Jaipur: Health Minister of Rajasthan Raghu Sharma paid a visit to JK Lon Hospital in Kota where 105 children have died in the last 34 days. The hospital staff cleaned up the entire hospital premises before the Minister arrived and even spread a green carpet for him at the entrance of the hospital. Further, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to Rajasthan government over the death of more than 100 children in JK Lon Hospital in Kota and sought a reply within four weeks.
Sangeeta Pranvendra
Hectic preparations were underway at the JK Lon hospital in Kota where the staff cleaned, washed and even white washed the hospital before the Ministers arrived. The Health Minister was accompanied by Transport Minister Pratap Singh Khachariyavas, who is also the Minister incharge for Kota.
Sangeeta Pranvendra
BJP workers protested against the Minister’s visit and asked him why it took him so long to come to Kota where children were dying. BJP workers and relatives of patients protested against the green carpet laid out for the Minister by the hospital authorities and it had to be removed.
Speaking to the media after inspecting the hospital, Sharma said 1,438 children were admitted in the month of December, of which 100 died. He informed that a centralized oxygen lines would be fixed by January 15. “The hospital had sufficient fund of Rs 6 crore. Most equipment has been repaired and instructions have been issued to repair the rest,” Sharma informed. He also said that strict action would be taken against all those who were negligent. He also criticized the BJP for politicizing the issue.
Sangeeta Pranvendra
Meanwhile, taking suo moto cognizance of media reports about the deaths, NHRC has issued a notice to the Chief Secretary, Government of Rajasthan and sought a detailed report in the matter; including the steps being taken to address the issue. It has further asked the government to ensure that such deaths do not occur in future due to lack of infrastructure and facilities at hospital. In its notice the commission observed that the contents of the media reports are correct, it is a violation of human rights. It goes on to say that the state is duty bound to provide basic necessary medical care to its citizens.
