Dean Superintendent held accountable in Indore hospital rat-bite deaths:Inquiry report submitted to HC; pest control firm paid crores without work

Two senior officials of MY Hospital, Indore — Dr Arvind Ghanghoria, Dean of MGM Medical College, and Dr Ashok Yadav, Superintendent of MY Hospital — have been found responsible for the tragic death of two newborns who were bitten by rats in the hospital’s NICU.The findings come from a report submitted by a committee led by Dr Yogesh Bharsat, CEO of Ayushman Bharat, to the Indore Bench of the High Court on 8 October 2025. Committee’s findings The investigation revealed major negligence in maintaining cleanliness and controlling pests and rodents at MY Hospital.According to the report, the Dean and Superintendent were responsible for sanitation, pest, and rodent control, as well as for supervising the outsourced company Agile Pest Control. However, both officials failed to provide payment records, note sheets, and verification documents related to the company’s work, despite repeated requests from the committee.The report said pest control was done only on paper, but the company still received payments worth crores of rupees without proper checks. Warnings ignored The report mentioned that NICU In-charge Sister Kalawati Bhalawe had written a letter on 7 January 2025 after spotting rats in the ward.Despite this clear warning, no action was taken by the management.The same company continued receiving payments even though it did not perform pest control properly. Lapses after the incident After the two children died, senior doctors did not examine them immediately.Only resident doctors attended to the patients.The committee found that both the Dean and Superintendent failed in hospital management and supervision after the incident. Outsourced company’s negligence The report included a statement from Pradeep Raghuvanshi, manager of Agile Pest Control.He admitted that pest control work was not carried out effectively.Even after the first child’s death, hospital staff repeatedly called the company’s representatives, but they did not respond.The committee observed that the second death could have been avoided if the company had taken immediate action. Shocking visuals from the NICU A video showing rats running inside the NICU and even inside an incubator surfaced after the incident, highlighting the hospital’s shocking state.Images showed a newborn’s body with four fingers eaten by rats, exposing the horrifying extent of negligence. Record keeping failures Important medical records, such as the placement and removal of Baby of Rehana from a ventilator, were not produced before the committee.This raised doubts about the hospital’s transparency and record management. ​