National BC Dal President and advocate Dundra Kumaraswamy stated that the death of three newborns in the fire and smoke incident that occurred on September 21 at the Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU) of RIMS in Adilabad is extremely tragic. He noted that it is alarming that several other infants fell ill and had to be shifted to other hospitals.
He mentioned that this incident raises serious questions regarding emergency safety standards, electrical systems, AC maintenance, fire-fighting facilities, and emergency evacuation arrangements in government hospitals. He stated that he has lodged a complaint with the Telangana State Human Rights Commission, requesting an impartial and comprehensive inquiry from a human rights perspective to determine responsibility, and demanding immediate financial assistance, necessary medical support, psychological backing, and adequate compensation for the families of the deceased infants.
_Dundra Kumaraswamy demanded that the government take immediate action to conduct a safety audit to prevent such incidents from recurring in other government hospitals across the state. He requested that a special safety audit be conducted on electrical systems, AC equipment, fire safety, emergency exits, alarms, backup power, and emergency evacuation plans in all SNCUs, ICUs, and other emergency wards, and that deficiencies be rectified immediately._
He demanded that strict action be taken against officials found preliminarily negligent in this incident, and that the concerned responsible officials—specifically the RIMS Director/Superintendent—be immediately suspended until the inquiry is completed so as not to influence the investigation. He stated that it is the immediate responsibility of the government to determine accountability in this incident concerning the lives of newborns and to render justice to the aggrieved families.
