At least eight infants have died at the Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College and Hospital (FAAMC) in Assam's Barpeta district in the last 24 hours.
Assam Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma acknowledged about five crib deaths at FAAMC since Wednesday, while its principal said three more infants died on Thursday evening.
The (five) infants died due to serious neo-natal medical complications and not due to human negligence. Doctors tried their best to save the newborns and adequate medicines were available in the hospital.Himanta Biswa Sarma, Assam Health Minister
Three more infants, aged between one day and two months, died due to birth asphyxia, FAAMC Principal Dilip Dutta said.
"I have talked to the doctors concerned and they have categorically said that the infants could not be saved in spite of their best possible care," the minister said.
These mortalities are related to purely critical nature of the case like age of the mother or weight of the baby, Sarma said.
The minister ordered an inquiry into the crib deaths by the Director of Medical education who visited the hospital along with consultants from UNICEF to audit the deaths.
An expert team of doctors has been called from Guwahati Medical College and Hospital to support the doctors at FAAMC, Dutta said.
Protests have already been in flare in the area since incident was reported.
(With inputs from PTI)
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