SCB Medical College Fire Tragedy: CM Majhi Suspends Four Officials Over Negligence
Those suspended include deputy fire officer Prakash Kumar Jena and assistant fire officer Sanjeeb Kumar Behera from the Cuttack Fire Circle: Chief Minister’s Office
BHUBANESWAR: In a strong administrative response to the recent fire tragedy at SCB Medical College and Hospital, which reportedly claimed around 12 lives, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Wednesday ordered the suspension of four officials for alleged dereliction of duty.
The action follows the devastating blaze that broke out on March 16 at the premier government-run healthcare facility in Cuttack, triggering serious concerns over fire safety preparedness and emergency response systems in public hospitals.
According to an official statement from the Chief Minister’s Office in Bhubaneswar, those suspended include deputy fire officer Prakash Kumar Jena and assistant fire officer Sanjeeb Kumar Behera from the Cuttack Fire Circle.
Station officer Abhinab Prusty, posted at SCB Medical College, and assistant executive engineer Ranjan Kumar Biswal of the SCB sub-division under Cuttack General Electrical Division (GED), have also been placed under suspension.
The state government cited “dereliction of duty” as the primary ground for the disciplinary action, indicating that lapses in fire safety enforcement and response mechanisms may have exacerbated the scale of the tragedy.
Earlier, Chief Minister Majhi had ordered the constitution of a high-level fact-finding committee under the chairmanship of the Development Commissioner to conduct a comprehensive inquiry into the incident.
The panel has been tasked with ascertaining the exact cause of the fire, reviewing the adequacy of emergency response protocols, and recommending systemic measures to strengthen fire safety infrastructure across hospitals in the state.
The incident has sparked widespread concern, with the government under pressure to ensure accountability and implement robust safeguards to prevent such tragedies in the future.
