Police investigating family's allegations of medical negligence by two private hospitalsKanpur police have sent the severed hand of a 65-year-old woman for histopathological examination as part of their investigation into allegations of medical negligence by two private hospitals where her limb developed infection and had to be amputated.The report of histopathological exam, a pathology test, will reveal the reasons behind the amputation of the woman’s hand earlier last month, officials said, adding it was likely to play a key role in determining the next course of investigation.Additional Commissioner of Police Vipin Tada confirmed the development.The deceased woman’s son, an Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) jawan, recently arrived at a police station carrying the severed hand in a box to file a case against the hospital staff.Later, some senior ITBP officers accompanied by dozens of paramilitary personnel had reached the Kanpur Police Commissioner’s office amid claims of gherao.Read | Amputated hand in box: How UP Police was made to probe ITBP jawan’s medical negligence chargeThe ITBP officers and police, however, had dismissed the claims of gherao, saying they had come there with prior appointment.Criminal proceedings were initiated after a medical committee’s inquiry, which found “gross negligence” in the treatment provided by two private hospitals. The committee reportedly found that critical delays, lapses in medical care and failures in timely intervention contributed to the deterioration of the woman’s condition, ultimately resulting in the amputation of her hand.The amputated hand, which was preserved by a district medical team after being handed over by the ITBP jawan, has been sent to Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Memorial (GSVM) Medical College in Kanpur for histopathological examination, an official said.Story continues below this adSources familiar with the investigation said the examination is aimed at determining the extent and cause of the infection, as well as establishing the precise factors that led to the tissue damage and eventual amputation.Meanwhile, police are gathering medical records and other documents from the two private hospitals where the woman underwent treatment, as part of efforts to reconstruct the sequence of events that culminated in the loss of her hand.On May 10, the ITBP jawan, Vikas Singh, brought his 65-year-old mother, Nirmala Devi, to Kanpur after she developed breathing complications. As her condition failed to improve, Singh took her to a private hospital on doctors’ advice.Singh said he was alarmed the following day when he noticed that his mother’s right hand had become swollen and began turning black. His mother said the hospital staff had inserted an intravenous line into a vein in the right hand to administer glucose and medication and the drip was shifted to the other hand after one got swollen and developed pain. When he expressed concern, he was assured by doctors that the condition was temporary and would resolve with treatment, Singh claimed.Story continues below this adBut when the swelling and pain worsened, he decided to get his mother discharged and seek treatment elsewhere.She was subsequently admitted to another private hospital, where doctors reportedly informed the family that the infection had already spread significantly. On May 17, surgeons amputated her right arm above the elbow to prevent the infection from spreading to the rest of her body.The incident initially prompted an inquiry, but the first report failed to arrive at a definitive conclusion. Following representations by the jawan and intervention from his senior officers, a fresh probe was ordered.