45 years on, Dhabeji’s workers’ hospital stands in ruins
— September 18, 2026THATTA (AIA) A building standing along the National Highway at Dhabeji was once seen as a symbol of hope. 45 years later, the Sindh Employees Social Security Institution (SESSI) medical centre has become a picture of neglect.
When the foundation stone was laid on Sept. 21, 1980, by then Commissioner of the Sindh Employees Social Security Institutions, Brig (retd) Sajjad Hussain, the facility was described as “state-of-the-art”. It was envisioned not merely as a hospital but as a comprehensive facility offering hope to thousands of workers and their families in Gharo and Dhabeji.
Today, the plaque at the main entrance, covered in dust, remains a reminder of that promise. The inscription on it can still be read.
A team of local journalists that visited the facility found little resemblance to a functioning hospital. Plaster has completely peeled off the walls of the sprawling main building, leaving red bricks exposed. Its distinctive lattice walls are deteriorating, the roofs leak during rain, sections of the flooring have come away and windows are broken.
The adjoining staff colony is in a similar state. Once occupied by doctors and paramedical staff, most of the quarters now have collapsed roofs, as no doctors are willing to live there.
The timing of the deterioration is particularly concerning. Dhabeji has been designated as a Special Economic Zone (SEZ), where companies from China and other countries are setting up factories. The number of workers in the area is expected to reach hundreds of thousands over the next few years.
Speaking to journalists, local residents said, “On one hand, the government is rolling out the red carpet for investors, while on the other, the only hospital serving workers, established in 1980, is taking its last breath.”
They said every industrial establishment is legally required to register its workers with social security.
Senior journalist Amin Farooqi called on the Sindh chief minister, minister for labour and manpower, secretary labour and SESSI commissioner to take immediate notice of the condition of the medical centre and release emergency funds for its restoration.
Journalist Maqsood Ahmed Jokhio said, “Buildings are kept alive not by bricks and mortar, but by attention and commitment. Medical institutions are built to serve for generations. If the government is serious about turning Dhabeji into an industrial zone, it must first repair the institutions responsible for protecting workers. Otherwise, these economic zones will serve only investors, not workers.”
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