Woman gives birth in autorickshaw stuck in traffic jam on way to Ulhasnagar hospital

A pregnant woman in Ulhasnagar could not reach hospital in time after her autorickshaw got stuck in a traffic jam, and she gave birth inside the vehicle. The incident took place at 3.30 am on Thursday.

After the delivery, the mother and the newborn were immediately admitted to the Central Hospital in Ulhasnagar. Both are reported to be stable. Dr Manohar Bansode, the hospital's district surgeon, said the woman and the baby are perfectly fine.

Ambulance drivers ran to the hospital and alerted the doctors and nurses. Given the seriousness of the situation, the doctors, nurses and staff, after seeing the woman's condition, decided to conduct the delivery in the autorickshaw itself.

The hospital's women intern doctors and nurses acted promptly, and the delivery in the autorickshaw was successful. The woman gave birth while seated in the vehicle. Hospital ward boy Dhiraj Sitapara and private ambulance driver Vishal Shelar then carried her on a stretcher to the maternity ward.

The incident has raised serious questions about the city's traffic management. Residents are asking who is ultimately responsible for traffic management in a city with a municipal corporation, if citizens have to bear such a heavy cost of jams on the roads.

Residents say the case is a painful example of how the poor state of Ulhasnagar's roads and growing traffic jams endanger lives. There is sharp anger among local citizens, who say the state of the city's traffic management has once again been exposed.

Political leaders are trading allegations and squabbling, while ordinary citizens struggle for basic facilities on the roads. Citizens have reacted angrily, saying the leaders who fight among themselves should set aside political disputes, look at the state of the city and attend to people's problems.