• Source:JND
Add as a preferred

The owner of New Born Baby Care Hospital in Delhi, Dr Naveen Khichi, was arrested on Sunday following a fire that broke out at the hospital last night, killing seven infants. Delhi Police said that the hospital’s owner was evading authorities since Saturday night when the blaze erupted in the medical facility located at East Delhi’s Vivek Vihar. Police also arrested a doctor, identified as Akash, who was on duty when the fire broke out.

DCP Shahdara Surendra Chaudhary stated that during investigation police found that the hospital's NOC had expired on March 31. While the hospital had permission to have up to five beds, they installed more than ten. Furthermore, the facility lacked a proper fire exit system.

''We have included sections 304 and 308 of the IPC in the FIR and arrested the hospital's director, Dr Naveen Kichi, along with Dr Akash. The accused also owns three similar clinics in Delhi,'' the DCP said.

Police also highlighted several critical issues with the Baby Care New Born Child Hospital. The doctors present were not qualified to provide Neo-Natal Intensive care, as they only held BAMS degrees. The facility also lacked essential safety measures, including fire extinguishers and an emergency exit, officials said.

ALSO READ: Delhi: Seven Newborns Dead In Massive Fire At Children%E2%80%99s Hospital; PM Modi, CM Kejriwal Express Grief

Eyewitnesses described dramatic scenes as local residents and members of the non-profit Shaheed Seva Dal scaled walls and entered the burning building to rescue infants before emergency services arrived.  Ravi Gupta, a local resident, recounted that neighbours were the first to respond, pulling out as many babies as they could from the flames. They were soon joined by firefighters and police officers.

ALSO READ: Delhi Heatwave: Temperature Likely To Touch 47 Degrees, IMD Issues Red Alert For Next Three Days

Meanwhile, allegations of negligence and illegal activities also surfaced after the incident occurred. Mukesh Bansal, another local, alleged that illegal oxygen refilling was taking place in the building and that complaints to local authorities had gone unaddressed. Bansal stated that he moved to a nearby lane due to the dangerous operations, an NDTV report stated.

An investigation is underway to ascertain the cause of the fire and to apprehend those involved in negligence of fire safety measures in the hospital.