Cuttack, Mar 17: The death toll in the tragic fire mishap at SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack, Odisha, has risen to 12, with two more patients succumbing to their injuries this evening. The deceased have been identified as Kalyani Mallick (11) from Haripur in Bhadrak district and Pabitra Tisari (20) from Borigumma in Koraput.

The fire broke out early Monday morning in the Trauma Care ICU on the first floor of the hospital. At the time of the incident, 23 patients were admitted to the ICU. Many of the patients were critically ill, which made the situation even more severe.

Fire Services personnel responded quickly to the emergency and managed to control the blaze, but it had already claimed the lives of 10 patients. The victims were identified as Ramesh Parida, Dasharu Munda, M.D. Nyum, Gauranga Barik, S.K. Abdul Sattar, Madhusudan Dalai, Krushnachandra Biswal, Rabindra Das, Cheru Parida, and Menaka Rout.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi visited the hospital to review the situation and expressed condolences to the families. He also announced financial assistance for the victims' families, including an ex-gratia of Rs 25 lakh for the family of each deceased patient. The Chief Minister further ordered a judicial inquiry into the incident to determine the exact cause of the fire and to assess any lapses in safety measures at the hospital.