to rescue the swing worker from the students, but to no avail.

University officials said they would look into the issue.

The hospital administration will raise the matter of road blockage with university and district administration officials so that the future activities could be planned well. They said with traffic management measures, festivals could go well.

A hospital official requesting anonymity said the traffic police got roads cleared partially.

Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2019