Madhya Pradesh govt. suspends medical officer after Sagar wall collapse
Meanwhile, the Urban Development and Housing Department also suspended two officials for “not discharging their duties honestly and responsibly”
Site of a wall collapse incident in which nine children lost their lives in Madhya Pradesh’s Sagar on Sunday.
| Photo Credit: A.M.Faruqui
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav late on Sunday suspended the medical officer posted at the Primary Health Centre (PHC) in Sagar district’s Shahpur village where a wall collapse incident killed nine children.
In the suspension order of Dr. Hariom Bansal, the Public Health and Medical Education Department said that no doctor or staff was available at the PHC at the time of incident due to which the injured children could not receive proper and timely treatment, and said that the act showed “gross negligence” on part of Dr. Bansal, in-charge of the PHC.
“After receiving the above information from the Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO), Sagar District, and after careful observation/examination of the said information, the Directorate came to notice that Dr. Hariom Bansal is the in-charge medical officer at Primary Health Center, Shahpur, and due to his lack of control over his subordinate staff and no doctor being present on duty at the time of the incident, the injured could not get proper treatment on time. Thus, the above action of Dr. Harom Bansal indicates gross negligence towards his official responsibilities,” the order read.
Nine children, aged between eight and 15 years, lost their lives after a wall of a dilapidated house collapsed on them on Sunday morning after heavy showers overnight. The children were present in a tent adjacent to the house to take part in a religious event at a nearby temple.
According to officials, two children had died on the spot while seven succumbed to injuries at the hospital. Two children were referred to Sagar city for treatment and were in stable condition.
The incident also prompted Mr. Yadav to order transfers of top district officials, including Collector Deepak Arya, Superintendent of Police Abhishek Tiwari, and Sagar SDM Sandeep Singh.
As per the order by the General Administration Department (GAD), Mr. Arya, who has been posted as a Deputy Secretary, State Administration, will be replaced by Sandeep G. R., currently serving as the Collector of Chhatarpur. Mr. Sandeep will be replaced by Parth Jaiswal, who is currently posted as the CEO of the District Council in Chhindwara.
Mr. Tiwari has been sent to the Police Headquarters, Bhopal, as a Deputy Inspector General (DIG), and the current Raisen SP Vikas Kumar Shawal will take his place in Sagar, the Home Department said in an order. Meanwhile, current Raisen Additional SP Kamlesh Kumar Kharpuse has been temporarily given the extra charge of SP.
Mr. Singh has been temporarily sent to the GAD pool as an Additional Secretary.
“Even before the monsoon, I had instructed all the officials of the State. I am once again instructing everyone to be sensitive towards such incidents, work with appropriate measures and promptness so that such incident does not recur in the future,” Mr. Yadav said in an X post.
Meanwhile, the Urban Development and Housing Department also suspended two officials for “not discharging their duties honestly and responsibly”.
Cabinet Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya announced the suspensions of Shahpur municipal council’s officer in-charge Dhananjay Gumasta and sub-engineer Veer Vikram Singh.
“In the preliminary investigation, it was found that the officer-in-charge of Shahpur Nagar Parishad Dhananjay Gumasta and sub-engineer Veer Vikram Singh did not discharge their duties with honesty and responsibility. Subsequently, both the officers have been suspended. There is no place for careless officials in our government. Carelessness will not be tolerated at any cost,” he said in an X post on Sunday evening.
The police have so far arrested three persons, including two organisers of the religious event and the owner of the house.
A day after the incident, Urban Development and Housing Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya said that he has directed the Commissioners of all Municipal Corporations in Madhya Pradesh to survey and identify all dilapidated houses in their areas and remove their dangerous portions.
“I have instructed the commissioners of all municipal corporations in the state to prepare a list of dilapidated houses and remove their dangerous constructions to prevent any potential danger to the life and property of the common people (in case of an accident),” Mr. Vijayvargiya told reporters in Indore.
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