Jhansi: Defective alarm system and expired fire extinguishers are believed to have led to massive fire in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi on Friday. As many as 10 new born were charred to death in the fire incident that broke out in the night.
Victim’s families claimed that lives of the newborn could have been saved had the fire extinguishers been working properly. “Even the fire safety alarms were not functioning properly during the tragic incident, which delayed the hospital evacuation,” the report mentioned.
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According to the reports, every single bed in the infant ward was accommodating six children each, there were 18 beds in total.
The state government, however, dismissed allegations of safety lapses. Uttar Pradesh deputy chief minister Brijesh Pathak denied media reports claiming that the medical college had expired fire extinguishers.
“All firefighting equipment in the medical college was completely fine,” he was quoted as saying in a section of the media. He said a fire safety audit was conducted in February and a mock drill in June.
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Several visuals of the accident emerged where alarmed patients and their caretakers along with police officials could be seen aiding the rescue operations. “The fire broke out due to a short circuit. Health minister and state deputy CM Brajesh Pathak reached there at night. 10 children had died there. The rest of the children are safe,” reports said, adding that around 16 children were injured and are being treated at a local hospital.
The state health department, meanwhile, set up a four-member committee, headed by the director general of medical education and training, to probe the incident and submit the report within seven days.
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CM Yogi Adityanath announced financial aid of ₹5 lakh each to the families of the deceased babies and ₹50,000 aid for families of injured children. Additionally, he has proposed a high-level probe of the incident, the report for which will be provided on Saturday evening.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also extended condolences to the grieving families. “Heartbreaking! The fire accident at Jhansi Medical College in Uttar Pradesh is heart wrenching. My deepest condolences to those who have lost their innocent children in this. I pray to God to give them the strength to bear this immense loss. The local administration, under the supervision of the state government, is making every possible effort for relief and rescue,” PM Modi posted on X.
