Key Points

All the deceased include patients. Preliminary investigations suggest the fire was caused by a short circuit.

The flames erupted in the storeroom housing paper materials, ICU equipment, and blood sampler tubes, adjacent to the Neuro ICU. At the time, 11 patients were present in that ICU, while 13 others were in a nearby ward.

According to the hospital's nodal officer and senior doctors, rescue efforts were promptly launched, but eight patients could not be saved. The bodies of the deceased were handed over to their families after post-mortems.

In the aftermath of the incident, families of the victims staged a protest, demanding Rs 50 lakh compensation and a government job for each bereaved family.

A seven-hour-long negotiation followed between the relatives and top officials, including Minister of State for Home Jawahar Singh Bedham, Deputy Chief Minister Premchand Bairwa, Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph, and District Collector Jitendra Soni.

Eventually, an agreement was reached, and Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma later announced Rs 10 lakh financial assistance for the families of each deceased.

"The state government stands firmly with the grieving families," said the CM, in a late-night statement on Monday.

To probe the cause and accountability, the state government has formed a six-member committee to conduct a detailed investigation.

The Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team has already collected crucial evidence from the site. Health Minister Gajendra Singh Khinvsar visited the trauma centre 18 hours after the incident, inspecting the area and assuring that a fair and impartial probe would be carried out.

Earlier, Deputy CM Premchand Bairwa and Minister Jawahar Singh Bedham visited the hospital premises, interacting with the district administration and hospital authorities. They reviewed ongoing relief and rescue operations and promised continued government support for the affected families.

- IANS