A 20-year-old woman from Uttar Pradesh’s Musahar community gave birth by the roadside outside Maharaja Chet Singh District Hospital in Gyanpur, Bhadohi, after her family alleged that she was denied medical care because of her caste. Rani Devi arrived at the hospital with her family while experiencing labour pains. According to her brother Vijay Kumar, staff nurse Neelam Maurya refused to conduct Devi’s delivery and told the family she would not attend to her because Devi belonged to the Musahar community, according to a report by Maktoob Media. The Musahar community is found primarily in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Nepal’s Terai region. The family alleged that they protested but no senior official intervened. While they were taking Devi home, she developed severe labour pains outside the hospital gate and gave birth there, with women using a sheet as a screen. After Chief Medical Officer Dr S.K. Chak was informed about the incident, he visited Devi’s home and brought her and the child back to the hospital. They were admitted to the emergency ward and given treatment. The CMO said a four-member committee had been formed to investigate the alleged negligence involving the nurse and doctor. He said action would be taken against anyone found responsible. The family’s allegation of caste discrimination is part of the ongoing investigation.