Nagpur: Wadi police have booked the Director of Well Treat Hospital Rahul Thavre for causing the death of four patients negligently as a fire had broken out in the hospital’s ICU on Friday, April 9 night.
According to police, a short circuit had caused a major fire in the Intensive Care Unit of Well Treat Hospital situated at Pooja Chambers in Wadi at 8.10 pm on Friday. The fire led to the death of four patients admitted in the ICU. The deceased were identified as Shivshakti Bhagwan Sonbhasre (35), resident of Godegaon, Parseoni, Tulshiram Sapkan Pardhi (47), a resident of Plot No 158, Gorewada Road, Nagpur; Prakash Baburao Bonde (69), a resident of Manish Nagar, Nagpur and Ranjana Madhukar Kadu (44), a resident of Dhapewada, Kalmeshwar tehsil. Based on information, Wadi police had registered a case of accidental deaths and started investigations.
During the probe, it came to the fore that the accused Director of Well Treat Hospital Rahul Thavre and the hospital administration had used inferior electrical tools and had also not deployed firefighting equipment at the hospital. Despite knowing that a fire would cause human fatalities and damage to property, the hospital administration indulged in utter negligence leading to the death of four patients.
Wadi PSI Moghe, based on a complaint lodged by Pravin Ramdas Mahant (37), resident of Sneha Nagar, Mouda, Nagpur, booked the Director of the Hospital Rahul Thavre and others under Sections 304, 34 of the IPC and probing the matter further.
Cops to conduct ‘safety and security audit’ of all Covid hospitals:
Taking a serious view of the fire and deaths of patients at Well Treat Hospital, the city Commissioner of Police Amitesh Kumar directed senior inspectors of all police stations to conduct ‘safety and security audit’ of Covid hospitals and such facilities at the earliest. The exercise would also include government owned Covid hospitals and treatment facilities.
The CP said the senior inspectors are expected to visit the hospital premises to study the security arrangements and surveillance gadgets like CCTV cameras at their premises. “The hospitals would be sensitized to ensure they pick up early indications of violent outbursts from the patients’ kin and relay them to the nearest police station instead of waiting for the actual venting of ire,” he said.
The city police top brass has also decided to deploy police along with home guards at Covid hospitals. A patrolling van would also keep vaccine and testing centres under vigil in different localities. Police bandobast has also been planned at the containment zones and their surrounding localities.
CP has also made an appeal to citizens to refrain from venturing out until compelled by some genuine reasons related to essential and emergency services.
