A pregnant woman in Chhattisgarh's Korba district has died of infection, after carrying a fetus that had died in her womb five days earlier. Allegedly after doctors at private hospitals refused to attend as she was unable to pay. She made rounds of three private hospitals along with her husband on Monday. The couple was asked to arrange blood and fees first. After the issue came to light Chhattisgarh women's commission ordered a probe. The couple, Gulabdas Mahant and Saraswati, 22, from Kodibahar area in Korba district, rushed to the hospitals where the woman was told during a scan that her eight-month old fetus had died. Doctors at Jamunadevi Memorial Maternity Hospital advised to get the fetus cleared and asked for a fees of Rs 10,000 and three units of blood.

While the woman was suffering from severe pain, the couple failed to arrange the blood and money. They again went to the same hospital when doctors refused to treat her if the fees were not paid in advance.

Meanwhile, the infection spread in her body and realising the seriousness of her condition, doctors asked her to go to some other hospital. The couple went to neighbouring Krishna Hospital but again they were told that her case was critical and doctors refused to admit her, said Mahant. He said that he then took her to Srishti Hospital, where the doctors said that they would operate her on Tuesday. But she died at night.

"Without realising the emergency, earlier the doctors refused to accept her case and later postponed it. Is it how doctors work?" said Mahant.