Jaipur: Healthcare activists and civil society groups have held the Bhajan Lal Sharma govt accountable for what they describe as a “man-made tragedy” at Jaipur’s Sawai Man Singh (SMS) Hospital.A group of activists conducted a reality check inside the hospital Monday and interviewed junior staff to expose vulnerabilities and potential lapses in safety compliance.Civil activist Ashutosh Ranka said the incident was not an accident but the result of years of administrative negligence and lack of transparency.“I went through the official website of the Health Department, and nowhere could I find audit reports on fire safety, structural integrity, or electrical compliance for SMS Hospital,” he told reporters.“This is a violation of Supreme Court directives that mandate all govt departments to suo motu disclose such public safety information,” he said.Ranka, a graduate of the London School of Economics and an IIT passout, went on to allege that poor waste management and indifference toward fire safety norms have turned Rajasthan’s largest hospital into a hazard zone.“There are multiple points inside the hospital campus where biomedical and general waste are being dumped. These areas pose constant fire and health risks”, he added.Conveying similar concerns, Deepak Baliyan of Marudhara Kisan Union alleged gross negligence in waste disposal.“Large piles of biomedical and general waste were found near sensitive areas such as generator rooms, trauma blocks, and ICUs — conditions that make fire outbreaks almost inevitable”, he said.“The hospital’s electrical system remains outdated, with overloaded wiring visible in several sections. Junior staff told us that despite repeated warnings, no comprehensive electrical overhaul was carried out for years”, said Apoorva Mishra, another activist.Equally alarming is the poor state of fire safety infrastructure at SMS Hospital.Many fire alarms, hydrants, and extinguishers are reported to be non-functional, while a large section of staff have no training to handle emergencies.“Even basic fire drills are not conducted regularly”, a senior nurse at the hospital told activists on condition of anonymity.Regular overcrowding at the hospital adds to vulnerability to accidents.The hospital operates at nearly twice its official capacity, making ICUs and emergency wards dangerously congested.“In such conditions, evacuating patients during an emergency becomes nearly impossible”, a healthcare worker at the hospital told activists.Experts have also pointed to the lack of preventive maintenance of critical systems, including oxygen pipelines, air conditioning units, and power backups.
