Govt’s Covid records go awfully wrong, living man listed as dead

Shyam Sundar Vattam | NT

There is nothing more joyous than seeing a dead man come alive but what if a man receives a call asking for details so that compensation can be paid to his kin for his ‘death’? It happened at Sagar in Shivamogga district. The government had begun the process of distributing compensation for Covid deaths.

As per health department records, Ramesh (name changed) had tested positive but he had actually recovered after treatment at Shivamogga District Hospital. Assuming he had died, an officer from the tahsildhar’s office called up Ramesh’s family and asked them to furnish documents for payment of compensation of `1.5 lakh. Ramesh who received the shock of his life on receiving the call, gave the official a earful. All that the official could do was blame the health department.