NEW DELHI: Eleven elderly persons, who tested Covid-positive and were abandoned by their families, have found refuge at Gurudwara Rakab Ganj. They were staying at Triveni Devi Vradha Ashram, a private old age home in Jaunti village of northwest Delhi. After a SOS call from the Ashram, the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee (DSGMC) came to their rescue and made arrangements for shifting them to the 500-bed Covid health facility created on Gurudwara campus recently.
Manjinder Singh Sirsa, president of DSGMC, said that all of them are doing fine except one, who had been admitted to the hospital after his oxygen level dropped. “All of them—63-73 years of age-- were brought to the facility after we were informed about their status. The group includes six women. We sent ambulances and volunteers,” said Sirsa. Charanjeet Lal Uppal, 79, administrator of the old age home said that four inmates had succumbed to Covid before he could manage help from the Gurudwara committee.
“There were 55 people staying in our home. All of them had gotten the Covid vaccine. Second doses were administered recently after which nearly 20 of them had fallen sick and later they were found Covid positive. We informed their families about their health and asked them to take them back but most of them didn’t turn up. Only five were accepted by their relatives,” said Uppal. The facility was set up by Uppal’s friend Lala Om Prakash Agrawal, a Delhi based entrepreneur, about 16 years ago. The Agrawal family now runs the home.
Before contacting Bhupinder Singh Bhullar, member of DSGMC, Uppal approached many including government agencies for help. He tried to rope in private individuals to take care of ailing inmates but no one came forward. He, however, had separated Covid infected occupants from others but he wanted them to be isolated at other locations to prevent health residents.
“Five were quarantined but when I couldn’t find space for others, I approached the Gurudwara committee, who readily helped, when others failed. They are being taken care of well. I talked to them every day. We have adequate funds and ration, which are being managed through donations but we don’t have space for quarantine and separate provisions. We couldn’t expand the facility hence positive inmates needed to be kept at other sites,” said Uppal, a retired Border Security Force (BSF) personnel.
Uppal also had Covid symptoms last month but said that he is fine at present.Uppal has served in the special protection group (SPG), which is entrusted with the task of providing proximate security to the PM and members of their immediate families.