Jaipur, May 11 Kota’s healthcare system has come under scrutiny after four women died due to Caesarean section complications at hospitals in the city over the past week.
The poor healthcare system has left newborn babies motherless and triggered outrage across Rajasthan, as the death toll continues to rise, and the number of women turning critical due to kidney failure is also increasing.
As several other women battle kidney failure and critical complications, grieving families have alleged medical negligence, delayed treatment, and the possible use of substandard medicines, turning the tragedy into a major healthcare and political crisis.
Hapless families wait outside hospitals in disbelief, while serious questions continue to haunt Rajasthan’s healthcare system.
Grieving families alleged that algae layers were seen in operating theatres and that none of the doctors listened to them when they complained about patients’ pain.
They are now staging a dharna, demanding reasons for the deaths of their loved ones.
The latest victim, 31-year-old Pinky Mahawar of Shriramnagar, Kota, died shortly after midnight on Sunday at the Super Speciality Block of the Medical College’s New Hospital.
Just days earlier, she had delivered a baby girl at J.K. Lon Hospital.
According to her family, Pinky’s health began deteriorating soon after the surgery. Her blood pressure dropped sharply, she stopped passing urine, and signs of kidney failure emerged.
Her husband, Chandraprakash, alleged that despite her worsening condition, the hospital failed to refer her for advanced treatment in time.
Pinky leaves behind a four-year-old son and a newborn daughter who will grow up without their mother.
The family is now staging a dharna outside the hospital, demanding answers from the hospital administration regarding the death and also seeking compensation in the matter.
Earlier, 22-year-old Priya Mahawar from Bundi district also died following a Caesarean delivery at J.K. Lon Hospital.
Before Priya, two other women, Payal and Jyoti Nayak, died on May 5 and May 7, 2026.
They died at the New Hospital, while many others reportedly suffered kidney failure after Caesarean surgeries.
At least eight women remain in critical condition and are battling for their lives, Congress city president Rakhi Gautam told IANS while staging a dharna with Pinky’s family.
She questioned how the system still had no clear answers despite the first death being reported on May 4.
“It is heartbreaking to see newborn children who could not even receive the warmth of their mothers because of a rotten system,” she said.
“The symptoms are similar in all cases: kidney failure and sudden low blood pressure after Caesarean surgeries. Doctors privately admit it could be linked to substandard medicines, but nobody dares to speak openly for fear of losing their jobs.”
She also questioned why no judicial probe or compensation had been announced for the affected families.
“Four women have died. Others may have to live on dialysis for the rest of their lives. Who will bear those expenses?” she asked.
Amid mounting outrage, the Rajasthan government has launched a high-level inquiry.
Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma has ordered a swift investigation, while Medical Minister Gajendra Singh Khimsar has been monitoring the situation.
Gayatri Rathore, Principal Secretary of the Medical Education Department, stated that the preliminary inquiry into the matter revealed prima facie evidence of gross negligence in adherence to medical protocols and procedures.
Consequently, the department took immediate action by suspending Dr Navneet Kumar, Associate Professor in the Department of General Surgery.
Simultaneously, Dr Shraddha Upadhyay, an Assistant Professor serving on a contract basis, was dismissed from service.
“Following preliminary findings of alleged gross negligence, the government has suspended Associate Professor Dr Navneet Kumar and nursing officers Gurjot Kaur and Nimesh Verma, while contract doctor Dr Shraddha Upadhyay was dismissed. Notices were also issued to senior doctors,” she said.
The state has also halted the use of 24 medicines and medical devices across Rajasthan following suspicions of substandard drugs.
Samples have been sent for laboratory testing. Yet, for grieving families, the action still feels incomplete.
Meanwhile, Rajasthan’s Medical and Health Department has ordered strict adherence to treatment and sterilisation protocols in all government hospitals, especially in Intensive Care Units, emergency wards, and operating theatres, following the Kota maternal deaths case.
Gayatri Rathore said negligence by doctors, nursing staff, facility in-charges, or unit heads would invite strict disciplinary action under service rules.
Hospitals have been directed to ensure regular sterilisation of equipment, proper storage of medicines, maintenance of duty registers, and the mandatory presence of senior doctors in critical units.
State-level monitoring teams will conduct periodic inspections across hospitals, and immediate corrective measures will be implemented wherever lapses or deficiencies are found.
Meanwhile, outside the hospital, grief has turned into anger.
The relatives of the deceased women have levelled serious allegations against the hospital administration, questioning how multiple women developed similar complications and died under nearly identical circumstances.
Refusing to accept the bodies, the families have demanded a fair and transparent investigation along with strict action against those found responsible.
Sources indicate that severe infections leading to kidney failure are suspected to be behind the cases.
However, the hospital administration has so far not issued any clear official explanation.
The incident has now snowballed into a major political issue, with the opposition targeting the government over the condition of the state’s healthcare system.
Families alleged that surgeries were conducted in unhygienic operating theatres and that warnings were ignored even after earlier cases surfaced.
Pinky’s relatives have refused to accept her body until accountability is fixed.
As investigations continue, the tragedy has become more than a medical crisis; it is now a painful reminder of how systemic negligence can destroy entire families in a matter of days.
--IANS
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