Broken glass and roaming pigs: Deaths of 940+ infants prompt inquiry into derelict Indian hospital

India’s ruling BJP has sent a fact-finding team to probe a series of mysterious infant deaths at a hospital in the state of Rajasthan, where nearly 100 babies died this month alone and around 10 times more died in the last year.

The team of four BJP lawmakers will travel to the JK Lon Hospital in the city of Kota this week to investigate the spate of tragedies, according to local media reports, and is set to deliver its findings to the government sometime in the next three days.

The probe was launched on the heels of a new report by India’s National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), which recently visited the facility and found that it was in an appalling state of disrepair, with blown-out window panes, broken gates and pigs roaming on its campus. Severe staff shortages were observed as well.

The commission also found the mortalities had increased in recent days, with December’s death toll of 77 jumping to 91 near the end of the month. The 14 new deaths occurred between December 25 and 29, while 10 other children passed away in a span of just 48 hours several weeks prior. In total, over 940 youths and infants have died at the hospital in the last year from a variety of causes, including various forms of pneumonia and meningitis, among other ailments.

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