West Bengal: Nine Crib Deaths Reported

In the government-run Malda Medical College and Hospital in West Bengal as many as nine infants have died, report sources.

Hospital superintendent and vice-principal of medical college, M. A. Rashid, confirmed that nine infants, who were admitted in critical condition, have died in the past 48 hours.

13 Crib Deaths in Bengal, Says Official
Since Monday, as many as thirteen infants have died in the government-run Malda Medical College Hospital (MMCH), says an official..

The hospital in Malda district has been witnessing crib deaths since the beginning of this year.

Reportedly, all the children brought to the hospital were underweight.

Rashid said that the health condition of the infants deteriorated while they were on their way to the hospital from neighbouring eastern states like Bihar and Jharkhand.

Crib Deaths Back in West Bengal
Ten babies have died in the Malda Medical College and Hospital, taking the toll to 25 since Saturday. Crib deaths are back in West Bengal's hospitals.

"Nine infants have died in 48 hours. It is bad luck for the infants who are coming all the way from Bihar, Jharkhand and other nearby areas as their condition is deteriorating on the way. We have modern infrastructure and in the past two years the state government has done a lot to improve the condition of hospital. We have all the modern equipments and doctors," said Rashid.

According to United Nations data, 32 babies die in India for every 1,000 live births.

Investigate Crib Deaths, Orders Bengal Government
With frequent infant death, all sub-divisional, district hospitals and medical colleges have been directed by the West Bengal health department to conduct in-house probes in hospitals.

India will need to increase public health spending to the global average of five percent of GDP from one percent by 2015, and double allocations to child health, nutrition, water and sanitation and food security schemes to cut infant mortality.

Malnutrition is the leading cause of death among children less than five years old, with nearly one-third of all malnourished children in India.

Key Brain Chemical Goes Haywire in Crib Deaths
A pioneering study has found that an imbalance of a key brain chemical could cause crib death, better known as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) - a finding that could one day lead

Reducing infant mortality in the developing world is one of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals - but progress has been slow.

Source-ANI