News Analysis India

Tag: Infants Death In Maharashtra

  • Three infants died of burns, seven suffocated to death: Maharashtra health minister on hospital fire

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: At least three of the ten infants died of burn injuries in the Bhandara district hospital fire in Maharashtra while seven others died of suffocation caused by smoke on Saturday, Health Minister Rajesh Tope said, adding that a probe is ordered and the guilty will not be spared.

    He said Rs 5 lakh would be paid to family members of each of the deceased infant.

    According to doctors, ten newborn babies, aged between a month and three months, died after fire broke out in the Special Newborn Care Unit of the hospital around 1.30 am.

    Seven out of the 17 babies in the affected unit were rescued.

    Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope says out of 10 infants, 7 are died due to suffocation while three were burnt to death. The postmortem of infant bodies will not be carried out & handed over to families. Ajit Pawar ordered fire audit of govt hospitals. @NewIndianXpress
    — Sudhir Suryawanshi (@ss_suryawanshi) January 9, 2021

    “The preliminary information available indicated that three infants died from burn injuries in the Bhandara district civil hospital while suffocation caused by smoke is the cause of the death of seven other infants,” Tope said in a video message.

    He said the hospital staff saved seven other infants admitted in the affected Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

    ​ALSO READ | Maharashtra to give Rs 5 lakh ex gratia for kin of infants who died in hospital fire, govt orders inquiry

    “The medical staff on duty opened the windows and doors of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit wards and shifted the infants to adjoining wards. However, they could not save the 10 infants,” he said.

    Tope said, “chief minister Uddhav Thackeray informed me of sanctioning Rs five lakh to each to the family members of the deceased infants”.

    He said the bodies have been sent to their respective homes for conducting the last rites.

    “Persons responsible for this incident will not be spared. A detailed inquiry is ordered. We will try to avoid such incidents in future by learning from this tragedy,” he added.

    Tope said he was rushing to the Bhandara civil hospital.

  • ‘Heart wrenching’: PM Modi expresses grief over death of newborn babies in Maharashtra hospital fire

    By Agencies
    NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed grief at a tragic fire incident in a Maharashtra hospital in which 10 newborn babies died.

    “Heart-wrenching tragedy in Bhandara, Maharashtra, where we have lost precious young lives. My thoughts are with all the bereaved families. I hope the injured recover as early as possible,” Modi tweeted.

    Heart-wrenching tragedy in Bhandara, Maharashtra, where we have lost precious young lives. My thoughts are with all the bereaved families. I hope the injured recover as early as possible.
    — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 9, 2021

    Ten newborn babies died after fire broke out in the Special Newborn Care Unit of a hospital in Maharashtra in the wee hours of Saturday, doctors said.

    All the infants were between a month and three months old, a doctor said. There were 17 babies in the unit and seven were rescued, he added.

    Fire broke out in the Bhandara district hospital at around 2 am, due to an apparent short circuit. 

    Another doctor said a nurse first noticed smoke coming out from the neonatal section of the hospital and alerted doctors and other staff who reached there in five minutes.

    (Inputs from ENS, PTI)