Chhattisgarh sterilisation death toll touches 13

Raipur: Two more women who had sterilisation surgery in a government health camp at Pendari in Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur district have died of “infection”, taking the botch-up tragedy death toll to 13, officials said. 

Another 69 other women are still undergoing treatment, and the condition of 10 is critical. A team of seven doctors from Delhi’s AIIMS visited the survivors in different hospitals. 

Although, the post-mortem reports of the deceased were yet to be made public, sources said spurious drugs coupled with non-sterilised surgical equipment used in the camp was the key reason of these deaths.

Official sources disclosed that majority of the victims of the health camp had suffered multi-organ failures following the botch-up surgeries. We have sent samples of drugs used in the camp for test in laboratory”, state health minister Amar Agrawal said. 

Meanwhile, Chhattisgarh High Court on Wednesday sought a report from the state government on the incident. Taking suo motto cognisance of the matter, the court ordered proper medical treatment to the victims.

In another development, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) directed the state government to submit a detail report on the incident within two weeks.

2 tribals sterilised against law; 1 dead, other critical

One of the two women belonging to Baiga community a primitive tribe adopted by President of India for their conservation on Wednesday succumbed to reported infections following botch-up surgery in a government-sponsored free health camp set up at Gauerila in Chhattisgarh’s Bilashpur district.

Officials were tight lipped over the incident. Two Baiga tribe women on whom tubectomy surgeries were conducted at Gauerila in Bilashpur district on Monday developed nausea and were admitted to a hospital in the town.