Palwal woman undergoes C-section under phone torchlight after OT power failure

A four-hour outage and backup failure forced doctors to complete the surgery using mobile flashlights. An inquiry has been ordered into the incident.

A pregnant woman underwent surgery under the light of mobile phone torches after a power outage disrupted an operation at the district Civil Hospital in Haryana’s Palwal on Thursday night, health officials said on Saturday.

The electricity failed during the operation and was not restored. Both the mother and newborn are safe, while officials probe the backup failure. (HT)

The incident took place around 10pm while doctors were performing a caesarean section in the operation theatre. According to hospital officials, the electricity supply was interrupted during the procedure, and the battery backup system also failed, forcing the surgical team to rely on mobile phone flashlights to complete the operation. The power outage lasted for nearly four hours. The electricity supply failed while the surgery was underway and was not restored during the remainder of the procedure.

Deputy Civil Surgeon Dr Sanjay Singh acknowledged the incident and said an inquiry has been ordered to determine why the operation theatre lost power and why the backup system failed to function. “The findings of the inquiry are expected to determine whether there was a technical fault or negligence in the maintenance of the hospital’s emergency power systems,” he told HT.

Hospital officials said both the woman and her newborn are safe.

Officials said the outage lasted nearly four hours. A viral video has raised concerns over emergency preparedness, though its authenticity is unverified. (HT)

A video of the operation, purportedly showing doctors working in near darkness with mobile torches illuminating the operating table, surfaced on social media on Friday, raising concerns over infrastructure and emergency preparedness at the government hospital.

HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.

A senior health official in Palwal, requesting anonymity, said, “The problem of power outage is not new. There are frequent outages in the hospital, especially during the summer. Despite repeated complaints, no concrete action has been taken. It is putting people’s lives at risk.”

The reason for the failure of the backup power system is yet to be determined. Officials said the cause will be ascertained during the inquiry into the incident, officials said.