Pregnancy
Pregnant woman denied admission to labour ward as she did not carry her Aadhaar card [Representational image]Reuters

In an incident, which is likely to raise more questions on the necessity of the 12-digit unique identification number, a pregnant woman was denied entry into a ward of a Gurugram hospital for not carrying her Aadhaar card.

The woman, who was denied admission to the labor ward by the staff, then delivered her baby outside the emergency ward of the Gurugram Civil Hospital.

Identified as Munni Kewat, the 25-year-old was accompanied to the hospital by her husband after she experienced severe labour pain. "We reached the hospital at around 9 am and went to the casualty ward. The staff directed us to go to the labour ward. When we reached there, the staff there asked for my wife's Aadhaar card for admission," the Press Trust of India quoted Arun Kewat, the woman's husband as saying.

While the couple wasn't carrying their Aadhaar card, Kewat said that he could provide the authorities with the 12-digit number and would present the card later on. But the staff members refused to relent and denied the woman admission to the labour ward.

"A lady doctor and some nurses present at the labour ward demanded a hard copy of the Aadhaar card and said that she would be admitted only on presenting the card. I asked my relatives to stay with my wife and went to get a printout of the card," Arun added.

The relatives then took Munni to the casualty ward but she was denied entry there as well. "I went with Munni to the casualty ward but the staff did not allow her to sit there. They threw us out. Munni was already in severe labour pain and delivered the baby on the floor outside the gate of emergency ward," a relative added.

There were several people present at the hospital and they are said to have recorded the entire incident on the phones, but no one came to Munni's rescue. The staff reportedly came to help only after she delivered the baby and lost a lot of blood, which was all over the hospital floor.

An inquiry has now been ordered into the incident and Gurgaon Chief Medical Officer Dr BK Rajora said that a doctor and a staff nurse had been suspended.

"We have started an internal inquiry to find if other employees were involved," he added.

The hospital has also been slammed on social media, with many users questioning the need for Aadhaar card for admission to a hospital ward.