Five infants burnt alive in incubator

PATIALA, JAN 31
Five new born babies were burnt alive and two others seriously injured at a government hospital in the wee hours here today when the incubators they were kept in caught fire due to a suspected short circuit.
Taking serious note of the tragic incident Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal instituted a judicial probe into it after initially ordering a magisterial inquiry besides suspending the principal of the medical college to which the hospital is attached, an official spokesman said.
A total of 10 children undergoing treatment for jaundice at the Government Rajindra Hospital, attached to the Government Medical College here, were kept in photo therapy units when the wires of the machine caught fire, charring five of them to death including three boys and two girls.
Photo therapy (light treatment) is used for the treatment of jaundice.
Two other children were seriously injured while three others were rescued. The victims were in the age group of three to seven days.
The fire could have broken out due to a short circuit around 3:30 am, Superintendent of Police, Gurmit Singh Chahuan told Press Trust of India.
The two seriously injured children have been referred to the PGI, Chandigarh and the State government has announced an ex-gratia of Rs one lakh to the families of the children killed in the incident.
has also been announced by the state government.
Police sources said that forensic experts summoned from Chandigarh had also examined the room where the fire  broke out.
Hospital sources said that the incubators were not in good condition and had been made functional in a makeshift manner.