VILLUPURAM: After the baby of a 26-year-old woman died in the six hours it took for an ambulance to reach her village and admit her to the nearest government hospital, residents of Ezhuthur near Kalvarayan hills in Villupuram district have blamed the poor quality of roads for the loss. Durgaiammal’s husband Saravanan, 28, had reportedly called for an ambulance at 4am on Friday to take her to the Mavadipattu primary health centre 28km away for delivery.
By the time the ambulance reached, she had gone into labour. Ambulance staff decided she needed specialised care and rushed her to the government hospital at Kallakurichi, 60km away. She was admitted at 10am. GH doctors operated but the baby had died. The woman’s condition is said to be serious.
Her relatives said bad roads were a huge problem during medical emergencies. A `60 crore project was launched five years ago to build roads. A district administration official said the work could have been completed, if there hadn’t been opposition from forest officials. “But once we receive green signal, work will start,” the official said even as villagers say existing roads have deteriorated sans maintenance.