Indian man cycles home carrying dead niece on shoulder

Brij Mohan was asked to pay the fuel cost if he wanted to avail ambulance services


News Desk June 13, 2017
Brij Mohan taking body of his niece Poonam back home from district hospital, Kaushambi on Monday. PHOTO COURTESY: HINDUSTAN TIMES

A man in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh (UP) had to carry the body of his dead niece on his bicycle after being allegedly refused ambulance services by a nearby government hospital.

According to a Hindustan Times report, the man, who was from the district of Kaushambi, was constantly asked to pay the fuel cost of the ambulance if he wanted to avail the services. His niece, Poonam, a minor, had died due to bouts of diarrhoea on Monday.

Stricken with poverty, Poonam's family was unable to bear the cost of the ambulance, and Brij Mohan, her uncle, carried her body on his shoulder and cycled 10 kilometers away to their native village.

Poonam's condition had been critical since Saturday, as she was admitted in the district hospital but her family found it increasingly difficult to bear the cost. In an attempt to look for alternatives, Poonam's father Anant Kumar left her under the care of Mohan.

Once Poonam's death caught the news and spread, the authorities of the district lodged an FIR against the ambulance driver and the doctor on duty on their arrogant behaviour.

The district chief medical officer said an inquiry would be lodged into the matter, and there would be consequences for the guilty.

This is not the first time such behaviour has been shown by government hospitals to the citizens in India. In May, a man had to carry his dead wife on a stretcher after he was denied ambulance services.

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