MUMBAI, Nov. 3 -- "We have been waiting for 20 years for a hospital. We are told to go to Sion Hospital for everything. There's no delivery ward, no blood unit, nothing in the maternity homes at Mankhurd or Govandi. We were told that this hospital would be a small KEM. We believed them but nothing has happened," said Parvin Kader Sheikh, 40, a resident of Lallubhai Compound in Mankhurd. Sheikh's voice reflects the frustration of thousands of families from slum redevelopment projects crammed into Lallubhai's high-rises. When the 410-bed Lallubhai Compound Hospital was first announced, it was meant to bring relief to these families. Indeed, nearly 80% of the ward's residents live in slums, and Lallubhai Compound Multispeciality Hospital and Shatabdi Hospital are the two hospitals in the area they depend on. Residents say that each promised opening date passes quietly. "We thought this hospital would finally save us the long trips to Sion Hospital and JJ Hospital but the wait never ends,' said Abdul Kalam, 65. "We were all banking on it and Shatabdi Hospital. They said this would be an upgraded version of Shatabdi. But now they are privatising it. How will we afford it?" As per tenders issued in March, the 581-bed Shatabdi is to be run by a private entity, with 70% of beds for paying patients and only 30% reserved for civic referrals at "concessional rates". Similarly, the Lallubhai Compound Hospital is proposed to be handed over on a PPP basis, with just 150 beds for municipal patients and 260 for economically weaker sections holding orange or yellow ration cards. When contacted, a senior BMC health official said there were very few bidders for the privatisation, and thus the tender deadlines were extended multiple times. "Even if we do get a bidder now, it will still take at least a year for services to start, especially for large-scale hospitals like Lallubhai," he said. "While tenders for smaller services such as MRI and CT scans have been extended till November 3, there are still not enough bidders willing to take over entire hospital services." Even with new infrastructure and a proposed medical college, service levels at Shatabdi Hospital were unlikely to improve, said Baban Thoke, a member of the 'Save Hospitals, Stop Privatisation' movement. "Doctors will come, learn and leave," he said. "They won't stay in peripheral hospitals. This is what has happened in every such setup, and this will further strain services." A couple in Lallubhai Compound, who spend their days juggling hospital visits, said they had to leave home at 5 am and spend all day at Sion Hospital even for small tests. "Some people have to go all the way to JJ Hospital or Nair," said the husband. "When we heard a hospital was opening here, we thought we'd finally get help. But now they're handing it to private players. We're poor people. They've made fools of us." For those living in Govandi, Shatabdi Hospital remains their only public healthcare option but far from reliable. "We go there for multiple treatments, including my husband's cardiac problems," said a Govandi housewife. "But most of the time they say, 'We don't have this, go elsewhere.' We thought the new infrastructure being constructed in Shatabdi's premises would finally solve this, but after waiting so long, it now looks like it will be an expensive private hospital." Pradeep Narkar, general secretary of the Municipal Mazdoor Union, said, "Delays are forcing poor patients to travel hours for basic care, worsening their hardship. Privatisation will only raise costs, cut jobs, and end BMC accountability. The poorest will be hit hardest once private trusts take over." Deputy municipal commissioner Sharad Ughade did not respond to texts or calls from HT....