Gorakhpur hospital deaths: No child died of oxygen shortage: Yogi

Lucknow: Sticking to it's earlier statement, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath tonight claimed that no child died due to oxygen shortage in Gorakhpur BRD Medical College hospital. However, the state health minister has admitted that there was shortage of oxygen supply on August 10 between 1130 hrs to 1330 hrs to the children who were on artificial respiratory system.

But he too denied the lack of oxygen as the cause of death of 23 children, who died on the very same day. Giving a statement after more than 24 hours of the cause of the deaths, Yogi told mediapersons here that after an emergency meeting with Union Minister of State for Health Anupriya Patel and two state health ministers, the principal of the BRD medical college Dr RK Mishra has been suspended and a committee headed by Chief Secretary would probe the private company who was supplying the oxygen.

'The matter is under investigation and the guilty would be punished to prevent the re-occurrence of such incidents’’, Yogi Adityanath said. Ms Patel said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was concerned about the incident and assured all cooperation to UP in health sector. State Health Minister Sidharthnath Singh claimed that during the past three years the death of children due to encephilites in August was between 19 to 22 per day but this year it was just around 10 per day in the first 12 days of August.

He claimed that there was low pressure on oxygen on August 20 in the morning between0730 hrs to 1130 hrs but artificial repertory system was used for two hours thereafter. He too denied any death due to shortfall of oxygen though 23 children died on that day. Ashutosh Tandon, Medical and Education Minister said that there had been delay in payment to the gas supplier by the BRD medical college authorities and a probe had been ordered to find out the reasons. 'The government will act strong against the culprits after the inquiry report’’, the minister assured. He said the required funds for payment to oxygen gas supplier were released by the
Director General of Medical Education on August 5 and the same was credited into the account of the principal of the BRD medical college on August 7

and outstanding money was paid to the oxygen gas supplier on August 11. 'Why there was a delay in payment to the oxygen gas supplier', the minister questioned. Mr Tandon said that Dr Mishra left for Uttarakhand without prior permission and did not made payments to the supplier even after getting the funds of Rs two crores on August 5. Meanwhile, Dr Mishra has announced that he had already tendered the resignation from his post. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath, this morning send Mr Singh and Mr Tandon to Gorakhpur for on the spot to take stalk of the situation.

Both the ministers had visited family members of the deceased yesterday. Later addressing a press conference, Mr Singh claimed that the cause of death was not the shortage of the oxygen. The minister cited the figures of previous years saying the child deaths in the month of August were higher due to encephalitis. 'Due to encephalitis, in August 2014, 567 children died while in August 2015 the figure was 668', the minister claimed. 'The cause of death was not the shortage of gas; some died due to infection, some due to neo-natal and one child died due to liver failure’’, the minister informed.

The minister said the first information about a low-pressure situation in the liquid oxygen supply was received on August 10 at 7:30 pm and gas cylinders were immediately pressed into service. The supply continued normally till 11:30 pm. Then, there was a shortage of cylinders for two hours which was restored at 1:30 am after new cylinders were placed. "Seven deaths took place between 7:30 pm and 10:05 pm on August 10 in the period when there was no oxygen cut off.
The next death happened at 11:05 am on August 11, when too the supply has been put into place through gas cylinders in the night itself," the minister added. The deaths in such a large numbers every year from encephalitis was because the medical college receives critical patients from not just Gorakhpur but also from Bihar and Nepal.

He further said that the matter of delay in payment to the oxygen gas supplier was not placed before CM Adityanath who had visited the BRD medical college hospital on August 9. Meanwhile, the Samajwadi party activist staged a protest at the BED medical college in Gorakhpur and burnt the effigies of CM Adityanath. They also burnt the effigies of the CM at Gorakhpur University and Golghar area. (UNI)