An incident occurred in Bihar that demonstrates both the shortcomings of the state healthcare system and human desperation. A family from Vaishali faced a difficult situation: after their 31-year-old son was brought to the hospital on a stretcher in hopes of treatment, they were forced to return home with his body on the very same stretcher.
After the young man's death in the hospital, the family was not provided with an ambulance or transport for the body. As a result, relatives had to carry their son's body home themselves on the stretcher.
This incident took place in the Lalgandh area, in the village of Kasera Tola, Ward No. 6, Vaishali. The 31-year-old Monu Kumar fell into a puddle filled with water near his home. His condition worsened, and family members managed to carry him on a stretcher to the Lalgandh Referral Hospital.
Despite the family's hope for Monu's survival through hospital treatment, doctors declared him dead after examination. Grief struck the family, and a new problem arose—how to transport the body home?
According to relatives, they approached the hospital administration requesting transport for the body removal. However, they were neither provided with an ambulance nor special transport for the deceased. After long waits and attempts, the family had no other choice but to use the same stretcher that Monu was brought to the hospital on to take his body home.
Video footage of this event caused outrage among local residents. Questions are being raised about the system for transporting bodies after a patient's death in government hospitals. There is also a question about whether such assistance is limited only to documents for low-income families.
Regarding the incident, a civil surgeon in Vaishali stated that an investigation would be conducted. He added that if negligence by doctors or medical staff is found, appropriate measures will be taken against those responsible.
For Monu's family, this is not just a matter of hospital organization; it is a story of a final journey where the family had to rely on the same stretcher they used to bring their son to the hospital in hopes of saving his life, instead of receiving support at the moment of farewell.