Bandipora, 14 Oct: A pregnant woman from the remote Gurez valley died on her way to District Hospital Bandipora early Wednesday morning, while her baby was stillborn, following allegations by her family that heavy snowfall and official movement restrictions fatally delayed her medical referral.
The deceased, identified as Haseen Begum, wife of Showket Hameed Lone from Mazgund village in Tulail, was initially taken to the primary health centre in Sheikhpora late Tuesday evening.
According to the family, they found no medical staff available at the rural facility, forcing them to shift her to the sub-district hospital in Gurez.
There, doctors diagnosed her with severely low haemoglobin levels and advised an immediate referral to Bandipora for emergency care.
However, the family said they were initially barred from crossing the high-altitude Razdan pass due to heavy snowfall and nighttime movement restrictions imposed in the border area.
“We contacted Project Beacon officials who assured us they would clear the road ahead of the ambulance, but the sub-divisional magistrate in Gurez did not allow us to move,” family members alleged.
The family claimed Begum remained in severe pain throughout the night, and that her baby died in the womb at the Gurez hospital around midnight. The grieving relatives also questioned the lack of emergency blood supplies, pointing out that a blood bank had been inaugurated at the local health facility just months earlier.
Speaking to Greater Kashmir, the sub-divisional magistrate of Gurez confirmed the family was initially stopped from moving on Tuesday evening due to the intense snowfall. He said that after the block medical officer informed him the woman needed an urgent referral, efforts were made past midnight to facilitate the travel.
The magistrate acknowledged the process took a long time due to delays in connecting with the officer commanding of Beacon to mobilise snow-clearing machinery.
He said the road was eventually cleared and the ambulance proceeded towards Bandipora, but added that the woman died on the way. He expressed ignorance regarding the circumstances of the baby’s stillborn death at the Gurez hospital.
Dr Mukhtar Ahmad, medical superintendent of District Hospital Bandipora, told Greater Kashmir that the woman was declared “brought dead” upon arrival in the early hours of Wednesday.
“The attendants informed us she may have passed away on the way near Razdan Top,” Ahmad said. He confirmed she was referred from Gurez due to low haemoglobin levels, adding that the child had already died in the womb at the sub-district hospital.
The health administration has since taken note of the allegations regarding staff absence and medical delays.
Bandipora Chief Medical Officer Bhajan Kour told Greater Kashmir, “We are investigating the incident.”
Meanwhile, despite several attempts to contact Block Medical Officer Gurez, Dr Feroz Iqbal, for his version of events, his phone remained switched off.
