Eight new born babies die in 24 hours in Assam’s Government-run hospital

According to  reports, five new-born babies died on Wednesday evening  in a span of four hours,  while three others died on Thursday.

Local people and parents of the deceased infants alleged that the hospital  does not have adequate supply of oxygen, which led the tragedy. 

Hospital authorities told the district administration representatives during  preliminary investigations that the babies were underweight as their mothers did not get the required care during pregnancy.

An official of the  medical college hospital said there is a shortage of doctors.  

Assam health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has ordered an inquiry into the incident.

He said the babies were kept in sick new born care unit and given proper medical attention.

“It is solely the critical nature of the cases that led to the deaths. Two mothers are below 20 years. Barpeta medical hospital  is witnessing less infant mortalities this year as compared to the previous year's . The number of doctors in the  child care unit is stable. We opened the sick new born care unit just two months ago," he said.

However, several organizations including Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), have demanded resignation of Himanta Biswa Sarma owning responsibility responsibility for the incident. 

According to the reports of Sample Registration System (SRS), the highest IMR in 2016 was reported in Madhya Pradesh (47) followed by Asam and Odisha (44). The lowest IMR was reported in Goa (8).

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)