The Justice Michael D’Cunha Committee has submitted its report on the deaths in the Chamarajnagar district hospital in May 2021, allegedly due to a severe shortage of oxygen supply, to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
Retired Karnataka High Court judge Justice Michael D’Cunha submitted the report to the CM on Monday, December 1.
Twenty-four people had died at the Chamarajanagar district hospital on May 1 and 2, 2021, allegedly due to a severe shortage of oxygen.
The deaths sparked widespread outrage in the state amid a public perception that the then BJP government headed by BS Yediyurappa in the state had been grossly inept in its handling of the Covid-19 crisis. The government also faced allegations of corruption in procurement of medical supplies.
The Siddaramaiah government appointed the D’Cunha committee after rejecting the findings of the BA Patil commission which was appointed by the previous BJP government.
A previous committee formed on the directions of the Karnataka High Court found that the deaths of the 24 COVID-19 patients at the hospital were caused by a shortage of medical oxygen resulting from failures by the district administration and hospital authorities.
The committee, comprising retired judges AN Venugopala Gowda and KN Keshavanarayana, and retired Director General and Inspector General of Police ST Ramesh, submitted its report to the HC two weeks after the deaths.
The report found that the Dean of the Chamarajanagar Institute of Medical Sciences (CIMS) and the in-charge district surgeon failed to show leadership or use available resources effectively.
The committee criticised Chamarajanagar Deputy Commissioner (DC) Dr MR Ravi for failing to manage the crisis and instead blaming Mysuru DC Rohini Sindhuri, alleging she blocked oxygen supplies. However, the panel stated there was no evidence that Mysuru authorities hindered refilling for other districts and accused Ravi of indulging in a baseless blame game.
It found mismanagement in oxygen planning, including overreliance on a newly commissioned liquid medical oxygen (LMO) tank and a sharp drop in refilling jumbo cylinders.