Infant Deaths

The authorities in India’s Andrah Pradesh have launched an investigation after six new-born babies died in a hospital in Vijayawada city over the weekend. “Parents have alleged that medical negligence led to the babies’ deaths. Hospital officials say most of them died of ‘natural causes’. Reports say a shortage of oxygen and ventilators may have led to the deaths. The deaths at a state-run paediatric hospital have angered local people who have protested outside the hospital, says the BBC’s Omer Farooq in Hyderabad. The state Human Rights Commission has also sought details about the deaths from the government and recommended action if any officials were found guilty of negligence. Treatment at the hospital is either free or at a nominal cost, and poorer families bring their children for treatment.”