A patient wait at the hospital

Among them was a family that had come to collect a body from the hospital’s mortuary. Even though the dead man’s relatives begged to be let in, the impassive security men refused to budge.

According to Brijmohan, a safai karamchari at LNJP Hospital: “One of our colleagues, Rajkumar, died late last night. Since we live on the hospital premises, we thought that it would be better to keep the body in the mortuary and collect it in the morning. But no one is allowing us inside. I don’tknow when this will finish and when we will be allowed to take the body. They should have some sympathy for the dead at least.” They were finally allowed in at 1 p.m.

During the entire ceremony, patients inside the hospital were not allowed to come out even to buy medicines.

Lal Singh, who had come from village Batheri, situated near the Indo-Nepal border, said: “I had to be admitted today for treatment of my foot. It is completely swollen and is rotting. Now I will have to come and get a new date for getting admitted to the hospital before my treatment begins. And till that time I will have to camp on the pavement as I don’t have any money.”

Similarly, Chander Lal, 25, had come all the way from Badaun in Uttar Pradesh, for treatment of kidney stones. Deepak, 16, had come from Haridwar for treatment for his heart ailment. There was also an old lady, Margshree, who had come from Gautam Budh Nagar for a nose operation. Lamenting the state of affairs, Lal Singh said: “These big men should go to onlybig places, so that the poor and needy do not suffer.”