A grief-stricken father had to carry the body of his nine-year-old son on his shoulder and ride pillion on a bike for 90 kilometres after ambulance drivers demanded Rs 20,000 to transport the body from hospital to home.
The shocking incident took place in Andhra Pradesh earlier this week when Jasava, a tribal boy admitted to Sri Venkateswara Ramnarain Ruia Government Hospital for liver disorder died on Monday. His father Narasimhulu, who works as a labourer in a mango orchard, sought an ambulance to take his son’s body to his native village in Chitvel, he was shocked to hear ambulance drivers demanding Rs 20,000.
The poor father then approached his orchard owner to get an ambulance from outside the hospital but the in-house ambulance drivers gang reportedly shooed the ambulance driver away and even harassed the grieving father.
Left with no other option, the father carried his dead son on his shoulder and rode away on a bike to his village.
Leader of Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu took to Twitter to express his condolence and criticize the government medical authorities here. “My heart aches for innocent little Jesava, who died at Tirupati’s RUIA hospital. His father pleaded with authorities to arrange an ambulance which never came. With mortuary vans lying in utter neglect, pvt ambulance providers asked a fortune to take the child home for final rites,” his tweet read, with a video of the child being carried on a two-wheeler.
