NFSC team to probe Maharashtra hospital fire: Anil Deshmukh

Maharashtra HomeMinister Anil Deshmukh on Saturday said the cause of the fireincident at the Bhandara district hospital in which teninfants died will be investigated by experts from the NationalFire Service College NFSC and the VINT in Nagpur.Ten newborn babies died after a fire broke out in theSpecial Newborn Care Unit of the hospital in the early hourson Saturday while seven new born babies were rescued.Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Deshmukh describedthe fire incident as unfortunate and heart-wrenching.The government has ordered a high-level probe to findout if a short circuit or the air conditioner malfunctioningwas the reason.

Maharashtra HomeMinister Anil Deshmukh on Saturday said the cause of the fireincident at the Bhandara district hospital in which teninfants died will be investigated by experts from the NationalFire Service College (NFSC) and the VINT in Nagpur.

Ten newborn babies died after a fire broke out in theSpecial Newborn Care Unit of the hospital in the early hourson Saturday while seven new born babies were rescued.

Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Deshmukh describedthe fire incident as unfortunate and heart-wrenching.

''The government has ordered a high-level probe to findout if a short circuit or the air conditioner malfunctioningwas the reason. Experts of NFSC and the Visvesvaraya NationalInstitute of Technology (VNIT) will conduct investigation. Itwill also be probed whether the fire audit was conducted atthe hospital. The guilty will not be spared. The strictestpossible action will be taken against the culprits,'' he said.

Meanwhile, terming the incident as ''painful'', DeputyChief Minister Ajit Pawar said a stern punitive action will betaken against persons responsible for the blaze.

''The incident is shocking and painful. State healthminister Rajesh Tope has gone to Bhandara to take the stock ofthe situation,'' Pawar told reporters in Pune.

The deputy chief minister said the state governmenthas decided to give ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of thedeceased infants.

''A detailed inquiry has been ordered into the incidentand clear instructions have been given to conduct an audit ofall hospitals that are equipped with neonatal intensive careunits to prevent a repeat of such incidents,'' Pawar said.

Given that it was a care unit, someone should havebeen posted on duty round the clock in the ward, the DCM said.

State Social Welfare Minister Vijay Wadettiwar said itwas a very sad and unfortunate incident.

''Before drawing any conclusions about what triggeredthe fire, a detailed enquiry will be conducted into theincident. A team from National Fire Service College hasarrived at the hospital to inspect the site,'' Wadettiwar said.

A team from VINT has also been called for inspection,he said.

He further said a nurse present at the ward played animportant role in rescuing seven babies from the fire.

All hospitals in the state require advanced firesafety equipment and fire audits need to be conducted at allhospitals every three years, the minister added.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)