PUNE: A 38-year-old man put on ventilator support at his home in Kolhapur district of Maharashtra for treatment of a lung ailment, died as the breathing machine stopped functioning allegedly owing to a power outage, prompting the police to begin a probe.
The incident occurred on Thursday night in Uchgaon village in Karvir tehsil of the western Maharashtra district, around 230 kms from here, police said.
"The patient - Amesh Kale - was suffering from a lung illness for the past few years. He was kept on a ventilator at his House. However, the electricity distribution company snapped the power supply of the place on May 30 alleging non-payment of the bill. After that his family made some temporary arrangements to restore the power supply for his treatment," an official of Gandhinagar police station in Uchgaon said on Friday.
On Thursday night, there was a power outage in the area following rains, due to which the ventilator stopped working, leading to the death of the patient, he added.
Confirming the incident, Kolhapur Superintendent of Police Shailesh Balkawade said, "The police department is conducting an inquiry into the death of the patient due to a power outage."
According to police, following Kale's death, his angry family members and relatives gathered outside a local government hospital, where his post-mortem was conducted and demanded action against the power distribution company.
It was only after the local police officials gave an assurance to conduct a probe that they took his body into their custody, they said.