West Bengal: Failing to pay high ambulance fare, man travels 200 km in bus with son's body in bag
Kolkata, May 14: A man on Sunday claimed that he travelled in a public bus with the body of his five-month-old child in a bag for 200 kilometres in the northern part of West Bengal, as he did not have Rs 8,000 as demanded by an ambulance driver for taking him home in Kaliaganj from Siliguri.
Leader of Opposition in West Bengal assembly Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP questioned the efficacy of the Trinamool Congress government's 'Swasthya Sathi' health insurance scheme, while the TMC accused the saffron camp of indulging in politics over the unfortunate death of a child.
Ashim Debsharma, the father, said "My five-month-old son died last night after treatment at the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital in Siliguri for six days, during which I spent Rs 16,000."
"I did not have money to pay Rs 8,000 demanded by an ambulance driver there for transporting my child to Kaliaganj," he told reporters.
Debsharma claimed that he put the body in a bag and travelled by bus to Kaliaganj in Uttar Dinajpur district, around 200 kms from Siliguri in Darjeeling district, without letting anyone know, fearing that he would be deboarded if the co-passengers of staff became aware of it.
He claimed that an ambulance driver under the 102 scheme told him that the facility was free for patients, but not for transporting corpses.
Tweeting the matter with videos of the man speaking to the media, Adhikari wrote: "Let's not get into technicalities, but is this what Swasthya Sathi has achieved? This is unfortunately the true portrayal of the Egiye Bangla' (advanced Bengal) model."
TMC Rajya Sabha MP Santanu Sen accused the BJP of trying to "play dirty politics" with the unfortunate death of a child.
A similar incident had happened in January this year in Jalpaiguri district, also in the northern part of the state.
Unable to pay the high amount demanded by ambulance operators, a man, carrying his mother's body on his shoulder, started walking from a government hospital towards home, around 40 kilometres away. However, after some time, a social service organisation provided him with a vehicle which took them home free of cost.
This is Ashim Debsharma; father of a 5 month old infant who died in a Medical College in Siliguri.
— Suvendu Adhikari • শুভেন্দু অধিকারী (@SuvenduWB) May 14, 2023
He was being charged Rs. 8000/- to transport the dead body of his child. Unfortunately after spending Rs. 16,000/- in the past few days during the treatment, he couldn't pay the… pic.twitter.com/G3migdQww8
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
