As many as 24 patients, including 12 newborns, reportedly died at a government hospital in Maharashtra’s Nanded in the last 24 hours.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said he will seek more information on the matter and added that appropriate action will be taken.
Dr Wakode, the Dean of Doctor Shanakarrao Chavan Hospital, Nanded said six male and six female newborn babies have died in the last 24 hours. He also said that 12 adults have died due to various ailments, like snake bites, etc.
“This is a tertiary-level hospital. People do come here from far-off areas. We usually get emergency and extremely critical cases in this hospital as there is no hospital available like us in the periphery of 70-80km. Due to transfers of various staff, there was some difficulty for us…we were supposed to buy medicines from Halfkin Institute but that also didn’t happen,” he said.
Dr Kishore Rathod, Head of Paediatrics Department told CNN News 18 that nothing went wrong in the hospital. “Critical patients were referred to hospitals. We have everything available for treatments,” he added.
In a statement, the medical superintendent of Dr Shanakarrao Chavan Government Medical College and Hospital said that the hospital has enough stock of medicines for emergency and critical patients.
“In the last two days, many cases of critical and last-stage patients have been reported at the hospital. These patients had come from other districts, our staff is treating them and monitoring their health condition. A Rs 12 crore budget was already sanctioned for this hospital and more Rs 4 crore has been sanctioned for this hospital,” read the statement.
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Dr Dilip Mhaisekar, Director, Medical Education and Research, Maharashtra, told PTI, “In the last 24 hours, 24 deaths have been reported at Nanded Government Hospital and Medical College (GMCH). Out of these, 12 are infants who were referred here by some local private hospitals. The remaining deaths are of adults for various reasons”.
He further informed that a three-member expert committee from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (formerly Aurangabad) district has been formed with a mandate to submit a report by 1 p.m. on Tuesday. Dr Mhaisekar also said that he is personally visiting the hospital to review the situation.
Congress leader Ashok Chavan visited the hospital in Nanded where around 24 people died due to various ailments including snake bites, arsenic and phosphorus poisoning.
Chavan said the Eknath Shinde government must make arrangements for medical staff as well as funds for the Nanded GMCH on priority. He also said that the hospital has 500 beds but some 1,200 patients are admitted at present.
It is natural that medical staff and doctors are overburdened due to such a large number of patients. I will speak to state deputy chief minister and finance minister Ajit Pawar seeking his intervention for funds,” Chavan said.
He further said that the dean has also said that posts continue to remain vacant after the transfer of some nurses, while there is also a shortage of medical officers.
“I have suggested to the state government that they can take the help of private doctors. It is up to the state government to implement it or not,” he added.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi expressed condolence over the death and hit out at the BJP.
NCP MP Supriya Sule blamed the “triple engine sarkar” for the deaths and said that each of these deaths needs to be thoroughly investigated. She said that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde should immediately accept the resignation of the concerned minister.
Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said this is murder due to absolute negligence on the part of the unconstitutional state government.
“This is shameful, please don’t call them deaths, this is murder due to absolute negligence on the part of the unconstitutional state government. They are so busy planning influencer events or foreign trips that they have forgotten their basic job is to serve the state,” she said in a post on X.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) spokesperson Vikas Lawanade said the incident is a shame on the government.
