Union Health Ministry scrambles burn specialists to Kollam

Union Health Ministry on Sunday scrambled a team of 25 doctors and paramedics drawn from premier medical Institute AIIMS, Safdarjung and Ram Manohar Lohia hospitals to assist in relief work in Kollam where 100 people were killed and 383 injured in a fire accident in Puttingal Devi Temple complex.

The doctors and paramedics mostly burn specialists, which include 11 experts from AIIMS, 10 from Safdarjung Hospital and five from Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital will be reaching Kollam soon, the Health ministry officials said.

Some of the specialists had gone with Prime Minister Narendra Modi while the others headed for site with necessary medicines. Union Health Minister J P Nadda, who accompanied Modi to Kollam, also attended a meeting the Prime Minister had with Kerala CM Oommen Chandy where senior officials of the district administration were also present. The tragedy struck around 3.30 am during display of fireworks at the temple complex, which is around 70 kms from the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The display, for which no permission had been granted by revenue and police officials, had started at midnight as part of an annual festival and thousands of people had gathered to witness it.