Govt says kids not infected with HIV in Civil Hospital

The state government, on Thursday,
denied allegations that the 23 thalassemic kids were infected with HIV in the Junagadh general hospital during blood transfusion.

The government responded to a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking action against Junagadh hospital authorities. The parents of the infected kids also sought compensation of Rs5 lakh. Earlier last week, the high court bench had directed police to file FIR in the incident.

The chief district medical surgeon of the Junagadh general hospital, Dr Govind Dayalu submitted in the affidavit that the 23 kids were not regular patients who come for blood transfusion and so they may have been infected from other healthcare providers.

He further stated that the hospital regularly conducts tests on blood bags and the kids may have contracted HIV many years ago.

The incident came into limelight couple of months back when the 23 thalassemic children came to know that they are infected with HIV. They were among 100 children across the Junagadh district who received blood transfusion in the hospital. One of the kids died recently.