Over 400 hospitals, nursing homes yet to renew licences

NASHIK: Of the 580 hospitals and nursing homes registered with the civic body and scheduled to renew their three-yearly licences, only 160 have done so. The city has 872 hospitals and nursing homes that are registered with the Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC).
The civic administration has issued notices to the hospitals to renew their licences immediately under the Bombay Nursing Home Act 1949, which was revised in 2006.
The medical department of the Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) had warned all the hospitals in January and nursing homes to get their registrations renewed by March 31 or face punitive action. Out of these 872 hospitals and nursing homes, 452 had already renewed their licences.
According to the Bombay Nursing Home Act, registering with the civic body is compulsory for all hospitals and nursing homes in the city limits. The NMC observed that 580 of them are scheduled to renew the leicences and had sent reminders to them.
"Of these 580, around 160 have renewed the licenses. We have sent notices to the rest to get their licences renewed immediately. Some of them have submitted the applications for renewal recently. We will have to scrutinize and issue the licenses. On the failure to renew the registrations, the NMC will be fining Rs 5,000," said an NMC officer.
The officer added that there are 411 sonography and radiology centres and all have renewed their licenses with the NMC as per the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994.
"Sonography and radiology centres have to renew their licenses every five years and all of them have complied by it. The extensive drives against illegal radiology centres few years back and shutting them down helped a lot. We now have all of them following the norms," said the official.
As far as the fire safety norms are concerned and change of use in property, the fire department said that the town planning department was looking into the issue and was at present scrutinising it.
"They have also issued notices to some of the medical practitioners who are using residential complexes for their practice," said an NMC official from the fire department.