A pregnant woman died at a premier hospital here on Wednesday after she was administered saline instead of blood, her husband claimed. The hospital has refuted the charge.

Urmi Devi, a resident of Gumla district, was suffering from anaemia and a low haemoglobin level. She was admitted to Rajendra Institute of Medical Science where she died early on Wednesday."She was administered saline instead of blood. We had to take her from Emergency to the Gynaecology department and she was not treated properly which caused her death," said the husband of the woman.

Refuting the charges, S.K. Chaudhary, Superintendent of the hospital, said: "She was provided blood around 5 a.m. but died after a few minutes. She was suffering from anaemia and her haemoglobin level was down to four."This is not the first incident where the hospital has been accused of negligence. Earlier, it was alleged that a woman patient's left kidney was operated instead of right and a one-year-old boy died in August after his father failed to pay for his treatment.