JAIPUR: The deaths of five pregnant women in six days in Bhilwara and four more in as many days in Banswara have once again triggered serious concerns over patient safety and infection control at government hospitals in Rajasthan.
This grim escalation of deaths over the past week has been preceded by similar maternal deaths earlier in Kota, Bikaner and Jodhpur over the past two months. In Bhilwara, the women died after undergoing caesarean deliveries at the Mother and Child (MCH) Wing of Mahatma Gandhi Hospital.
The controversy escalated after reports claimed that microbiological culture tests detected bacterial contamination in one of the hospital’s operation theatres. Allegations also surfaced that the hospital continued performing caesarean surgeries despite the report and that it conducts 30-40 C-sections daily with only five surgical instrument sets, raising concerns over sterilisation.
Families of the deceased have accused the hospital administration of medical negligence, while Medical Superintendent Dr Arun Gaur said the women had been referred in critical condition from other hospitals. Meanwhile, four maternal deaths in four days have been reported from Banswara’s main government hospital.
The family of one of the deceased women has alleged that the hospital administration attempted to suppress the case by handing over the body without conducting a post-mortem. These tragic deaths in two more districts of Rajasthan have triggered sharp political reactions.
Former CM Ashok Gehlot demanded a high-level probe, alleging gross negligence and questioning the state’s healthcare system. LoP Tikaram Jully also criticised the BJP government and urged CM Bhajan Lal Sharma to visit the affected families instead of attending public events.
In response, Medical and Health Minister Gajendra Singh Khinvsar said the state government is taking the incidents seriously and has deputed expert teams from the Medical and Health Directorate to Bhilwara and Banswara. A meeting of gynaecologists from across the state has been convened on Monday to review the cases and recommend corrective measures.
The minister said the preliminary inquiry from Bhilwara found no evidence that an operation theatre infection caused the deaths. According to the report, each woman died due to different complications, including myocardial infarction, pulmonary thromboembolism, HELLP syndrome, hypovolemic shock and postpartum haemorrhage with DIC.
He said the operation theatre where bacterial contamination was detected was closed immediately after the positive culture report, and no surgeries have been conducted there since.
