- Kalpana Mishra died hours after childbirth at a government hospital in Rewa, Madhya Pradesh
- Her family alleges medical negligence and improper treatment during and after delivery
- Two nursing officers were suspended and a high-level inquiry committee has been formed
Hours before 25-year-old Kalpana Mishra died after delivering her first child at a government hospital in Madhya Pradesh's Rewa, she was crying, screaming and desperately asking her family to take her away.
“If this kind of treatment continues, these people will kill me,” Kalpana is heard telling her mother in a video recorded shortly before her death.
“I won't survive. Please save me, my life is in danger,” she pleaded again. Hours later, Kalpana was dead. So was her newborn.
The hospital says Kalpana was treated according to medical protocol and denies negligence by the doctors. Her family alleges exactly the opposite.
Two nursing officers have already been suspended, a high-level inquiry has been ordered, and the hospital administration has said further action will follow if anyone is found responsible.
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Kalpana, a resident of Hatwa in Rewa district, was expecting her first child.
According to her family, she was admitted to Sanjay Gandhi-Gandhi Memorial Hospital for delivery on the night of August 25. She underwent a C-section at around 8:30 pm on August 26 and delivered a baby.
The family had gone to the hospital expecting to welcome a new member. Instead, they lost two.
Shortly after the delivery, both Kalpana and the newborn died. It is the sequence of events surrounding those deaths that is now at the centre of the inquiry.
Kalpana's uncle, Dharmendra Mishra, said his niece had been married in Hatwa and was expecting her first child. She had been admitted to the hospital on Tuesday, he said, but her condition deteriorated during labour, and she died on Thursday while undergoing treatment.
A video recorded before Kalpana's death has since surfaced and is being widely circulated. It shows a young woman in extreme distress. Kalpana can be seen crying and screaming inside the women's ward, attempting to leave and trying to reach her relatives. Nursing staff appear to be attempting to restrain her and persuade her to stay.
At one point, a staff member can be heard asking her, “Have you gone mad?” But Kalpana continues moving forward. She reaches towards her family, weeps and alleges that she is not receiving proper treatment.
For her father, Ramsharan Mishra, the investigation is now about accountability for the death of his only daughter.
He alleges that he repeatedly approached doctors and asked them to examine Kalpana and monitor her condition, but his requests were not given adequate attention.
According to him, her condition deteriorated because she did not receive appropriate treatment in time.
“Kalpana was my only daughter. I had sold land worth Rs 15 lakh for her wedding. Today, she has left us. The police must register an FIR against those responsible for the negligence. The doctor on duty and the staff should be suspended. If our demands are not met, we will not allow the post-mortem to be conducted,” Ramsharan Mishra said.
One of the most serious allegations made by the family concerns anaesthesia. According to relatives, Kalpana did not regain consciousness after being administered anaesthesia. They suspect that an excessive dose may have contributed to her death.
As news of the deaths spread, grief quickly turned into anger.
Kalpana's relatives gathered at the hospital's main gate and staged a sit-in, alleging medical negligence and demanding criminal action against those responsible. Tension continued at the hospital for nearly four hours.
The family initially refused to allow the post-mortem unless action was taken.
Dean Dr Sunil Agrawal and Hospital Superintendent Dr Rahul Mishra eventually reached the spot. What followed was a nearly two-hour closed-door meeting between hospital authorities and Kalpana's family.
An agreement was subsequently reached that the post-mortem would be conducted by doctors from the District Hospital. The administration also took its first disciplinary action. Two nursing officers who were on duty, Sadhana Verma and Seema Mujalde, were suspended on a prima facie basis.
A high-level inquiry committee was constituted to investigate the entire episode, with the administration promising further action against anyone found responsible.
Dean Dr Sunil Agrawal called the deaths deeply tragic and said the inquiry would examine the allegations made by the family.
“This is a deeply tragic incident in which both the mother and the child have died. Action will be taken in accordance with the complaints received. A high-level inquiry committee has been constituted, and two nursing officers have been suspended. This is a medical matter. Why the patient did not regain consciousness is a subject of investigation, and action will be taken against whoever is found responsible based on the inquiry's findings,” Dr Agrawal said.
Hospital Superintendent Dr Rahul Mishra, however, rejected allegations of negligence by doctors.
“The woman was treated according to medical protocols. There was no negligence on the part of the doctors. However, inquiries are being made regarding the family's allegations. The body has been handed over to the family following the post-mortem,” Dr Mishra said.
Kalpana's death has occurred inside a public healthcare system facing a staggering manpower deficit. Official data for 2025-26 shows that nearly three out of every four sanctioned specialist doctor posts in Madhya Pradesh are vacant.
The state has 5,443 sanctioned specialist positions, of which only 1,495 are filled. That leaves 3,948 specialist posts vacant, more than 72 per cent of the sanctioned strength. The shortage is not confined to specialists.
Against 6,513 sanctioned medical officer posts, 2,689 are vacant. In other words, more than four out of every 10 sanctioned medical officer positions remain unfilled.
