Gates Shut, No Keys, Kiran Bedi Jumps Over Hospital Fence in Puducherry

Puducherry Lieutenant Governor (LG) Kiran Bedi on Thursday scaled a fence at the premises of the government hospital here during a field visit.Ms Bedi (68) jumped over the brick fence as the officials had misplaced its keys.

Ms Bedi, the first woman to join the Indian Police Service (IPS), wanted to inspect a statue of the "Our Lady of Lourdes", which was kept in a shed encircled by the 3.5-foot-high brick fence.

However, she was kept waiting as the hospital authorities had reportedly misplaced the keys to the gate of the fence. To everyone's astonishment, the LG suddenly jumped over the fence to enter the shed.

Karaikal District Collector R Kesavan, Senior Superintendent of Police V J Chandran and other officials present on the occasion had no option but follow suit.

Ms Bedi, who prefers riding a bicycle on her weekend field visits to the outlying areas of Puducherry, is on a five-day trip to Karaikal, an enclave of the union territory.

On the fourth day of her visit on Thursday, the LG went to the hospital to review the facilities there and interact with the patients.

She described the dirty surroundings of the hospital as a breeding ground for mosquitoes and directed the officials to clean the place immediately.

Ms Bedi also interacted with the patients and held a consultative meeting with the officials to decide on the steps to be taken for improving the condition of the hospital.