NRS nurse death: Probe lens on inventory log, CCTV footage
Times of India | 15 August 2026
Kolkata: As probe intensifies into the mysterious death of the 30-year-old nurse Rupali Burman inside a locked washroom at NRS Medical College and Hospital, cops have expanded its ambit to scrutinise hospital inventory logs, camera footage, and then match them with the preliminary post-mortem findings.
The health dept has issued a strict mandate directing the inquiry panel to submit its comprehensive report to the director of health education in seven days. An eight-member panel is probing the sequence of events, focusing heavily on analysing CCTV footage from the antenatal ward in the Gynecology CB Building.
“The CCTV footage has been handed over to the Kolkata Police. An independent probe has also been launched by a medical team which has been asked to submit its report within seven working days,” said health minister Sharadwat Mukherjee who rushed to NRS on Thursday on learing about the incident.
A central aspect of the probe centres around inventory protocols. Police have recovered a 2 ml syringe, two fentanyl vials, one empty midazolam vial, and three cotton swabs near the body. Fentanyl and midazolam are potent prescription agents utilised for surgical anesthesia. Officials have demanded an immediate explanation regarding how Barman procured these vials, whether they were formally entered into hospital registers upon release, and why regulatory oversight failed if records were absent.
Preliminary autopsy findings conducted at Calcutta Medical College suggest that an excessive drug overdose caused the fatality. Doctors noted needle-prick marks on both of Barman’s elbows and bluish development at her fingertips, suspecting intravenous administration near the joint. However, forensic pathology testing remains ongoing to confirm whether the death was a suicide, accidental overdose, or foul play.
An official inquest conducted prior to the autopsy verified the absence of external physical trauma other than the injection marks. Meanwhile, her family expressed profound distress over the conflicting timeline provided on the night of the incident. “We do not understand how this happened. Please look into it. We want a proper probe,” her father said, recounting confused calls from her husband and friend regarding her transfer to the ICU before she was declared dead.