As thick smoke engulfed the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Jaipur’s state-run Sawai Man Singh Hospital late Sunday night, desperate family members carried patients, some still on their beds, out onto the streets.

The fire, which killed seven people and erupted on the second floor of the hospital’s trauma centre, has exposed shocking lapses in safety preparedness at Rajasthan’s largest government hospital, with some even claiming that there were no fire extinguishers.

According to reports, the fire was so intense that within minutes, the entire ICU area was filled with smoke. The fire was contained withing two hours.

Of the seven victims, six were identified as Pintu (from Sikar), Dilip (from Andhi, Jaipur), Shrinath, Rukmini, Khurma (all from Bharatpur) and Bahadur (from Sanganer, Jaipu

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