A two-month-old baby died at Jammu and Kashmir’s hospital on Monday after being abandoned by parents he’d tested positive for COVID-19.
Following this, the health officials are trying to track down the couple after repeatedly being contacted by the hospital which they evaded.
Dr Dara Singh, the Medical Superintendent at Jammu’s Sri Maharaja Gulab Singh Hospital said, “Yesterday (Monday) morning we received a two-month-old child suffering from multiple problems, including a heart condition. By 8.30 pm he died. We conducted a COVID-19 test and it was positive.”
“Subsequently we requested parents to take COVID-19 tests. They said they would do so… but then fled. Our security team tried to trace them…,” he added.
Due to legal issues the last rites of the baby haven’t yet been performed; officials said they had to wait for 72 hours before the funeral can be arranged in the absence of any heirs hospital.
“The baby’s body is at the hospital mortuary and is being assessed as per Covid guidelines, after seeking permission from the district administration,” Dr Singh said.
On Monday, Jammu and Kashmir reported 51 Covid-related deaths and a significant number of those deaths were reported from Jammu.
India reported more than 3.5 lakh fresh cases this morning and nearly 3,500 deaths in 24 hours. Meanwhile, the country is battling a massive second wave of Covid-19 that has seen its active caseload jump to a record high of more than 34.5 lakh.
The total caseload – more than 2.02 crore Covid infections – is the second-highest in the world, behind that of the United States and ahead of Brazil.
