Woman being carried to hospital on charpoy dies mid-way in Jharkhand

Latehar (Jharkhand): A 45-year-old woman being carried by relatives on a 'charpoy', a traditional light bedstead, on their shoulders died on the way to a hospital in Jharkhand's Latehar district.

Shanti Kujjur's kin was allegedly forced to take her to the hospital in that manner since ambulances did not come to their Baseria village in Mahuatand block because of bad road conditions.

Describing the incident as "very sad", local Block Development Officer Amren Dang said he is gathering details of it.

The BDO said all basic problems being faced by villagers including construction of a road on a priority basis will be addressed soon.

The tribal woman was suffering from fever and body ache for the past few days and on Monday morning, she complained of chest pain. Her husband Remish Minz and other relatives took her to a hospital around four km away on a charpoy, carrying it on their shoulders.

Though there is a community health centre nearby, locals alleged it lacks proper infrastructure.

In-charge of Mahuatand Hospital, Dr Amit Khalko, said the patient was dead on arrival and she died of a heart attack.

A former panchayat committee member of Durup Panchayat, Dharmendra Singh, claimed that the villagers' demand for a proper road in the area had fallen on deaf ears of the administration for decades.

Had there been a proper road connecting the main road, she might have been alive now, he said.

A villager said, "We have to take patients on our shoulders carrying them in charpoys as we do not have an accessible road to reach the main road. Ambulances do not come because of the road condition." The BDO said he instructed medical teams, mukhiyas (village heads) and panchayat officials to ensure immediate action in this regard.