NHRC notice to centre, Delhi government over newborn's death

The NHRC has issued notice to the Centre and the Delhi government over the death of a newborn girl due to denial of treatment at three government hospitals, calling for a report on the matter within four weeks.

Taking suo motu cognizance of media reports, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought a report from Union Health Secretary B.P.Sharma and Delhi Health Secretary Amar Nath, a NHRC statement issued on Tuesday said.

According to media reports, a newborn girl, who was born prematurely with under developed lungs and weak organs at a private hospital, died after being denied treatment by three hospitals in Delhi on July 6.

"She needed special care, including a ventilator for further treatment. Unable to bear the high cost on further treatment at the private nursing home, her family members were constrained to take her from one government hospital to another by a CATS ambulance but could not get her admitted for treatment," the NHRC said.

Saying that the right to health was a "basic human right" and the state had a responsibility to fulfil this right, the commission said: "Any denial of this right and that too in a case of a newly born in a serious condition is abominable.

"Accordingly, it has issued notices to the secretary, union ministry of health and secretary, department of health, government of Delhi calling for a report within four weeks in the matter."

The commission said that reportedly, on being refused admission first at the Kalawati Saran Children Hospital on the ground of non-availability of bed and ventilator, the family members of the child took her to the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital where she was not admitted on the same grounds.

"Hence, she was taken to the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital. The situation was no different there either. In the process, they had travelled more than three-and-a-half hours covering about 58 km. The delay in the treatment resulted in the death of the child in the ambulance itself," the NHRC said.