Woman loses newborn due to road blockade

Anantnag, Dec 28: In a tragic incident, a woman in the remote Gadole village of Kokernag lost her newborn after being forced to deliver at home on Saturday due to blocked roads following heavy snowfall.

Masrat Jan, wife of Nawaz Ahmad Magray from Magraypora Gadole, gave birth to a baby boy around 11 am amidst severe labour pains.

According to a relative, heavy snowfall had blocked the roads, leaving the family with no choice but to handle the delivery at home.

“We contacted the local administration for road clearance, but they couldn’t provide assistance due to the heavy snow accumulation,” the relative said.

He said that efforts by ASHA workers and health officials to reach the family also failed due to impassable roads.

Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Kokernag, Suhail Lone, said that as soon as they received the distress call, they dispatched a vehicle.

However, it couldn’t reach the village due to the treacherous and snowbound road conditions.

“The road to the village is very challenging, especially after heavy snowfall. While we tried our best to reach the family, it was an arduous task for the snow-clearing machinery to navigate the terrain immediately,” Lone said.

He said that the woman delivered prematurely, a month before the expected due date.

“This was not a case of medical negligence,” said Lone showing the medical records of the woman

SDM assured that most roads in the Kokernag area had been cleared of snow and efforts are ongoing to ensure all routes are passable soon.