Punjab Government has provided financial assistance for the preservation and cremation of the body of lal ji, whose teenaged son was forced to carry his body on a rehri following his inability to pay Rs 400 for a private hearse van at a Jalandhar hospital on May 11.
Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, reacting to media reports regarding the incident, directed the district authorities to look into the matter and ensure all possible assistance to the bereaved family to enable them to conduct his last rites in a dignified manner.
He also directed the Health Department to take immediate steps to provide basic medical and related facilities at Government hospitals for the common people of the State.
Following an inquiry into the matter through Civil Surgeon and Tehsildar, Jalandhar Deputy Commissioner Varinder Kumar Sharma deputed Karan Vir Singh Bhullar to provide help to the family of lal ji.
A sum of Rs 7,000 has been given to Sarbjit from the Red Cross fund to meet expenses for the funeral and also the refrigeration charges to preserve the body for a day for his other son to come from eastern Uttar Pradesh.
Sarabjit, a resident of Krishna Nagar, Jalandhar, carried his father’s body on a rehri (cart) for about an hour within the civil hospital after which he took the body home in an auto as he was unable to pay the cost of hiring a private hearse van since the hospital does not have one of its own.