The man was denied an ambulance as there was apparently none available

A man in Nalanda was allegedly forced to carry the body of his eight-year-old son on his shoulder due to unavailability of an ambulance at the government hospital.

The incident took place at the Sadar Hospital in Nalanda on Tuesday. The father had brought his son to the hospital after the child complained of fever and abdominal pain. The child was declared dead.

"An inquiry will be conducted regarding this matter. If negligence is found then strict action will be taken," said District Magistrate Yogendra Singh.

Mr Singh further shared that similar incidents have taken place in the past too.

This comes at a time when 131 children have died in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES).

Total 111 deaths have been reported from government-run SKMCH and 20 in Kejriwal hospital.