Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje slams Karnataka government over maternal death data, says victims were given ‘fake’ glucose | Latest India News

Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje on Saturday accused the Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government of “hiding” the actual data on maternal deaths in Ballari district, alleging that glucose given to mothers after caesarean section was “false”, PTI reported.

Karandlaje demanded an inquiry into the matter and approached Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao.

She said that in just a week, four women died at the Ballari district hospital and another died at the Vijayanagara Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS).

The Union minister demanded compensation for the families of the victims and said, “Siddaramaiah the government is hiding data. An inquiry should be initiated immediately and action should be taken against Minister Rao.”

She further noted that the glucose given to victims after cesarean section (cesarean section) was “fake.”

“Ringer Lactate glucose was supplied by Paschim Banga Pharmaceutical Ltd. This glucose has been banned. The department said it was not providing it. Even then, it was used and women lost their lives,” she said.

Concerns have been raised in the city over the possibility of substandard Ringer’s Lactate solution being linked to maternal deaths in Ballari. In this situation, the use of the solution has been suspended in all government hospitals as a precautionary measure, Gundu Rao said earlier in the day.

“If around 30 women and 111 children died in just three-four districts, how many deaths must have taken place in the entire state?” Karandlaje asked, accusing the Siddaramaiah government of hiding accurate data on maternal deaths.

Health department officials reported a sudden spike in maternal deaths at the Ballari district hospital between November 9 and 11 following caesarean section surgeries.

A statement from the health department said that of the 34 cesarean sections performed over those two days, seven patients developed complications, including acute kidney injury requiring dialysis and multiple organ dysfunction.

It added that four of the infected patients died, two were discharged and one was undergoing treatment at VIMS.

Karandlaje said a committee from Rajeev Gandhi University visited the hospital in Ballari and submitted a report.

“This report was also hidden… there are problems in every hospital, corruption, lack of staff, lack of medicines,” she said.

She called the Congress government “ruthless” and “cruel” and asked, “Who owns Paschim Banga Pharmaceutical Ltd and why were medicines purchased from them?”

“Who were they delivered to? How many districts were these (medicines) delivered to and how many deaths occurred in each district,” Karandlaje asked.

Moreover, the union minister alleged that district health officers were directed to hide accurate data on women and child deaths.

(with PTI inputs)