Family members of a 14-year-old girl, who died of snakebite on Wednesday afternoon, on Thursday filed a complaint with Alipurduar police, alleging negligence on the part of doctors and a nurse at the district hospital.

The hospital authorities denied the charges.

Sources said that Ankita Ghosh, a Class IX student of Alipurduar Newtown Girls High School, was bitten by a snake at her home in Dakshin Chechakhata, a locality on the outskirts of the town around 1.30pm on Wednesday.

She was rushed to the emergency wing of the district hospital from where she was shifted to the female medical ward. Around 3.50pm, the girl died.

After her death, her family members alleged that the on-duty nurse and doctors delayed in giving her treatment. “They delayed in treating her and in injecting AVS (antivenin serum). That is why I lost my daughter. Timely intervention would have saved her life,” said Kalyani, the bereaved mother, who filed the police complaint against the hospital authorities.

On Wednesday, after the news of Ankita's death spread, a group of teachers from her school also reached the hospital and made the same allegation.

The teachers demanded that the hospital superintendent start an inquiry and take steps against all such persons responsible for the girl’s death.

Paritosh Mondal, the hospital superintendent, however, denied the charge. “I think the girl reached the hospital late. AVS was administered to the patient on time but it seems the family members didn’t know about it. Still, I will check if there was any lapse,” he said.