Chhattisgarh: Three newborns die at Raipur hospital allegedly after drop in oxygen pressure
Reports said the oxygen operator was drunk and did not release the gas into the wards, but a senior official claimed the babies died because of illnesses.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh on Monday ordered an investigation into the death of three newborns at the Bhim Rao Ambedkar Memorial Hospital in Raipur, reported ANI. The children died on Sunday allegedly after a drop in oxygen pressure.
Officials told News18 that the babies did not die because of a shortage of oxygen. They alleged that the operator, Ravi Chandra, was drunk and did not release the gas in the emergency and nursing wards. Chandra has been suspended and later arrested, according to NDTV.
However, Director of Health Services R Prasanna claimed that the children died because of various illnesses, not drop in oxygen pressure, according to ANI.
The deaths seem similar to the case in Uttar Pradesh, where more than 60 children have died since August 7 at Gorakhpur’s Baba Raghav Das Medical College and Hospital. While it has been alleged that they died because of lack of oxygen supply at the facility, the state government has maintained that the infants succumbed to encephalitis.