It’s been less than a year since the heart wrenching story of Odisha man Dana Majhi rocked the conscience of our nation. The tribal was forced to carry his dead wife for 10 km, exposing lack of basic facilities in rural areas. In a similar fashion,a 45-year-old labourer in UP’ Etawah had to carry his 15-year-old son’s body on his shoulder to a hospital. Udayveer was asked by the Etawah government hospital to take his son home as he just had pain in legs. Even if his son was unable to stand Udayveer wasn’t provided with a stretcher or an ambulance by the hospital.
“They said there was nothing left in the boy…He just had a pain in his legs. The doctors just gave my child five minutes and said take him away.” he told NDTV.
A desperate Udayveer took his son twice to the hospital from his village which is seven km away. The father hoped for a cure but the doctors did not bother to offer the services of a hearse or an ambulance. Udayeer has a chronic lung problem and he walked miles to find a cure for his son’s problem. He took the body home on a bike. His ordeal was captured by a passerby on mobile.
“No one told me whether I am entitled to transport to take my son’s body back,” he added.
The top health official of the district described the incident as “shameful”. The boy, he said, was brought dead to the hospital on Monday afternoon.
“I am told the doctors were busy with a bus accident case and so they could not ask him (Udayveer) if he needed transport. There will be action…no doubt it is a blot on the reputation of this hospital and the fault is ours,” Rajeev Yadav, Chief Medical Officer told NDTV.
