Mar 26,2024
NAGPUR: Two govt doctors have been booked in Maharashtra’s Wardha district, where prohibition is in force, after they were found in an inebriated condition while examining a child at Pulgaon rural hospital, police said.
Dr Pravesh Dhamane and Dr Maniklal Raut were found “reeking of alcohol” on duty and a bottle containing around 180ml leftover liquor was recovered from their car, police said. Various sections of Maharashtra Prohibition Act have been invoked against them. Their blood samples have been collected and sent for testing to Regional Forensic Science Laboratory in Nagpur.
Sources said the incident occurred on Thursday. The child’s family and friends were furious on finding the doctors drunk.
The family alerted Wardha police control room. A mob gathered at the hospital by the time police reached there, sources said, adding the offence was registered on Thursday night. A video of the incident also went viral on social media.
Probationary IPS officer Rahul Chavan, holding charge as Pulgaon SDPO, said while offence has been registered, the state health department would be informed. Deputy director of health services Dr Kanchan Wanere said an inquiry has been initiated under assistant director of medical services Dr Pramod Gavai. “We are waiting for the report to initiate further action,” she said.
Pulgaon rural hospital functions without doctors most of the times, said social worker Ankush Koche, who was approached by the aggrieved family. “When the family brought the child suffering from fever to the hospital, the nurse there refused to administer medicine citing absence of doctors,” he said. Seeing no option, he called up district civil surgeon Dr Sachin Tadas, who sent Dr Dhamane and Dr Raut to the hospital.
Dr Tadas neither responded to TOI calls nor replied to text messages. Dr Gavai, who visited the hospital on Sunday, said he will inquire into allegations. “Let police find out whether the two were under the influence of alcohol,” he said.
Source: Healthworld