ANGUL: A man carrying the body of his seven-year-old niece in Pallahara town of the district reminded people of Dana Majhi, who walked for 10 km with his wife’s body on his shoulder.
On Tuesday, a middle-aged man walking with body of a child in Pallahara drew the attention of the district administration which swung into action and terminated the contract of hospital manager of Pallahara Sub-Divisional Hospital and suspended security guard from service for not following Government guidelines.
Sources said Sima, the seven-year-old daughter of Gati Dhibar of Peachamundi village, 15 km from Pallahara town, was suffering from fever for nearly three days. As Sima’s condition deteriorated, her uncle Rathi, mother Padmini and grandmother Bijulai rushed her to the hospital at about 4.30 am on Tuesday. Though the doctors in the hospital immediately attended to Sima, she died two hours later.
Rathi’s request for arranging conveyance to transport the body to their village went unheard by the hospital staff. With no option in sight and the girl’s father away from home, Rathi carried the body on his shoulder. After walking for a kilometre, some locals arranged a vehicle for the bereaved family.
After learning about the incident, Collector Anil Kumar Samal had ordered an inquiry by Sub-Collector Tapan Kumar Satpathy. Acting on the report, the Collector took action. The Collector has also sought an explanation from Sub-Divisional Medical Officer Dr PC Mohanty in this connection.
Meanwhile, the district administration has released Rs 2,000 to the family under Harishchandra Yojana and Rs 10,000 from district Red Cross Fund on the Collector’s direction. “Despite the direction of the district administration to dispose of bodies in a dignified manner after deaths in hospital, this was not followed in Pallahara,” Samal said.
The incident comes at a time when the image of Dana Majhi walking with the body of his wife for 10 km continues to haunt Odisha more than four months of the tragic incident. Though the State Government launched Mahaprayan scheme for dignified disposal of bodies after the Kalahandi incident, the scenario seems to have remained unchanged in smaller towns and cities.