Symbolic picture.
Chennai: The case of the death of a migrant laborer named Samar Khan from West Bengal in Tamil Nadu has been in the headlines. Earlier there were reports that the laborer died due to hunger, but a medical officer of Tamil Nadu denied these reports. According to a senior medical officer at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGGH), an agricultural laborer from West Bengal who had come to Tamil Nadu in search of employment died not of hunger but due to severe kidney failure. Let us tell you that the laborer was treated in this hospital.
‘Samar Khan was admitted after complaining of vomiting and diarrhea’
The senior medical officer said the laborer was suffering from pneumonia and his kidneys had stopped functioning. He told that he was put on ventilator. The doctor said that 35-year-old Samar Khan died on October 1 and was admitted to RGGGH after complaining of vomiting and diarrhea. He said that he probably suffered from vomiting and diarrhea due to intestinal infection and drinking poisonous food or water. The doctor said, ‘The laborer did not die of hunger because the laborers had cooked fish and eaten it during their stay at the railway station for about 3-4 days. Khan already had health problems at the time of admission.
‘Samar Khan died of pneumonia and kidney failure’
Among the five laborers who were admitted to the government hospital by the Railway Police on September 16, Khan had undergone ‘dialysis’ seven times and was on ventilator support. “He ultimately died due to complications like pneumonia and kidney failure,” the medical officer said. He said that Samar Khan’s body was airlifted to his native place in East Midnapore district on Wednesday. Railway Police had found 5 laborers ill at the Central Station and admitted them to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital. Of these, 4 were discharged after recovery, while Samar Khan died.
’11 laborers had come on foot to Ponneri in search of work’
According to reports, six other rescued laborers along with him were also temporarily kept at the Greater Chennai Corporation’s homeless center before being sent home. Police said that 11 laborers had come on foot to Ponneri in search of farming-related work and later when they did not get work, they returned back to the central station and decided to go to Bengal. A labor welfare officer said, ‘They should have contacted the government helpline for help in case of emergency or at least sought help from someone at the station in time. By doing this they could have avoided trouble. (Language)
