Woman delivers baby in cab after PHC refers her to another hospital in J&K's Rajouri; probe ordered

Jammu: A woman gave birth to a baby in a cab after she was allegedly referred to a superior hospital without a checkup by a primary health centre (PHC) in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said on Monday.

Deputy Commissioner, Rajouri, Abhishek Sharma visited the PHC Teryath after the incident and instructed the additional deputy commissioner of Kalakote to conduct a detailed inquiry into the matter and submit a report at the earliest, they said.

Both the woman and her baby are in good health and are currently admitted to the PHC.

According to the relatives of the woman, they reached PHC Teryath on Sunday morning but the on-duty doctor, without examining the patient, referred her to a sub-district hospital due to the non-availability of a gynaecologist.

However, the woman gave birth on the road while they were heading to the hospital in a cab.

During his visit to PHC Teryath on Monday, the deputy commissioner interacted with the woman and her family to understand the circumstances leading to the incident.

He assured the family of strict action and emphasized that such incidents are unacceptable in a system committed to providing accessible healthcare to all, an official spokesperson said.

While addressing the health officials present, the deputy commissioner directed them to work with utmost sincerity and diligence to prevent such incidents in the future.