Jhansi:
Kuldeep, a resident of Mahoba in Uttar Pradesh, saved three children from the fire that engulfed the infant ward of a medical college in Jhansi on Friday night, but was left in the dark about the fate of his own newborn.
At least 16 children are battling for their lives while 10 newborns died after a massive fire, allegedly caused by a short circuit, broke out in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College around 10:45 pm.
Kuldeep’s son was born just 10 days ago and had been admitted to the Jhansi hospital for a routine check-up. While he and his wife waited in the lobby for the doctors, the blaze suddenly erupted in the ward.
He rushed to the area and rescued three children, burning his hand in the action. However, Kuldeep remained anxiously waiting for an update about the condition of his own child, unsure whether he was alive or not. Meanwhile, his wife was devastated, unable to stop her tears.
The visuals from the scene showed panic-stricken patients and their caretakers, with a large number of police personnel assisting in the rescue and relief efforts. A woman who lost her child shared that she couldn’t find her baby after the incident and was later informed that the child had died.
During the challenging time, several other parents also displayed remarkable alertness and acted selflessly to save the newborns. One such story is that of Mangal Singh.
Singh, whose newborn son was charred to death, rescued many children after the massive fire broke out at the hospital’s infant ward. Around 54 newborns were admitted to the ward at that moment as the officials too swung into action and rescued 44 newborns.
Man Who Saved 25 Children
Kripal Singh Rajput, whose grandson was admitted to the hospital, said the fire erupted suddenly when he reached the hospital around 10 pm on Friday night.
Upon entering the infant ward, he saw six children on a single bed. There were 18 beds in the ward, he said, raising concern about the treatment of 54 children in a limited space.
In a courageous act, he rescued 25 newborns, though he said that many of them sustained severe injuries from the massive fire.
A senior police official informed that 16 children who suffered injuries during the incident are being given treatment at a local hospital and efforts have been stepped up to save them.
“All doctors are available for them, along with adequate medical facilities,” said Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jhansi Sudha Singh
Financial Aid Announced
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who ordered a high-level probe into the incident and sought a report by Saturday evening, announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the deceased children and Rs 50,000 each for the injured.
His deputy, Brajesh Pathak, also inspected Jhansi Medical College on Saturday morning and ordered a probe into the incident. He said action would be taken against those found guilty of negligence.
“A high-level inquiry will be conducted into this incident and if any negligence is found at any level, action will be taken against it,” he said in an X post.
PM Modi ‘Anguished’ Over Infant Deaths
Taking cognisance of the fire incident at the Jhansi hospital, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed deep anguish over the death of 10 children.
“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,” he said in an X post.
The blaze that erupted on Friday night led to a stampede-like situation in the hospital, with firefighting operations lasting more than two hours. Several state-level probes are underway to catch those responsible for the incident.
