bokaro a covidpositive pregnant woman in labour pain was forced to travel 120km from bokaro to ranchi at midnight on friday after doctors and otehr healthcare staff at sadar hospital refused to conduct a caesarean section surgery on her the woman had tested positive for covid19 on a truenat machine on arrival at the hospitalthought the woman delivered a healthy baby at rims in ranchi on saturday the incident has irked the state health department which has sought an explanation from the district civil surgeon and asked him to identify the healthcare workersstate health secretary nitin madan kulkarni said its a serious matter and i have asked for a report on the incident bokaro sadar hospital has operation theatres and other needed facilities and the delivery could have been easily done there action will be taken against the erring officialssdo sashi prakash singh and civil surgeon dr a k pathak said they had tried to convince the doctors to perform the surgery despite a strict warning the hospital anaesthetist refused to attend to the woman pathak said the woman hailed from jhopdi colony and arrived at the sadar hospital with labour pain in the morning the gynaecologist suggested an operation but her samples were taken for covid tests as per the norms her results came in the evening and the doctors abandoned herthe womans family members sought help from the civil surgeon who asked the doctors and the staff to conduct delivery following the prescribed covid19 protocol but they refused pathak added i told the doctors to perform a surgery wearing ppe kits they did not agree i then informed the sdo who tried to arrange for other doctors she had to be referred to rims ranchi at midnight renu bharti deputy superintendent of sadar hospital added we managed to get a gynaecologist late at night but no nurse health worker or anaesthetist were available