Bihar midday meal tragedy: Critically ill children in their arms, parents took bikes, cycles to hospital

Chhapra, Bihar: Some of the 23 Bihar schoolchildren who died after being served lunch laced with insecticide in school may have survived, had they been treated in time.

At least 4 children died while their frantic parents made an inexcusably long journey from hospital to hospital on motorbikes, cycles and tempos, in search of proper facilities.

The hospital nearest to the school, the primary health care centre in Masrakh, was five kilometres away. With no ambulance available at the time, many parents had no choice but to carry their critically ill children on motorbikes and cycles to the hospital. (Read: Bihar govt denies alert from Centre on mid-day meals)

But the first hospital where almost 40 children were brought in, was badly understaffed and hardly equipped to deal with the horrific crisis.

Word soon reached the district hospital at Chhapra, almost 55 kilometres away, yet the officials inexplicably waited for the sick children to arrive, instead of rushing ambulances to the health care centre.

As the children seemed to be sinking, it was again left to parents to take them and hop on to tempos for another hour-long journey to the district hospital.

By the time they could make it, it was too late for some of the children.

The district hospital didn't have enough oxygen and antidotes for the poison. So 30 critically ill children were hurriedly stuffed into five ambulances and taken to the state capital Patna - another 70 kilometres away. Four children died on the way, in their parents' arms.

Questions about the tragic delay and lack of preparedness are now hounding the Bihar government, with many shattered parents demanding action.

At least 6 families buried their dead children right outside the school, in an act of protest against the extreme negligence that claimed so many lives.