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Minister `arranges' ambulance to shift body

By Our Staff Correspondent

MADIKERI July 16. The Minister for Health, Kagodu Thimmappa, had to intervene to get an ambulance to shift the body of a woman from the Virajpet Government Hospital on Wednesday.

The in-charge surgeon, Khan, is said to have turned down the request for an ambulance made by Vijaya, son of the woman, S. Kamala, to shift her body to Heggala, eight km. from Virajpet town.

Mr. Vijaya and Dr. Khan had an argument, and soon a crowd gathered at the hospital. The editor of a local Kannada weekly, who arrived there on being informed of the situation by Mr. Vijaya, reportedly asked Dr. Khan to cite the reason for taking such a stand. The surgeon is stated to have shot back: "Who will use the ambulance if a body has been transported in it?'' The crowd threatened that the body would be kept in front of Dr. Khan's house where a dharna would be staged. Police arrived at the hospital immediately.

A.K. Subbaiah, former MLC, was informed of the incident. Mr. Subbaiah, who took exception to the surgeon's action, called up Mr. Thimmappa who, in turn, directed Dr. Khan to release the ambulance immediately.

Now another problem arose. The ambulance does not have a driver. The cook in the hospital canteen doubles as the driver, and he volunteered to take the body in the ambulance.

Kamala was hospitalised on Tuesday and died on Wednesday morning. However, it is not clear whether the government ambulances are meant for transporting only seriously ill patients or bodies too.

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