Six Children Test HIV Positive in MP's Satna; Three Suspended Including Blood Bank-in Charge

In a shocking incident, six children in age group of 12-15 tested HIV positive in Madhya Pradesh's Satna district. The Madhya Pradesh has suspended three people in connection with the incident, including the blood bank-in charge. Six children, aged between 12-15, were found to be HIV positive at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Government Hospital in Satna after suspected contaminated blood transfusions at the district hospitals in Satna, Jabalpur and elsewhere. The parents of one of them were also found to be infected. These cases occurred between January and May. The state-level committee was formed under the chairmanship of Dr Yogesh Bharsat (IAS), Director of the State Blood Transfusion Council (SBTC), on 16 December 2025.The government ordered

the suspension of in-charge of a blood bank and two lab technicians after a preliminary report of a committee formed to investigate the case of transfusion of infected blood in Satna was submitted on Thursday. Blood bank in-charge Dr Devendra Patel and lab technicians Ram Bhai Tripathi and Nandlal Pandey have been suspended. A show-cause notice has also been issued to Manoj Shukla, a former civil surgeon of the district hospital, and he has been directed to submit a written explanation. Shukla has been warned of strict departmental action if his explanation is not satisfactory.The committee was formed by the state’s Public Health and Family Welfare Department on December 16.All the affected children are being treated according to HIV protocols. The crisis unfolded in a state already grappling with a serious HIV burden. Madhya Pradesh has over 70,000 HIV patients, an adult prevalence rate of 0.10 per cent, and injecting drug user prevalence at 4.20 per cent, according to a report by NDTV. Furthermore, seven districts of the state have been classified as high-risk.