Yogi govt orders criminal cases against officials ‘responsible’ for BRD child deaths

An official spokesman said criminal cases were being registered against those indicted by the probe committee, headed by chief secretary Rajive Kumar.

The Yogi Adityanath government has begun cracking the whip on staffers allegedly responsible for the BRD Medical College Hospital tragedy, where over 30 children died due to purported disruption of oxygen supply in a 48-hour period between August 9 and 11.

Medical staff attend to a child admitted in the encephalitis ward at the BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur. (AFP Photo)

An official spokesman said criminal cases were being registered against those indicted by the probe committee, headed by chief secretary Rajive Kumar. The panel, also comprising health secretary Alok Kumar and finance secretary Mukesh Mittal, submitted its report to chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday.

BRD principal secretary (medical education) Anita Bhatnagar Jain has been shifted, with additional charge of the department being handed over to principal secretary (revenue department) Rajnish Dubey.

The committee has recommended that criminal cases be registered against hospital officials found guilty of negligence. Action is also likely to be taken against Pushpa Sales, the private company that discontinued oxygen supply to the Gorakhpur official over non-payment of dues amounting to around Rs 67 lakh. “Criminal cases are being registered against six persons and entities, including Pushpa Sales,” said a senior officer.

Among the others held responsible for the tragedy in the district magistrate’s report were three staff members of the accounts department, who had allegedly failed to process the payment of bills on time, and Dr Kafeel Khan, the official in charge of the encephalitis ward.

The Rajive Kumar-led panel has also charted out an action plan to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future.