Mumbai: The Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC) has directed the state govt to pay Rs 17.95 lakh in compensation to a 23-year-old woman’s family for “violating her right to life” by denying her timely emergency care.The commission also noted that the pregnant woman’s delivery was conducted by doctors who were not trained in obstetrics, and that she was shuttled between hospitals due to the absence of doctors and a gynaecologist.The woman, Priyanka Navar, was registered for her delivery at the Watangi primary health centre (PHC) in Kolhapur district’s Ajara taluka and underwentthe required antenatal tests and sonography. Her pregnancy was progressing normally, with the expected date of delivery being Nov 24.Two days before the due date, she went into labour. The doctor at Watangi PHC advised that she be shifted to the Ajara Rural Hospital, but no doctor was available there. She was then brought back to the Watangi PHC, where the delivery took place.According to the family, they were shocked by what they saw inside the labour room. The mother was bleeding profusely, and the staff were unable to control the bleeding. The doctor was absent from the PHC and allegedly instructed on the phone that she be shifted to a private hospital. The private hospital, citing her critical condition, referred her to the govt hospital in Kolhapur, where she died during treatment.In his order, MSHRC member Sanjay Kumar (Retd IPS) noted that when the woman reached the Watangi PHC, the medical officer was absent and her delivery was conducted by two assistant medical officers who were not qualified to manage a critical obstetric emergency. Instead of immediately summoning a doctor, they attempted to manage the case themselves, delaying specialist intervention until the woman’s family raised an alarm. Only then did the doctor concerned reach the PHC.The MSHRC observed: “Although committees constituted to inquire into the alleged negligence, apathy and mismanagement during the delivery of Priyanka Navar gave clean chits to the doctors and medical staff involved, a chronological scrutiny of the incident and the treatment provided to the critically ill pregnant woman by different health institutions and medical officers clearly shows complete apathy, mismanagement and a casual approach in treating a critical patient, ultimately leading to her death.”