LEH: Calm has returned to Sonam Norboo Memorial Hospital in Leh, reflecting the quiet atmosphere of the surrounding streets. The hospital is orderly, with staff in masks, while police maintain a presence both inside and outside the premises.
Officers guard the entrance to a hospital ward where seven individuals, injured during the Sept 24 violence, are being treated. According to a police officer, these individuals are in custody, and only their relatives are permitted visitation.
Among the patients is a 19-year-old who sustained bullet wounds in both thighs during protests that erupted over demands for Sixth Schedule protections and statehood on Sept 24. His family reported that he was on the street when the protests escalated, resulting in his injuries. Discussions are ongoing about transferring him to the Sheri Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) in Srinagar for further care.
In the hospital’s control room, physicians appeared composed. “Everything unfolded within two hours before calm returned,” one doctor recounted. Initially, two injured individuals—a police officer and a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel—arrived with injuries from stone-pelting. The officer required five stitches, while the CRPF member received four.
However, the situation quickly escalated when several patients with gunshot wounds began to arrive. “It was unbelievable. In two decades of service across Ladakh, I had never encountered a bullet-wounded patient, even in remote areas,” one doctor noted.
The hospital swiftly transitioned to emergency mode. Ophthalmologists assisted in treating the wounded, despite it not being their primary role. Authorities canceled all scheduled surgeries and summoned off-duty doctors and paramedics to return to work, which they did. Additionally, students from the hospital’s ambulance medical technician (AMT) school assisted by moving injured patients and managing trolleys.
Blood donors came in large numbers to support the influx of patients, as 46 individuals required blood transfusions. In total, approximately 70 injuries were treated, though four individuals later succumbed to their wounds. Following autopsies, bullets recovered from the deceased were sent for forensic analysis to Jammu and Kashmir.
Hospital officials confirmed that one critically injured patient was airlifted to AIIMS and is on the road to recovery, while most of the others have since been discharged.
