NEW DELHI — Twelve women have died and dozens more were sickened after surgical sterilizations at a government-run camp in India, where women are often paid to undergo the procedures in an effort to control population growth, health officials said on Tuesday.

The women were paid 600 rupees apiece, or almost $10, said Dr. Amar Singh Thakur, joint director of health services in the central Indian district of Bilaspur. One surgeon performed surgery on 83 women in the space of six hours on Saturday — meaning he could have spent only a few minutes on each patient, Dr. Thakur said.

The women began to fall ill around five hours after being discharged, Dr. Thakur said, experiencing giddiness, vomiting and low blood pressure. Sixty-seven women are being treated for septic shock in hospitals, and four are in serious condition and on ventilators, he said.

State officials said evidence pointed to negligence on the part of the surgeon, Dr. R. K. Gupta. Amar Agrawal, the health minister in the state of Chhattisgarh, where the sterilizations took place, said Dr. Gupta had not sterilized his surgical instruments.