Six patients killed in Rajasthan hospital fire, kin allege staff ignored warnings; PM Modi condoles deaths

At least six critical patients were killed in a blaze at the trauma centre of the staterun Sawai Man Singh SMS Hospital in Jaipur late Sunday officials said reported news agency PTITrauma centre incharge Dr Anurag Dhakad said 11 patients were being treated in the Neuro ICU when the fire erupted in the storage area suspected to have been caused by a short circuitPrime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the tragedy saying in a post on X The loss of lives due to a fire tragedy at a hospital in Jaipur Rajasthan is deeply saddening Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones May the injured recover soonThe loss of lives due to a fire tragedy at a hospital in Jaipur Rajasthan is deeply saddening Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones May the injured recover soon PM narendramodimdash PMO India PMOIndia October 6 2025While some reports claimed that eight patients died in the fire Dr Dhakad and hospital superintendent Dr Sushil Bhati maintained that the number of deaths was six reported PTIThe state government has formed a highlevel committee to probe the incidentAccording to officials the deceased were identified as Pintu from Sikar Dilip and Bahadur from Jaipur Shrinath Rukmini and Khurma all from BharatpurSix of them two women and four men died in the incident Dhakad said Fourteen other patients were admitted in a different ICU and all were successfully evacuated to safer locations he added reported PTIThe fire caused chaos in the building as thick smoke spread rapidly triggering panic among patients and their families Several documents ICU equipment and medical supplies were destroyed in the fireHospital staff and attendants evacuated patients with some wheeling beds outside the building Firefighters brought the fire under control in around two hoursVikas a ward boy who was at the scene told PTI that he and other staff members rescued as many people as they could before the fire worsenedWe were inside the operating theatre when we heard about the fire so we immediately rushed to rescue the people inside the centre We managed to save at least three to four patients However as the flames intensified we could no longer go into the building We did our best to rescue as many as we could he told PTIHe added that the police arrived later but they could not enter the building immediately due to the heavy smokeWhen the fire team arrived the entire ward was engulfed in smoke The firefighters had to break a window to start extinguishing the fireRajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma Parliamentary Affairs Minister Jogaram Patel and Minister of State for Home Jawahar Singh Bedham visited the trauma centre to take stock of the situationWhen Patel and Bedham initially arrived relatives of some patients expressed anguish alleging that the staff had ignored early warning and fled during the fire They also claimed that the hospital staff could not provide updates on the patients conditionWe noticed smoke and immediately informed the staff but they did not pay any heed When the fire broke out they were the first to run Now we cannot get any information about our patients We want to know their condition but no one is telling us one of the attendants told PTILater the chief minister also spoke to doctors and patientsHe termed the incident as extremely unfortunate and assured that immediate relief measures were being takenI visited the hospital and received information from doctors and officials We are ensuring the safety of patients treatment and care for the affected individuals The situation is being continuously monitored he posted on XIn response to the incident the state government announced the formation of a committee to conduct a thorough investigation The committee will look into the causes of the fire the hospitals preparedness and response to the emergency safety measures and steps to prevent such incidents in the future reported PTIThe committee will be headed by the commissioner of the Medical Education Department Iqbal Khan It is expected to submit its detailed report after a site inspection and review of all aspects of the incident reported PTIMeanwhile former chief minister Ashok Gehlot said the incident is heartbreaking and urged the state government to conduct a highlevel investigation to ensure such incidents do not occur in the futureLeader of the opposition Tikaram Jully claimed that eight people have died in the incident and expressed griefAICC general secretary and former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot also visited the hospital and expressed sorrow over the incidentThis disaster has undoubtedly been caused due to negligence in one of the states most renowned hospitals he saidPilot said there was a need to fix accountability and called for swift actionWith inputs from PTI