New Delhi: On Sunday (November 17), Republic Media Network confronted the principal of Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College, the site of a tragic fire earlier this week that claimed the lives of 11 infants and left many others injured.

When asked who was accountable for the incident, the principal responded, “Sir, let the inquiry report come.”

When pressed about admitting any mistakes by the authorities, the principal denied any wrongdoing, stating, “No, who said there was any mistake?” He also claimed that the fire extinguisher was functioning properly when questioned about the non-functioning fire equipment.

Glaring Lapses in Jhansi Medical College Fire- Expired Fire Extinguishers Used

As per the information accessed by Republic Media Network,  the fire extinguishers used in an attempt to control the fire that broke out in the NICU medical College ‘did not work’ because they were expired – an expiry date of two years ago was mentioned on the extinguisher.

An eyewitness also claimed that the fire extinguisher did not work and the fire could not be controlled, resulting in the death of ten babies.

The fire extinguisher, which the authorities claim was refilled in June and used by the ward boy, bears expiry details and the date mentioned on it is 24th July 2022.

Meanwhile, the safety alarms that should have gone off after a fire, did not go off and were dysfunctional and the people could not be warned. Also, since the construction was going on around the concerned area and so the evacuation process was delayed; the fire alarms were also non-functional.

Moreover, the lack of emergency exits at the medical college was another major lapse that led to the escalation of the fire in the hospital’s NICU; since there were no emergency exits, babies were evacuated through a small window.