Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Twin negligence: On the Jhansi hospital fire

Twin negligence: On the Jhansi hospital fire

Jhansi tragedy is a result of neglecting (उपेक्षा करना, नजरअंदाज करना) fire safety and health care

The fire in the neonatal (नवजात) intensive care unit of the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi district, Uttar Pradesh, where 10 newborns (नवजात शिशु) died on November 15 night, underscores (रेखांकित करना) the fatal (घातक, जानलेवा) intersection (convergence, junction, joining, crossing, criss-crossing) of severely neglected (उपेक्षित) sectors in government budgeting and planning — health care and fire safety. There was an eerily (भयावह रूप से) similar incident in May this year, in a hospital in east Delhi. The neonatal care unit in Jhansi was operating at almost three times its capacity — there were 49 babies for incubators (a medical device that provides thermal support, controls oxygen levels, and maintains humidity for newborn (premature/sick) babies) meant only for 18. Hospital staff have said that this number sometimes goes up to 60. This must not surprise given (considering, taking into account, bearing in mind) that in 2021, the doctor-patient ratio in U.P. was 1: 2,158. A point to be noted is that India’s doctor-patient ratio for 2024 is 1:836, which is well within the World Health Organization (विश्व स्वास्थ्य संगठन) recommendation of 1:1,000.

Established (स्थापित) in 1968, the Jhansi hospital is the main health-care facility (सुविधा) serving (सेवा करना, प्रदान करना) Bundelkhand, an impoverished (गरीब, वंचित) region of about 10 districts straddling (extend across, be situated on both sides of) U.P. and Madhya Pradesh. Despite a patient flow (प्रवाह, गति) of over 5,000 a day, several wings (a part or section of a large building) of the hospital have remained in a dilapidated (decaying, crumbling, decrepit, deteriorated, broken-down, run down, battered, ruined, dilapidated (due to age/negligence)) state (condition). While multi-level investigations have been announced by U.P. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s government, initial reports suggest (सुझाव देना, संकेत देना) an electric short-circuit (it occurs when an electrical current flows through an unintended path with little to no resistance, resulting in too much current in the circuit) could be the cause (reason, grounds, basis), exacerbated (intensify, increate, heighten, amplify, magnify, deepen, add to, aggravate, worsen) by oxygen cylinders in the care unit. According to National Crime Records Bureau (an Indian government agency responsible for collecting and analysing crime data as defined by the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special and Local Laws (SLL). NCRB is headquartered in New Delhi and is part of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India) data, 101 people died in 106 incidents of electrical short circuit-induced (caused by short circuit) fires in U.P. in 2022, ranking (place, position) it the fourth highest in fatalities (victim, casualty, mortality, loss, death) after Odisha, Maharashtra and Bihar. In an editorial this year, “Insidious (relating to something which increases/spreads/develops gradually without being noticed and causes serious harm; deceptive, stealthy, evasive, misleading, dishonest, dangerous, harmful), incendiary (explosive, combustible, volatile, flammable; controversial, provocative, contentious)”, this daily highlighted the chronic (constant, continuing, unending, persistent, unchanging, long-lasting, perennial, lingering, deep-rooted, ineradicable, entrenched) disregard (indifference, inattention, carelessness, neglect, negligence, lack of attention, lack of notice) for India’s fire safety norms (standard, convention, regulation): “Fire services are not well organized in India”, it said, adding that “In recent years the requirements for fire safety cover have increased manifold (multi-fold, multiple, diverse, various, several) whereas (in comparison with the fact that; in view of the fact that) the development (progress, progression, advancement, improvement, growth) of fire service has not made much headway”. In the Union Budgets of FY2022 and FY2023, there was an allocation of a mere 2.2% to health care, which declined to 1.75% this year. This is severely inadequate even when compared with spend by India’s peers (equal; a person who is having the same age & social position/status) among developing countries such as Brazil and South Africa. India’s public health (the branch of medicine handling public health; public health is also the science of protecting and improving the health of people and their communities through education, policy making and research for disease and injury prevention) expenditure was 3.3% of GDP in 2021. This is lower than the global average for developing countries, where public health spending often ranges between 2% to 5% of GDP. Brazil and South Africa typically allocate approximately 10% and 8% of their GDP to public health. It may, therefore, be safe to wager (risk, stake, chance; bet, gamble) that even while investigations are underway, a broader indifferent (apathetic, unconcerned, uncaring, casual, uninterested, heedless, careless, nonchalant) approach to both public health and fire safety together led to the tragedy in Jhansi.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.negligence (noun)

Hindi Meaning - लापरवाही, उदासीनता
English Meaning - carelessness, irresponsibility; inattention/laxness.

2.neglect (verb)

Hindi Meaning - उपेक्षा करना, नजरअंदाज करना
English Meaning - overlook, ignore, disregard, dismiss, abandon, derelict, forsake, leave alone, fail to care for.

3.neonatal (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - नवजात
English Meaning - relating to newborn children.

4.newborn (noun)

Hindi Meaning - नवजात शिशु
English Meaning - infant, baby, newly born child.

5.underscore (verb)

Hindi Meaning - रेखांकित करना
English Meaning - underline, emphasize, highlight.

6.fatal (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - घातक, जानलेवा
English Meaning - deadly, lethal, life-threatening.

7.neglected (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - उपेक्षित
English Meaning - disregarded, overlooked, ignored, dismissed, abandoned, derelicted, forsaken.

8.eerily (adverb)

Hindi Meaning - भयावह रूप से
English Meaning - peculiarly, oddly, in a strange and frightening way.

9.World Health Organization (WHO) (noun)

Hindi Meaning - विश्व स्वास्थ्य संगठन
English Meaning - Founded in 1948, WHO is the United Nations agency that connects nations, partners and people to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable – so everyone, everywhere can attain the highest level of health.

10.established (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - स्थापित
English Meaning - created, inaugurated, started.

11.facility (noun)

Hindi Meaning - सुविधा
English Meaning - centre, place, premises.

12.serve (verb)

Hindi Meaning - सेवा करना, प्रदान करना
English Meaning - provide an area with a service

13.impoverished (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - गरीब, वंचित
English Meaning - poor, poverty-stricken, penurious, destitute, weakened, disadvantaged, underprivileged, deprived.

14.flow (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रवाह, गति
English Meaning - movement.

15.suggest (verb)

Hindi Meaning - सुझाव देना, संकेत देना
English Meaning - indicate, denote, point to, signify.

16.intersection (noun)

English Meaning - convergence, junction, joining, crossing, criss-crossing.

17.incubator (noun)

English Meaning - a medical device that provides thermal support, controls oxygen levels, and maintains humidity for newborn (premature/sick) babies.

18.go up to (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - rise, increase; to reach as far as something.

19.given (preposition)

English Meaning - considering, taking into account, bearing in mind.

20.straddle (verb)

English Meaning - extend across, be situated on both sides of.

21.wing (noun)

English Meaning - a part or section of a large building.

22.dilapidated (adjective)

English Meaning - decaying, crumbling, decrepit, deteriorated, broken-down, run down, battered, ruined, dilapidated (due to age/negligence).

23.state (noun)

English Meaning - condition.

24.short-circuit (noun)

English Meaning - it occurs when an electrical current flows through an unintended path with little to no resistance, resulting in too much current in the circuit.

25.cause (noun)

English Meaning - reason, grounds, basis.

26.exacerbate (verb)

English Meaning - intensify, increate, heighten, amplify, magnify, deepen, add to, aggravate, worsen.

27.National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) (noun)

English Meaning - an Indian government agency responsible for collecting and analysing crime data as defined by the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special and Local Laws (SLL). NCRB is headquartered in New Delhi and is part of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India.

28.short circuit-induced (adjective)

English Meaning - caused by short circuit.

29.rank (verb)

English Meaning - place, position.

30.fatality (noun)

English Meaning - victim, casualty, mortality, loss, death.

31.insidious (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to something which increases/spreads/develops gradually without being noticed and causes serious harm; deceptive, stealthy, evasive, misleading, dishonest, dangerous, harmful.

32.incendiary (adjective)

English Meaning - explosive, combustible, volatile, flammable; controversial, provocative, contentious.

33.chronic (adjective)

English Meaning - constant, continuing, unending, persistent, unchanging, long-lasting, perennial, lingering, deep-rooted, ineradicable, entrenched.

34.disregard (noun)

English Meaning - indifference, inattention, carelessness, neglect, negligence, lack of attention, lack of notice.

35.norm (noun)

English Meaning - standard, convention, regulation.

36.manifold (adjective)

English Meaning - multi-fold, multiple, diverse, various, several.

37.whereas (conjunction)

English Meaning - in comparison with the fact that; in view of the fact that.

38.development (noun)

English Meaning - progress, progression, advancement, improvement, growth.

39.make headway (phrase)

English Meaning - make progress, advance, proceed, get ahead.

40.mere (adjective)

English Meaning - just, only, scanty, paltry.

41.peer (noun)

English Meaning - equal; a person who is having the same age & social position/status.

42.Gross domestic product (GDP) (noun)

English Meaning - a measure of economic activity in a country. It is the total value of a country’s annual output of goods and service.

43.public health (noun)

English Meaning - the branch of medicine handling public health; public health is also the science of protecting and improving the health of people and their communities through education, policy making and research for disease and injury prevention.

44.wager (verb)

English Meaning - risk, stake, chance; bet, gamble;.

45.under way (phrase)

English Meaning - in progress, happening, occurring, taking place.

46.broader superlative adjective of broad (adjective)

English Meaning - comprehensive, extensive, wide, wide-ranging, broad-ranging.

47.indifferent (adjective)

English Meaning - apathetic, unconcerned, uncaring, casual, uninterested, heedless, careless, nonchalant.