An Indian government hospital has been forced to hire pest control after it was inundated with tens of thousands of rats.

Pest control workers say they have killed an estimated by 2500 rats at Indore’s Maharaja Yeshwantrao hospital so far, but around 70,000 are thought to remain.

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According to the BBC, the hospital was forced to take action after reports of the rodents attacking and biting patients and ruining medical equipment.

The cost of removing the rats is estimated at around 5.5 million rupees, or around AU$104,319.

Workers are reportedly killing the rodents by leaving poison-laced food near the rat holes.

The hospital is the largest in Indore, with 400 beds and around 1000 daily visitors.