Damoh collector's ailing mother dies due to unavailability of ambulance with ventilator

BHOPAL: Inordinate delay in repairing an ambulance with ventilator at the district hospital of Damoh cost dear to the district collector on Friday.
Ailing mother of the collector Shriniwas Sharma died because of unavailability of the ambulance. She passed away on the way to Jabalpur on Friday night.
Denying media reports that doctors were not available to attend her mother, the collector said, "with whatever resources we have, doctors tried their best to save my mother.There was delay in the availability of ambulance that was coming from Sagar and reached Damoh late."
Condition of the collector’s mother , Shanti Devi Sharma, 72, who was unwell for the past some time, deteriorated on Friday. After her medical examination, doctors advised her to be shifted to Jabalpur, about 90 kms away from Damoh.
But an ambulance with ventilator was not available. The 108- ambulance that had facility of ventilator was yet to be repaired after an accident last year. So another ambulance was called from Sagar, 80 kms from Damoh.
The elderly woman in coma was shifted by this ordinary ambulance to Jabalpur but could not be saved.
"Correspondence was going on for repairing the 108-ambulance with ventilator, it is taking time”, collector told media on Sunday.
Her last rites were performed on Saturday in Shahdol, the home town of collector Sharma.