Probe launched into alleged rat bite deaths at Indore Hospital

Indore: Following the recent deaths of two newborns at Indore's Maharaja Yeshwantrao (MY) Hospital, Commissioner of Medical Education Tarun Rathi visited the hospital on Thursday to review the situation. A state-level investigative team has been formed to probe the alleged role of rat bites in the tragic incidents.

The visit comes amid widespread public outrage and disturbing allegations that rat bites may have contributed to the newborns' deaths.

Medical Dialogues recently reported that the government-run Maharaja Yashwantrao (MY) Hospital in Indore is facing intense scrutiny and public outrage following the deaths of two newborn girls within a span of two days. Both incidents are linked to alleged rat bites inside the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), raising serious questions about hygiene, negligence, and safety standards at one of the state's largest public healthcare facilities.

Also Read: Another newborn dies amid rat bite allegations at Indore Hospital

Rathi also took immediate administrative steps, penalising the private pest control firm responsible for rodent management at the hospital. The firm has been fined and issued a termination notice. To restore order, Dr Jitendra Verma has been appointed as the new in-charge of pest control, tasked with daily monitoring, particularly in sensitive areas like the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

The hospital has also begun sealing holes and gaps in its pipeline infrastructure in an effort to block rodent access to patient wards.

Despite these actions, the hospital administration and the medical college's dean have denied that the rat bites were the cause of death. Dr Brajesh Lahoti, Head of the Department of Pediatric Surgery, stated that both infants died of severe medical complications. One baby reportedly had a spreading intestinal infection, while the other suffered from a congenital birth defect and weighed only 1.4 kg at birth. "Rat bites cannot be the cause of death," he emphasized, reports TOI.

However, the hospital's explanations have done little to calm the storm. Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to call the incident a "murder", holding the government directly responsible.

Also Read: Newborn dies 2 days after rat bite at Indore Hospital, 2 nurses suspended

Medical Dialogues recently reported that slamming the BJP government over the incidents, Rahul Gandhi in an X post, said, "In Indore, two newborn babies died due to rat bites in Madhya Pradesh's largest government hospital. This is no accident, this is outright murder."

"This incident is so horrific, inhuman, and insensitive that even hearing about it sends shivers down the spine." A child has been snatched from a mother's lap, simply because the government failed to fulfil its most basic responsibility, said the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

"The administration, as always, says -- 'There will be an investigation'. But the question is, when you can't even ensure the safety of newborn children, what right do you have to run the government?" he posed.