An investigation is underway by the Sivagangai District Health Officer (DHO) regarding a complaint that a New Year’s celebration involving a liquor party was held in the maternity ward of the Sembanur Government Primary Health Centre.
The Primary Health Centre (PHC) in Sembanur, located near Kallal in Sivagangai district, operates round the clock and caters to the need of public from more than 50 villages in and around Kallal.
In this situation, on the night of December 31, a youth named Dayalan, 19, from Kallal was injured in an accident. His friend, Arasu, rescued Dayalan and took him to the Sembanur PHC for emergency treatment. Finding no doctors or staff present at the time, Arasu went searching for them in the emergency and maternity wards.
Upon entering the doctors’ rest area, he found liquor bottles, non-vegetarian food and snacks scattered in the room. Shocked by the sight, Arasu recorded a video of the scene on his mobile phone. He subsequently took the injured youth from the facility and admitted him to a private hospital, said sources.
As the video was posted on social media it went viral and reached hundreds of people. Following the complaint that a New Year’s liquor party was held at the PHC, District Health Officer Meenakshi has initiated an inquiry into the matter.
It is also reported that the CCTV cameras at the Primary Health Centre have been non-functional for several months.
A doctor on night duty on December 31, stated: “I have been working here for the past year. I do not have the habit of consuming alcohol. That night, three of us were on duty in another building. We even provided treatment to a few people during the night. It is possible that some outsiders entered that room and consumed alcohol”.
District Health Officer Meenakshi said, “The sequence of events will be known only after a full investigation is conducted with the doctors, staff, and the individual who took the video.”
Published – January 02, 2026 09:58 pm IST
