Woman dies for lack of oxygen in ambulance, BJD holds govt responsible

Bhubaneswar, Sep 2 (PTI) Opposition BJD on Tuesday criticised the Odisha government over the death of a woman allegedly due to lack of oxygen cylinder in an ambulance.

The incident took place on Sunday night when a middle-aged woman was being transported from Jagatsinghpur District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) to SCB medical College Hospital in Cuttack.

The deceased woman’s family had hired a private ambulance allegedly due to the unavailability of government ones on Sunday night.

“The private ambulance had told us that they have oxygen facility as per the state government’s norms. But, practically, there was no oxygen in the cylinder for which my wife died,” said Pitambar Panda, an advocate.

The BJD held a press conference here, highlighting the alleged mismanagement in the healthcare system in the state.

“Such an unfortunate incident occurred due to the disorganised state of the 108 ambulance service over the past year,” said BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty.

Mohanty said the party had earlier also voiced its concern over the declining condition of the 108 ambulance service in the state.

The government's neglect in properly maintaining the ambulances has led to a serious deterioration in the quality of the service, he alleged.

He claimed that the 108 ambulance service was launched during the BJD government's tenure and vehicles used to reach patients within 20 minutes of a phone call.

“However, now, due to the disorganised state of the service, patients are forced to wait for hours,” the BJD leader alleged.

He also cited an incident in July, when a young man named Shankar from a village near Khallikote in Ganjam district suffered a severe chest injury while playing cricket.

“While he was being transported to MKCG Medical College in Berhampur in a 108 ambulance, the vehicle broke down near Khallikote. Although the ambulance crew contacted another 108 ambulance, it failed to arrive even after three hours. The patient's relatives eventually took him to the hospital in a private vehicle, but he died,” Mohanty said.

He alleged that another precious life has been lost due to the unavailability of 108 ambulance services.

“The state government is directly responsible for such repeated and tragic incidents. People continue to die one after another, yet the government remains indifferent,” he claimed.

The BJD demands that the state government announce adequate compensation for the deceased woman’s family and immediately restore the functionality of the 108ambulance service. PTI AAM NN