DEHRADUN: In an incident that has put the spotlight on threadbare health facilities in the state, a 32-year-old pregnant woman was first allegedly denied ambulance by district hospital in Gopeshwar and later forced to get down from a bus she had boarded while she was in labour. The woman gave birth on the road with the help of her husband but the newborn died within minutes, the family has claimed. A magisterial probe has been ordered into the incident after residents in Gopeshwar staged a protest on Wednesday.The woman, 32-year-old Nandi Devi, was admitted to district hospital in Gopeshwar on Tuesday but doctors asked the family to take her to a hospital in Srinagar citing complications in her pregnancy. Her husband Mohan Singh told TOI, “The doctors said that the foetus had a low heartbeat. But when we asked for an ambulance to go to Srinagar, they said they didn’t have one.” On Wednesday morning, the couple decided to board a bus for Srinagar but the woman went into labour on the way.“I asked the driver to drop us to a local hospital, but he said he couldn’t do so and dropped us off on the road,” Singh said.Singh said that he dialled an ambulance and then helped his wife deliver the child on the highway in Rudraprayag district . “The baby was dead before the ambulance could reach us and I had to bury the body by myself,” Singh said.The health officials, however, said that the foetus was dead and the couple left the hospital without informing anyone. “The ultrasound showed that the woman was carrying a dead foetus. But to be sure, we asked them to visit Srinagar. However, the couple left without informing anyone,” said Mayank Badola, additional chief medical officer, Chamoli.Badola added that the department has set up an inquiry to look investigate the matter. The district magistrate has also ordered a probe.

Stay updated with all the Dehradun Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.