Clip & pocket knife to his aid, Army doc helps deliver baby at railway station

Jhansi: A hair clip and a pocket knife became tools during the emergency delivery of a baby girl — right on the platform.

The procedure, carried out by a young army doctor using minimal resources, ensured the safe birth of the child, leaving bystanders awestruck and the new parents overwhelmed.

According to North Central Railway's Jhansi Division Public Relations Officer Manoj Kumar Singh, a pregnant woman travelling on the Panvel-Gorakhpur Express experienced severe labour pain and was deboarded at Jhansi station on Saturday afternoon.

Seeing the critical situation, a female ticket-checking staff member and an army officer stationed nearby sprang into action and came to the assistance of the woman.

Major Dr Rohit Bachwala (31), a medical officer with the Army Medical Corps, was waiting for his train when he witnessed a railway employee rushing a woman in distress on a wheelchair.

Reacting instinctively, he stepped in and, with the help of railway staff, decided to help the woman in delivering the baby on the platform itself.

"With no access to a proper operation theatre, I had to rely on tools I had on me,” Major Bachwala told PTI.

"To clamp the umbilical cord, I used a hair clip. A pocket knife helped me cut it after ensuring the baby was stable. The mother and child were in a precarious condition, and every second mattered." He further shared that the woman had collapsed due to intense labour pain near the lift area when he intervened. "There was no time to waste. We created a makeshift delivery area and ensured basic hygiene with the help of available supplies. It was divine intervention that I was present at that moment," he added.

Post-delivery, both mother and baby were shifted to a local hospital by ambulance, with railway staff facilitating the arrangements. Doctors later confirmed both were in stable condition.

Incredibly, after successfully handling the emergency, Major Bachwala boarded his train to Hyderabad on time. "As doctors, we must be prepared for emergencies at all times, even in transit. I consider it a blessing that I could help save two lives,” he said.