Earlier, reports claimed that the death of Samar Khan was due to starvation caused by the lack of a job. Khan was admitted to the hospital along with four others due to vomiting and symptoms of diarrhoea.
Published Oct 03, 2024 | 3:29 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 08, 2024 | 3:45 PM
Death. (iStock)
A few days after the death of a migrant worker from West Bengal in Chennai, a doctor at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital in the city who treated the deceased said the cause of death was food poisoning.
Earlier, reports claimed that the death of Samar Khan was due to starvation caused by the lack of a job. Khan was admitted to the hospital along with four others due to vomiting and symptoms of diarrhoea.
Meanwhile, officials facilitated the return of 11 out of the 12 people who came with Khan to Ponneri in the Thiruvallur district in Tamil Nadu for work. One person is still undergoing treatment.
The group of people from Paschim Medinipur district in West Bengal reached Ponneri on 10 September. Since they got jobs for only three days, they left for Chennai Central Railway Station on 13 September to return to their native.
On their way, they captured some fish from a pond and had it with rice. After reaching the railway station, they purchased return tickets with the money they received after three days of work.
However, five of them started vomiting and had signs of diarrhoea due to eating half-cooked food. Later, they fainted due the exhaustion and hunger.
The bystanders panicked and informed the railway police, who rushed to rescue the unconscious people and immediately admitted them to the Rajiv Gandhi Government Hospital in Chennai. The rest of the people in the group were rescued and housed in a men’s shelter.
Investigation revealed that the people admitted to the hospital were Samar Khan, Manik Khori, Satya Pandit, Asit Pandit and Konas Smith from the Mangrul area of Paschim Medinipur district of West Bengal.
“The cause of death of Samar Khan was uremic encephalopathy, acute kidney injury stage-3, ventilator-associated pneumonia and sepsis,” said Dr Therani Rajan of Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital. Khan is survived by his wife and two sons.
As his financially poor family is struggling to find a way to get the body, some activists extended a helping hand to them.
Israel Jebasingh, a former IAS officer from West Bengal and director of a private IAS academy, helped fly Khan’s body to his native at his own expense.
Israel Jebasingh said, “They don’t know the language. They came here to work for money. They were admitted to the hospital due to vomiting caused by eating half-cooked food, nausea and fainting. It was caused by unemployment and hunger.”
“A helpline number should be set up by the Labor Welfare Department for migrant workers who are in trouble. I could help them because I knew the language. Otherwise, they would not have been able to carry even the body of the deceased.”
Labour’s Welfare Minister CV Ganesan paid last respects to Khan and extended a financial aid of ₹60,000 to the kin of the deceased from his personal expense.
When the incident was brought to the attention of West Bengal Governor Anand Bose, he ordered help through his legal counsel.
Following that, retired Madras High Court judge Sasitharan — the father of the legal counsel— ensured the return of seven workers to their home state by providing financial assistance.
Three of those who were admitted for treatment were discharged a few days ago. Of the 12 workers, 10 were sent to their home states by train and one who was sick was sent by plane. One person is still under treatment.
Similar to this group of workers from West Bengal, many migrants travel to Tamil Nadu and rely on daily wage jobs.
According to a recent report, Tamil Nadu houses the largest number of factories in India and employs the maximum number of workers.
Even though the state has many initiatives to ensure the welfare of its residents, activists noted, it lacks a comprehensive policy to address the welfare of migrant workers.
In this situation, Tamil Nadu Labor Welfare Department Secretary Veera Raghava Rao said, “The hospital informed that the migrant worker’s death was not due to starvation. They were admitted to the hospital for more than 10 days with vomiting and symptoms of diarrhoea due to food poisoning. They were given food in the hospital, recovered and returned home. One of them died while treatment.”
“All types of assistance under the Labor Welfare Act are provided to migrant workers and the government is taking all measures for their safety,” he said.
Talking about the treatment given to them, Rajiv Gandhi Hospital Dean Terani Rajan said, “They were admitted to the hospital for treatment with vomiting and symptoms of diarrhoea. Three of them have returned home. Samar Khan died while treatment and another person is still undergoing treatment,” he said.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil)
