Ranchi, May 6: A mother had to pay Rs 500 for a glimpse of her newborn in a city hospital.

Ranchi civil surgeon Ashrita Kujur has issued showcause notice to medical superintendent Neelam Choudhary and a nurse, Madhuri Jain, of the Ranchi subdivisional Hospital, for demanding Rs 500 from a woman for the first glimpse of her baby.

The action was taken on Wednesday when the surgeon came to know about the incident. The nurse has been given two days to reply the notice while the superintendent has been given five days.

Sikha Pal, wife of city-based sculptor Tapan Pal, was admitted to Ranchi Sadar Hospital on April 29 around 8.30 am with labour pain.

Sikha alleged that the nurses were rude to her and did not even bother to listen to her complaints. She further alleged that she had requested the staff to take her to the labour room but nobody cared.

After repeated requests, Sikha was finally taken to the labour room around 4.30 pm and soon she delivered her baby.

After the delivery, a nurse, later identified as Madhuri Jain, took away the baby and did not even care to inform the mother about it.

When Sikha wanted to see the face of her baby, the nurse made a demand: Rs 500. All pleas fell on deaf ears as the nurse refused to give away anything to the mother ? not even the fact that she had delivered a girl.

With no way out, Sikha told her mother-in-law about it. Somehow the money was arranged and the family got to see their baby.

But that was not the end of it. When the relatives and friends of Sikha protested against the attitude of the hospital staff, the nurse tried to return the amount. The family members alleged she even gave a veiled threat to them.

The matter was communicated to the Ranchi civil surgeon the next day. After investigations, the surgeon issued the showcause notice to the nurse and the superintendent under whom the nurse was working.

Madhuri refused to comment on the issue. The civil surgeon was not available for comment at her office.

Usually, this kind of incidents are seen in the hospitals, but in a much lighter vein as staff pester the families for ?bakhshish? (tips).

Sikha said: ?The nurse kept saying that the demand was a must for any parent to see her baby and this was the accepted practice in the hospital.

?They even said that the amount was meagre in comparison to the charges in the nursing homes.?