On the rainy morning of August 26, the front courtyard of District Women Hospital in Maharashtra’s Amravati district was crowded with politicians, reporters and bystanders. Amid them stood 30-year-old Swapnil Borde. His bottle-green shirt hung limp with sweat, while his red-rimmed eyes brimmed with tears.

He is the father of one of the three newborns who died after a fire broke out in the four-storey Special Newborn Care Unit and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) on the third floor of the maternity hospital around 3.15 a.m. on August 24. Thirty-six babies were rescued and shifted to nearby hospitals, according to Amravati District Collector Ashish Yerekar. Two sustained burn injuries, says Amol Narote, medical superintendent of the government-run super-speciality hospital. Preliminary investigations indicate that a ventilator sparked the fire.

Also Read : Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar fire: 58 rescued, including nine newborns in blaze at hospital

Swapnil’s newborn was of low weight and had breathing issues, so was put on a ventilator two days before the fire.

“Gora bala kala kela. Ek minta pan nahi tambaycha ikde, khup bekar jhala ahe, pan mala ajun majhya mulachi janiv hote (My fair baby was turned black. I don’t want to be here even for a minute, but I still feel the presence of my child here),” says Swapnil, who works as a delivery person.

He adds, “This was the first baby in my family in this generation. It took us four years to conceive him. I took him in my arms only after he died.”

Outside the NICU, the empty fire extinguishers lay on the floor, while the soot-covered room, guarded by the police, continued to be frequented by people. Among them were members of a State-level investigation committee, Amravati MLC Pravin Pote and Achalpur Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Pravin Tayde. Former Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly and Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar also visited the hospital. The parents of the other two newborns who died in the August 24 fire came from Achalpur and Paratwada, 50 km from the hospital.

Established in 1938, the hospital is one of Amravati’s major government maternity hospitals. It also caters to Wardha, Yavatmal and Washim districts. Primary healthcare centres and sub-district hospitals across Amravati, including Melghat, a tribal-dominated region, refer critical pregnancies here. The hospital was formerly known as Dufferin Hospital, named after Lady Hariot Dufferin, who established the Dufferin Fund in 1884 to provide medical aid to women in India.

Investigation underway

District Civil Surgeon Dr. Vinod Pawar, who is in charge of the maternity hospital, says, “Around 3.15 a.m., my staff in the NICU heard an explosion from the ventilator and saw fire coming out of it. They alerted the fire department and me simultaneously. Our priority was to rescue the babies.”

Dr. Pawar has submitted the fire-audit-related documents to the investigation committee. The police, meanwhile, have registered an accidental death report.

Maharashtra Minister for Public Health and Family Welfare Prakash Abitkar formed a seven-member committee headed by Public Health Commissioner Sanjay Katkar and directed it to submit its report within eight days. He said the committee’s findings would be made public and responsibility fixed.

On August 26, Mr. Katkar and the committee visited the spot and questioned the nurses who were present in the NICU at the time of the incident. The CCTV footage was also handed over to the committee, which comprises officials from the Maharashtra State Electricity Board, AIIMS and the Directorate of Medical Education and Research. It has been tasked with examining ventilator and electrical faults, the fire-audit history and administrative lapses. The report was due on August 31 but has not yet been released.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced ₹5 lakh in compensation for each family that lost its newborn in the fire and directed that the treatment of injured infants be fully covered by the government.

Of the 36 newborn babies, 11 have been admitted to Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Memorial Medical College (PDMMC), 10 to Hope Hospital, eight to Murkey Hospital and two to Parijat Hospital. Five were discharged with their mothers.

Survivors’ accounts

Radhika Yehkade, 19, was the last to deliver her twins before the fire. They were born around 2 a.m. on August 24 and kept in the NICU. 

“I had a difficult pregnancy. I was in the hospital the week before my delivery. I am unable to let go of the voices in my head. Nurses shouting, ‘Help,’ people screaming, ‘Fire, fire.’ I am unable to make peace with the fact that my babies’ lives would have lasted only for two hours,” says Radhika, whose twins were admitted to PDMMC.

Radhika’s mother, Phula Shanware, 55, also an eyewitness, adds, “The smoke was dense; the fire brigade reached in time but took almost an hour to take water pipes to the third floor.”

Talking about her daughter, Phula says, “She had a tough pregnancy; we are daily wage earners and have already spent ₹80,000. We have been far from our house in Achalpur for almost 10 days.”

Another woman, Arti Kharale, 27, narrated her story. “When I saw my daughter, she smelt of wet ash. My heart sank when I heard about the fire,” says Arti, who lives in Amravati city. She says this was the second such fire in the hospital. The last, as reported by the media, was in September 2022.

Fifty-three-year-old Asha Dharse’s daughter delivered her baby at PDMMC. Chatting with other women, she says, “In June, I removed my daughter’s name from Dufrin because my cousin said they are negligent. Chutney, bhakri bhetel, pan aulad nahi, navas karava lagto (We will earn food, but not the baby).”

Yogesh Savarkar, 24, is waiting outside the maternity room at PDMMC, where his daughter and wife have been transferred. Recalling the night of the incident, he says he was among the first parents who barged into the room to rescue the infants.

He narrates, “The flames were soaring, wires were sparking, black smoke was coming out of the broken windows, and the equipment was burning. When I entered, I saw three children covered in black powder. One child had burns on his face. We rescued them first.”

Mr. Savarkar is also from Achalpur and came to the maternity hospital on August 17. 

Maharashtra’s fire audits

Chief Minister Fadnavis has raised concerns over the hospital’s mandatory fire audit. A fire audit is a systematic inspection of fire safety readiness, assessing electrical load, wiring safety, overloaded circuits, faulty switchboards, and equipment prone to sparking or overheating, such as ventilators, oxygen concentrators and compressors.

According to data from Maharashtra’s Public Health Department, of the 530 government hospitals across the State, 528 have completed fire audits. As many as 442 hospitals have fire safety systems fully installed, while only 372 hospitals hold a fire no-objection certificate (NOC). This means nearly 30% of government hospitals do not have fire NOCs.

In Amravati alone, 18 government hospitals were audited, of which 16 received the NOC. Meanwhile, in Wardha and Gondia districts, 11 hospitals were audited, but none received the NOC. In Beed district in the Marathwada region, 18 hospitals did not receive NOCs.

On August 25, the Public Health Department announced a State-wide fire and electrical safety inspection of all government, private and charitable hospitals. Minister Abitkar had said, “If discrepancies are found in the audit, then they are to be rectified. Every hospital will appoint a nodal officer for fire safety, who will review fire audits, electrical safety, fire-fighting systems, emergency evacuation arrangements, staff training, and mock drills, and submit compliance information to senior levels.”

Initial warning

Records show that the Dufferin Hospital Authority had flagged concerns over the fire safety systems. A letter dated June 29 stated, “The hospital had obtained a fire NOC valid from June 22, 2025, to June 21, 2026. Before this validity period lapses, a registered licensed agency must conduct a fire safety audit, and Form B must be submitted to this office — so the fire NOC renewal proposal can then be forwarded to the Fire Department of Amravati Municipal Corporation.”

A follow-up letter was also written to the Public Works Department on July 17, reminding it to arrange a fire safety audit. “The fire NOC is an essential document for the hospital, and if its validity period lapses, the possibility of legal complications arising during an emergency cannot be ruled out,” the second letter stated, urging immediate action. The letter was marked to Amravati District Collector Ashish Yerekar and health services in the Akola division. Mr. Yerekar has not responded to The Hindu’s query regarding the action taken after receiving this letter.

Meanwhile, hospital staff and patients said this was the second fire incident in the last five years. “We learnt from our mistakes in the 2022 fire. That is why we have been extra careful with fire audits,” says an official from the Amravati maternity hospital. According to hospital authorities, a ventilator in the NICU had also caught fire then, causing minor injuries to two newborns.

The ventilators in both cases were supplied by Schiller Healthcare, which has been called for the investigation. An official said a committee will be set up to create SOPs for the procurement of medical equipment. 

Courage under fire

Outside the NICU, the smell of smoke lingered. In the corridor, kaksh-sevikas (nursing attendants) were waiting for their turns to appear before the committee as part of the investigation. Among them was Surekha Dhanvijay, 45, one of the four attendants present in the NICU, who witnessed the fire and called for help. “The moment I heard the explosion, a huge flame burst out. With our bare hands, we tried to douse the fire near the cradle and take a baby out.”

“I have only one regret: that we couldn’t save those three children,” says Kirti Ghanvir, 45, another nursing attendant. Showing her fire burns and blisters, Ms. Ghanvir adds, “I had to feel around in the burning cradles to see if there was a baby. When I found one, I grabbed it.”

In the meantime, they informed others in the hospital, who rushed to help. “Most of us wrapped blankets around ourselves, broke the glass and entered, rescuing babies,” says Lalita Lasbe, 35.

The sevikas say they do not want any appreciation as they consider this part of their jobs, but appeal to the government to increase their salaries. They say they currently get ₹8,000 a month and are hired on contract, so their salaries barely increase.

snehal.mutha@thehindu.co.in

Pune:

When pilots of the flight carrying ex-Maharashtra minister Tanaji Sawant’s son and his two friends to Bangkok were asked to return to Pune, they thought it to be a “hoax” message, but complied after verification from aviation authorities, an airline executive said on Wednesday.

The chartered flight, operated by a private firm, carrying Rishiraj Sawant (32) and his two friends returned to the Pune airport between 8 pm and 8.30 pm on Monday, abruptly cutting short a trip to the Thailand capital which was not disclosed to the Shiv Sena leader and his family.

The decision to divert the airborne plane to Pune was made only after due verification, insisted the executive of the company operating the airline.

In a dramatic turn of events, Rishiraj Sawant and his two friends, heading to Bangkok on what they later claimed was a “business trip”, were hurriedly brought back to Pune after police registered a kidnapping case following an anonymous call and intervention of his father Tanaji Sawant.

“When we received the first call (from family members) asking us to turnaround the flight, we did not believe it. We cannot believe these kinds of calls as they could be hoax. But after due verification from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and DGCA and knowing it pertained to a kidnapping case being probed by police, the decision to turnaround the flight was taken and it returned to Pune,” said the executive from the airline operator.

He said civil aviation regulator DGCA appreciated his company for the decision to recall the flight mid-way.

The executive maintained it was perhaps the first-of-its-kind instance in which a flight was recalled mid-way citing registration of a criminal case against a passenger.

“Such things happen only in case of some sort of emergency such as medical or technical emergency,” he said.

When the flight was asked to return to the Pune airport it was flying over Port Blair (Sri Vijaya Puram) in the UT of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and the trio was not informed about the diversion to avoid ruckus or arguments with the pilots and crew members, explained the executive.

“The screen in front of the passengers showing maps and navigation were already switched off, and they had no inkling their plane was returning to Pune without their knowledge. They were relaxing after having food.

“After touching down at the Pune International Airport, the passenger (Rushiraj) and the two others were surprised and angrily questioned the pilots. The pilot-in-command told them they were just following instructions,” he said.

“Once the flight touched down at the Pune airport, CISF personnel quickly went inside and escorted them out of the plane,” according to the executive.

The flight operator received a few calls from the DGCA and provided all necessary information, he said, adding “We explained everything to them and presented the SOPs that were followed.” It all began after the Pune police received an anonymous call at around 4 pm that Rishiraj Sawant was taken away by some unidentified persons on Monday.

Police swiftly registered a kidnapping case as panicked Tanaji Sawant rushed to the police commissioner’s office for help.

Investigations revealed Rishiraj Sawant, along with his two friends, had booked a chartered plane for Bangkok without informing his family, according to the police.

Rishiraj Sawant later told the police he kept his “business trip” to the Thailand capital secret to avoid his family’s wrath.

Meanwhile, local leaders of the opposition Shiv Sena (UBT) approached the Sinhgad Road police station, where the kidnapping offence was registered, and alleged former minister Tanaji Sawant misused the police machinery to bring his son back.

They questioned the police’s urgency in filing a kidnapping case after receiving a call from an anonymous person.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Union Ministers Piyush Goyal and Nitin Gadkari at the Advantage Vidarbha 2025, in Nagpur, on February 9, 2025
| Photo Credit: PTI

Maharashtra will become a $1 trillion economy in three years and Vidarbha will contribute significantly to it, said Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal at the Advantage Vidarbha conclave’s closing event at Nagpur on Sunday (February 9, 2025).

“India is the world’s fastest-growing economy and is expected to become the third-largest by 2027. In the next two-three years, Maharashtra aims to reach a $1 trillion economy. Under the leadership of [Narendra] Modi, Nitin [Gadkari], and Devendra [Fadnavis], Maharashtra will be the fastest-growing State, and the contribution of Vidarbha is commendable. Vidarbha has become the gateway to growth, evolving into the engine for Maharashtra’s future prosperity,” he said.

Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari and Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis were present at the event, too.

Mr, Goyal further asserted that that Vidharbha would be a hub for industries and farmers would get the required support from IIT’ and IIMs. He further added that farmers would witness large-scale development, especially in producing cotton, pulses, and agricultural products among others, under the leadership of Mr. Gadkari and Mr. Fadnavis.

“I am confident that our industries—whether large, MSMEs, or export-driven—will succeed. With new ideas, innovation, and support from researchers, IITs, IIMs, and farmers, we will improve cotton productivity, boost pulses, and create boards for makhana and turmeric. Under the leadership of Nitin Gadkari and Devendra Fadnavis, Vidarbha will see large-scale development,” he said.

Speaking at the closing ceremony, Mr. Fadnavis announced that two centres of development would be established in Vidarbha — one in Nagpur and the other in Amravati — and they would benefit surrounding districts.

He also requested Mr Gadkari to organise a business conclave in Vidarbha dedicated to tourism to showcase the opportunities and possibilities in the field.

Advantage Vidarbha, in its second edition, is aimed at promoting industrial development, business opportunities, and attracting investments in Vidarbha. The event is organised by the Association for Industrial Development (AID).

Nashik:

An 18-year-old woman was allegedly gang-raped by her brother-in-law and two others in Nashik city of Maharashtra on the pretext of arranging a guarantor to secure bail for her jailed husband, police said.

The incident took place in Panchavati area of the city between 10 am on January 22 and 5 pm on January 23, they said, adding that during her 31-hour ordeal, she was also thrashed by the accused, causing her to become unconscious a few times, but she managed to escape from their clutches.

While two of the accused have been arrested, her brother-in-law, who is elder to her husband, is absconding. Two more persons are suspected to be involved in the incident, they said.

As per the complaint lodged by the woman, she got married a few months back and since she was still a minor at that time, a complaint was lodged by her family members against her husband at the MIDC police station in Mumbai’s Andheri. A case was then registered against him and he is currently in a jail in Mumbai.

Recently, her brother-in-law called her to Nashik, where he resides, on the pretext of arranging a guarantor for her husband’s bail and release from the prison. Accordingly, she reached Nashik around 8.30 am on Wednesday, a police official said.

Her brother-in-law and other accused then took her to an open ground in Panchavati area under the pretext of meeting her husband’s guarantor. They also offered her food, but after she refused to accept it, they tied her to a tree. Around 1.30 pm, they beat her up and one of them raped her, due to which she fell unconscious, the complaint said.

When she regained consciousness around 7.30 am on Thursday, she found it difficult to talk and walk. She tried to escape, but the accused thrashed her again, due to which fell unconscious once again. This continued till 5 pm that day, it added.

In her complaint, she also said that when the trio was consuming liquor, the woman told them that she wanted to answer nature’s call. They allowed her to go, but asked one of the accused to go with her so that she does not escape. However, she pushed him aside and ran away. She reached the Nashik Road suburb of the city and lodged a complaint with the police late Thursday night.

According to police, two accused, Amit Vijay Damle and Gopal Rajendra Nagolkar, both aged 25, have been arrested, while a search is on for her brother-in-law.

Two more persons, one named Gopya, aged around 30 years, and another unidentified, are suspected to be involved in the crime, they said.

The Nashik Road police registered a case and transferred it to the Panchavati police station.

A case under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 70 (1) (gang-rape), 64 (rape), 69 (sexual intercourse by employing deceitful means), 74 (assault or use of criminal force against woman), 115 (2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 3 (5) (common intention) on Friday, they said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Palghar:

A 16-year-old girl died after being run over by an express train while she was crossing railway tracks with earphones on in Palghar district of Maharashtra, officials said on Friday.

The incident took place at 1.10 pm on Thursday between Saphale and Kelve Road railway stations, they said.

The girl, Vaishnavi Rawal from Makne village in the district, was crossing the tracks when she was knocked down by the Kochuveli-Amritsar Superfast Express train. The girl probably could not hear the sound of the oncoming train as she had earphones plugged in, an official of the Government Railway Police (GRP) said.

The girl suffered grievous injuries and was rushed to a hospital, where she was declared dead, he said.

Her body was then sent to a government hospital for post-mortem and a case of accidental death was registered, the official said, adding that a probe was on.

The incident took place a day after 12 passengers were killed in Jalgaon district of north Maharashtra when they hastily jumped from the 12533 Lucknow-Mumbai Pushpak Express, fearing a blaze, only to be tragically run over by the oncoming Karnataka Express heading from Bengaluru to Delhi on the adjacent tracks.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Inspector Anant Parad said he had spoken to the parents and the school management. (Representational)

The incident took place in Maharashtra’s Satara district.

Nashik:

Eight persons were killed and several others injured after a tempo and truck collided on Sunday at Dwarka Circle in Maharashtra’s Nashik district, a police official said.

The incident took place near an Ayyappa temple at 7:30pm, he added.

“There were 16 passengers in the tempo, which was on its way to CIDCO area here. They were returning from a religious event in Niphad. The tempo driver lost control of the vehicle and rear-ended the truck carrying iron rods. Some of the deaths took place on the spot. Some of the injured are critical,” the official said.

Rescue operations were started by police and fire brigade personnel along with residents and passersby in the congested stretch immediately, he added.

The injured are recuperating at the district hospital and in some private facilities, the official said.

There is likelihood of the death count rising since some of the passengers have sustained grievous injuries, police and health officials informed.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Thane:

A court in Maharashtra’s Thane district has acquitted a 31-year-old man, who was accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a teenager, after she said they are now married and she has no complaints against him.

In his order of January 1, a copy of which was made available on Saturday, Special Judge D S Deshmukh held that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges against the accused.

The man was first booked for kidnapping after he allegedly took a neighbour’s teenage daughter to various places in January 2019.

On their return, he was arrested and charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) and Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act were added to the FIR.

However, during the trial, the teenager told the court that he never used force on her and that whatever happened between them was consensual. She also claimed that she was 18 at that time and aware of the implications of her actions.

The complainant, now a woman, told the court that she has since married the accused and they have a son. She said they are living peacefully.

“The admissions given by the victim clearly show that she voluntarily fled with the accused. The foundational facts required for invoking the presumptions under the POCSO Act are not proved. Therefore, the offences levelled against the accused are not established,” observed the judge in the acquittal order.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Pune:

NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar and disgruntled NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal on Friday shared a stage in Pune to mark the birth anniversary of legendary educationist and social reformer Savitribai Phule.

Speaking on the occasion, Bhujbal said many were “surprised” at the two sharing a stage but asserted “we will always come together for great personalities like Mahatma Phule, Shahu Maharaj and Babasaheb Ambedkar”.

The Nationalist Congress Party split in July 2023 after Ajit Pawar, Bhujbal and several others joined the Eknath Shinde government.

The NCP name and ‘clock’ symbol was given to the faction headed by Ajit Pawar, while the one under Sharad Pawar was christened NCP (SP). The two parties have been bitter rivals since.

Bhujbal has been upset with his party, headed by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, after he was not included in the Devendra Fadnavis cabinet. In the days following the swearing-in ceremony on December 15, Bhujbal had lashed out at the deputy CM over his non-inclusion.

Speaking at the event organised at Chakan’s Krushi Utpann Bazaar Samiti (APMC), NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar slammed the Union government for imposing duty on onion exports, which was greatly distressing farmers.

“Long ago, Mahatma Phule had spoken about the pain of these farmers. The Central government should follow the example of Mahatma Phule while taking decisions concerning farmers,” the former Union agriculture minister said.

Heaping praise on Mahatma Phule, Pawar said the social reformer promoted science and technology during his time and was a successful contractor who supplied building material for construction projects of the British government, including Pune’s Khadakwasla dam.

Bhujbal said the organisers took the right decision to invite Pawar as the process to build a grand memorial for Mahatma Phule and Savitribai Phule started when the latter was chief minister.

“Many are surprised that Pawar saheb and I have come together on one stage. I want to tell you, be it Mahatma Phule or Shahu Maharaj, Babasaheb Ambedkar or other great reformers, we will always come together for all these great people,” Bhujbhal asserted.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)