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In the past two weeks a total of Sixty-one infants died at an Indian hospital in eastern Odisha state, but the hospital’s a senior official insists that the cause behind the deaths is not the negligence of the medics. The deaths at the Cuttack hospital have sparked protests and eventually government was forced to launch an investigation.

The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Post Graduate Institute of Pediatrics, famous as Shishu Bhavan, has seen deaths of around 6,000 children in the recent five years. And the death tolls were seen rising steadily as per the records.

'Overcrowded hospital'

The hospital’s senior professor-cum-superintendent, Niranjan Mohanty, told Al Jazeera that there was overburden at the hospital where 45 to 50 critically ill children are being handled by 60 doctors daily, in addition to 450 to 500 outpatients. He added that most of the children who died were prematurely born and with low birth weight. The main causes behind their deaths were pneumonia and Septicaemia and even encephalitis, the doctor added.

According to Mohanty, it is necessary to bring awareness regarding preventive measures to parents to keep high mortality rate in check. Parents bring their children to hospital from neighboring states of West Bengal and Jharkhand. As he said that the deaths of infants were not abnormal, he added that the hospital that is overcrowded has seen steady rise in death toll.

‘Hospital’s negligence’

The hospital was accused of negligence by the state health minister. Three of the Shishu Bhavan staff was taken under a criminal probe, said Atanu S Nayak, the state health minister, to Reuters. Also, five workers were suspended.

Briefing on the causes of death, Nayak said, "A preliminary inquiry found [the staff] had neglected their duty that contributed to the deaths."

-Sumana