CHENNAI: The COVID-19 has brought to the fore a few unsung heroes. It has also brought out a smidgen of the ugliness that lay buried deep in our society. An entire neighbourhood came together to deny a 53-year-old man his right to shelter. His crime: they feared he had contracted the virus. On Thursday morning, he died lying on the roadside at Kumaran Nagar. The tragedy did not end there. His body was left unattended for eight whole hours by the sidewalk, because officials weren’t sure which department had to act on it.
Ravi was a daily wage labourer. He was working near the Central Railway Station and lived in a room that he shared with his friends. Once the lockdown was announced, he moved in with his sister, saying in Jaffarkhanpet. On Tuesday, Ravi developed a severe cough. “Suspecting he had COVID-19, his neighbours called the Corporation. He was taken to hospital on the same day and tested,” a police official said. “In the evening, Ravi was dropped back home by an ambulance.”
That’s when his ordeal began. Residents living around his sister’s house and the landlord refused to allow Ravi home. Left with no choice, Ravi went away. On Thursday morning, Corporation officials -- who were doing door-to-door surveys --- found him sleeping on the street. “We found him about 100 metres away from his sister’s home, in Appadurai Street,” a Corporation official told Express. “This was around 8.30 am. As he told us he had given samples for testing, we called a 104 ambulance, designated to transport COVID-19 patients.”
The ambulance arrived an hour late. By then, Ravi had died. Now, his test results were pending, and that caused a confusion over the ‘jurisdiction’. Who is responsible to handle his body? The confusion lasted for a good eight hours. “The 104 ambulance refused to transport the body. We were not sure if the hospital staff had to deal with it or the corporation. We did not know if he had COVID-19 or not,” explained the police officer.
Finally, Kodambakkam zonal officials of the Corporation, along with the local police and 108 ambulance service, cleared the body around 4.40 pm. The body was moved to the mortuary at RGGGH. “All personnel involved in the moving were in PPE suits and followed protocol. The entire area was disinfected later,” officials said. The house owner approached the Corporation, asking for Ravi’s last rites not to be conducted in his premises. Ravi’s sister has refused to claim his body. Corporation officials are waiting because they cannot proceed with the burial unless the dead man’s family gives them written consent.
Meanwhile, Ravi’s test results came out on Thursday morning. He did not have COVID-19.
Confusion
When Ravi died, his test results were pending, and that caused a confusion over ‘jurisdiction’. The confusion lasted for a good eight hours.