At least four significant decisions pertaining to expansion of the activities of the society -- including the two mentioned above -- were taken at the State executive committee meeting here on Sunday. Gujarat Governor Sundersinh Bhandari, who heads the voluntary body, chaired the meeting in which State additional chief secretary S K Verma who holds additional charge of secretary, health, was also present.

In an informal talk with Express Newsline following the day-long meeting, society general secretary Dahyabhai Contractor said the executive members had decided to pull up their socks and spread its activities with the help of the State health department in days to come.

Though in the pipeline since long, the committee had now finalised a Rs 40 lakh project to have a grand Red Cross Hospital at Wadej, Ahmedabad. The land already allotted for the purpose would be used, currently existing eight-room hospital expanded with a physiotherapy centre, a hospital exclusively for elderly people and an artificial limb centre would be opened there, he said.

Likewise, society would now have its independent units in the civil hospitals at Botad (Bhavnagar), Bhavnagar, Bharuch and Palanpur, he said and added that a physiotherapy centre at Rajkot and Dhoraji would also be opened soon, he said. Meanwhile, activities at all the 48 State branches would also be expanded with the help of health department such as organising health camps, it was decided in the meeting which also passed the minutes of the previous meeting of the executive members. About future programmes, he said the society would hold a five-day workshop on ``relief works'' at Vadodara in the second week of August.

Earlier in the meeting, while addressing the members, Bhandari appealed the masses to support the activities of the Indian Red Cross Society wholeheartedly which, he said, could bring positive changes in society effectively. The meeting also condoled the death of Indian soldiers who sacrificed their lives in Kargil.