Cuttack, Aug. 28: Orissa High Court today decided to monitor the government's steps to prevent further deaths at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Post Graduate Institute of Paediatrics popularly known as Sishu Bhavan.

The division bench of Justice Indrajit Mahanty and Justice S.C. Parija directed the state government to submit a status report on the probe by experts into the deaths at Sishu Bhavan.

The court further directed the hospital superintendent to file a report in the form of an affidavit on the cause of the infant deaths by September 5, the date of the next hearing.

Arun Kumar Budhia, 50, a city-based lawyer, had filed a public interest litigation following the rise in infant deaths at the hospital.

Sishu Bhavan authorities have denied charges of negligence in the treatment of newborns at the hospital after five more infants died today, taking the death toll to 40 in the past eight days.

Sishu Bhavan superintendent Niranjan Mohanty said that a team of experts is conducting a probe into the 35 infant deaths between August 20 and August 27. It was found that all the infants died due to critical illness. "There had been no negligence in providing treatment," said Mohanty.

He said that most of the deaths were due to septicaemia, pneumonia, meningitis, birth asphyxia, viral encephalitis and the infants were brought to the hospital in a critical stage.

A committee of experts headed by the directorate of medical education and training (DMET) is conducting another probe and is expected to submit its report next week.

The state government, which shifted seven doctors from SCB Medical College to the Sishu Bhavan, is closely monitoring the functioning of the hospital.

"The staff is now more friendly and are listening to the problems of the attendants. Earlier, the nurses and other medical staff used to treat us badly. The scenario has changed drastically," said Kailash Behera, an attendant.

Administrative officer Abani Mohapatra said that the government has appointed two more pharmacists and technicians to operate the blood unit at the hospital.