KEM Hospital fire: Machine that burnt baby had been donated in 2017

Pannelal Rajbhar with Prince's body on Monday

A report of the enquiry into the fire that occurred in baby Prince Rajbhar's ventilator at KEM Hospital on November 7 was submitted to the civic body by Dr. R N Bharmal, medical director of major civic hospitals, on Monday.

"We could not examine the core evidence, including the machine and the burnt wires. That is the deficiency in the report. We have also submitted documents about the equipment," said Dr. Bharmal. He added that certain recommendations were made in the report, though he did not elaborate on them. He added that the equipment called Multiparameter Patient Monitor was one of the five pieces of equipment that were donated to the hospital in 2017.

Hospital sources said that the equipment was donated by Thyssenkrupp Elevator (India) and is manufactured by Schiller, which has been given a maintenance contract that expires in 2022. "The equipment was last serviced in September and has never malfunctioned since it was brought to the hospital until the day of the fire. Even after the fire, the machine wasn't damaged and was functioning normally. The issue seemed to be with only the cables," said the hospital official.

Prince Rajbhar's mother at KEM Hospital. Pics/Bipin Kokate

Teary farewell
Pannelal Rajbhar and his wife, who had brought their son Prince to Mumbai with the hope of getting him better, ended up performing his last rites on Monday. While their quest for justice continues, the hospital administration gave them R10 lakh as financial assistance. Civic chief Praveen Pardeshi said the outcome of the enquiry will also determine whether Prince's family is also entitled to compensation.

"Once the policy is in place, we will be able to define when to pay compensation and when to give financial assistance. For compensation, there has to be a liability on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) administration," said Pardeshi.

Prince, who was being treated for congenital heart disease, suffered 22 per cent burns in the fire. The injuries led to his left arm being amputated. He died on November 22. The last rites were performed at a Hindu cemetery in Bhoiwada. The parents were accompanied by BJP MLA Tamil Selvan. "The post mortem report clearly states that the baby died because of the injuries he suffered in the fire. The baby died due to negligent behaviour; the staff members present in the ICU at the time of the incident have to be held responsible," said Selvan.

Tamil Selvan, BJP MLA

Meanwhile, the post-mortem report is yet to be submitted to the Bhoiwada police. "We have also been asking about the staff present in the ICU on the night of the incident, but they haven't given anything in writing," said a police officer from Bhoiwada police. The police also conducted an analysis of the equipment but are yet to receive the report.

A spokesperson from Schiller told mid-day, "The machine supplied by Schiller to KEM was a Multiparameter Monitor. All our machines are fully compliant with regards to all International Certifications, standards and safety parameters as required. Over 25,000 such machines have been supplied by us in India and abroad and there has never been any incident of this nature."

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