Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences on Saturday morning following the tragic fire at the Jhansi hospital, which claimed the lives of 10 newborns in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). In a statement, the Prime Minister described the incident as “heartbreaking” and assured that local authorities, under the supervision of the Uttar Pradesh government, were working tirelessly for rescue and relief operations.
The fire, which broke out late Friday night, resulted in the deaths of 10 infants due to burns and suffocation. The incident occurred at the Maharani Laxmibai Medical College in Jhansi, where 49 children were being treated, despite the ward having a capacity of only 18 beds. As of Saturday morning, seven bodies have been identified, while efforts are ongoing to identify the remaining three infants.
PM Modi, in a message posted by the Prime Minister’s Office on social media, said, “Heartbreaking! The fire accident at Jhansi Medical College in Uttar Pradesh is heart-wrenching. My deepest condolences to those who lost their innocent children in this. I pray to God to give them the strength to bear this immense loss.” He also assured that the local administration was making all necessary efforts for relief and rescue.
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brijesh Pathak, who visited Jhansi on Saturday, confirmed that investigations were underway. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister’s Office announced that, following orders from CM Yogi Adityanath, an ex gratia of ₹5 lakh would be given to the families of the deceased, with ₹50,000 for the families of the injured.
The fire is suspected to have been caused by a short circuit in an oxygen concentrator, which spread rapidly due to the oxygen-rich environment in the NICU. The state authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the fire and are assessing accountability. The Samajwadi Party, however, has alleged that a short circuit earlier in the day, which was reportedly ignored by the hospital authorities, might have contributed to the incident.
