At least 16 children are battling for their lives while 10 newborns died as a fire broke out last night at a hospital in Uttar Pradesh’s Jhansi. The fire erupted in the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) around 10:45 pm, said District Magistrate (DM) Avinash Kumar, who confirmed the casualties.
At least 54 children were admitted to the NICU at that moment as officials swung into action and rescued 44 newborns. Seven of the 10 victims have been identified, said an official, adding that DNA tests will be carried out if needed to identify the rest three.
Chaos erupted at the hospital again this morning after the parents of the injured children were not allowed to meet them. The angry relatives are now camping at the hospital in protest after they were stopped from staging a road blockade. Sources suggest the parents were not allowed to meet their children injured in the fire to avoid any confusion over the identities of the infants.
A short-circuit inside the oxygen concentrator possibly caused the fire, said Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak.
The UP government has also denied charges that fire alarms and other safety systems at the hospital were not working.
Mr Pathak, who also holds the health portfolio, said the fire safety audit of the hospital was carried out in February, followed by a mock fire drill in June. “On how and why it happened, we can say something about it once the probe report comes,” said Mr Pathak.
