Raipur: A family in Chhattisgarh’s Gariaband district carried the body of a 60-year-old woman on a cot for nearly 2.5 km as they did not get a hearse from a government hospital.
The woman, identified as Ichhabai Patel, died on Monday while undergoing treatment at the Community Health Centre (CHC) in Amlipadar under Mainpur development block. Her relative, Dipchand Patel, told reporters that when the family requested a hearse to take the body home, hospital staff refused.
“Private vehicle owners demanded a hefty amount, which we could not afford. We had no other option and carried the body on a cot to our village Nayapara, around 2.5 km away,” he said.
A video of the incident, shared widely on social media, shows four men walking along a road carrying the cot on their shoulders.
Responding to the matter, Gariaband district collector Bhagwan Singh Uikey said he had instructed the chief medical and health officer (CMHO) to ensure such incidents do not occur again.
“After learning about it, I spoke to the CMHO. According to him, hospital staff had informed the family that a hearse was on its way from Deobhog, about 26 km from Amlipadar, but the relatives did not wait for it,” Uikey said.
{{/usCountry}}“After learning about it, I spoke to the CMHO. According to him, hospital staff had informed the family that a hearse was on its way from Deobhog, about 26 km from Amlipadar, but the relatives did not wait for it,” Uikey said.
{{/usCountry}}He added that the hearse based in Amlipadar had earlier been taken by police in connection with a case and met with an accident, after which it remained damaged. “Such incidents must not happen. The health department has been asked to ensure proper monitoring and to prevent recurrence,” the collector said.