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Hospital scanning room sealed for carrying out illegal abortions in city
Bengaluru rural district health officer Dr Sunil Kumar-led team conducted an inspection at the hospital following a report that alleged abortions.
Bengaluru
The scanning room of Ovum Hospital at Hoskote has been sealed for allegedly carrying out abortions despite not renewing the official documents, Bengaluru police said on Friday, following an inspection by a team of health officers and police.
Bengaluru rural district health officer Dr Sunil Kumar-led team conducted an inspection at the hospital following a report from family welfare officer Dr Manjunath regarding alleged abortions taking place at the hospital.
Acting on the complaint, health officials conducted a thorough examination of the hospital and sealed off the scanning room.
In a report to the state-level officials, Manjunath alleged that the hospital was carrying out numerous abortions. The officials arrived on March 18 to investigate the allegations, subsequently compiling a report documenting 373 abortions.
On March 21, the district health officer reviewed the records and sanctioned the seizure of the hospital’s scanning room and equipment.
Additionally, officials collected various documents for further investigation, uncovering information about a total of 373 abortions.
Bengaluru rural DHP Dr. Sunil Kumar said, “We received information about the abortions in the private hospital and conducted a thorough investigation. Upon inspection, we found the scanning machine has had no licence to operate since 2019.”
He further said, “During the search, another scanning machine was found on the second floor of the hospital, and we seized two machines. We registered an FIR on Thursday at Hoskote police station under the MTP Act against the hospital. We will invoke the PCPNDT (Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act against hospitals.”
In last three months, the health officials have already closed more than 25 clinics that had fake medical practitioners or fake laboratories.
Reacting to the incident, managing physician of Ovum Hospital Dr Arun Kumar stated, “The allegations of illegal abortions are baseless. We have been actively seeking licence renewal, but unfortunately, administrative delays have hindered our efforts. The hospital is innocent, and we are fully prepared to furnish authorities with comprehensive documentation to substantiate our position.”
