'A tribal lifeline': Health rights group asks Gujarat governor to halt Vyara govt hospital privatization

By A Representative

In a strong appeal to the Governor of Gujarat, the National Health Rights Alliance (NHRA)—an initiative of the National Alliance of People's Movements (NAPM)—has urged the state to halt the ongoing move to privatize the Vyara Government Hospital and Medical College in Tapi district.

The letter, endorsed by health experts, social activists, and rights groups from across India, invokes the Governor’s special discretionary powers under the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, citing widespread adivasi resistance and potential violation of constitutional rights.

For over two months, thousands of adivasis in South Gujarat, especially from Tapi, Dang, and Navsari districts, have been protesting the Gujarat Government’s decision to hand over the hospital and its newly sanctioned medical college to private players. The Vyara Government Hospital, a crucial health institution for the tribal population, is viewed by local communities as a lifeline that must remain under public ownership to ensure transparency, accountability, and equitable access.

According to the letter, a similar attempt to privatize the hospital was made earlier, but was retracted after sustained local opposition. Activists now allege that the government has reneged on its assurances and is again moving forward with privatization, triggering renewed protests.

The NHRA highlights the alarming health indicators in adivasi regions, noting that Tapi and Dang districts have some of the highest malnutrition rates in Gujarat, with 36.6% and 40.9% of children affected by stunting and wasting respectively. “In such a fragile health landscape, handing over health infrastructure to private entities driven by profit will further marginalize already vulnerable communities,” the letter states.

Citing policy failures in other states such as Rajasthan, where privatization in rural areas had to be reversed, the NHRA calls for a reevaluation of the state's approach to healthcare delivery. The letter goes beyond the Vyara issue, raising broader concerns about the displacement of adivasi communities due to large-scale infrastructure and development projects like the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC), Bharatmala, and the Par-Tapi-Narmada river linking project.

It also criticizes the arbitrary declaration of eco-sensitive zones and wildlife sanctuaries without adequate consultation with local communities, accusing the state of undermining both environmental and constitutional safeguards. The activists emphasize the need for community-centered development, asserting that the Forest Rights Act (FRA) of 2006 and Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) of 1996 have not been effectively implemented in Gujarat.

“The march of privatization under the garb of development is nothing short of a systematic plunder of natural and social resources of adivasi regions,” the letter warns, asserting that this threatens not just livelihoods, but cultural identity, mental well-being, and the constitutional right to self-rule.

The signatories demand an immediate reversal of the privatization plan for Vyara Government Hospital and Medical College and call upon the Governor to intervene decisively in defense of the constitutional rights of Adivasi communities.

The appeal concludes with a strong note of solidarity with the Vyara-based Campaign Committee for Constitution, Self-Respect, Resources and National Sovereignty Protection, reiterating that this is not just a local struggle but a national concern regarding public health, indigenous rights, and democratic accountability.

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