Agartala: The family members of a police man in Tripura accused a private hospital here responsible for the death of a person because of non-payment of bill with new notes and smaller denominations of currency.
Shaswati Sharma, daughter of the deceased alleged that her father Shyamal Sharma (56), an employee of police wireless wing was shifted to ILS hospital in critical condition three days ago. He was diagnosed as malfunctioning of kidney and after dialysis on the first day; doctors referred him to Kolkata for immediate treatment. But when the family members went to pay the bill to the hospital authority, they refused to accept the notes of Rs 500 and 1000, she alleged.”
We were surprised with the amount of bill for a day that they charged Rs 83,000 and also made us clear that no notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000, no payment through debit or credit card will be accepted. We have argued with the Prime Minister’s statement that hospitals have to accept old notes till December 30 next, which they denied, ” Shaswati stated. The hospital did not release the patient for whole day, she said, adding, “We rushed here and there to manage the currencies from several banks but failed. The banks refused us with some rules. Finally, we could manage the money from the private sources and paid the hospital to release my father.”
After a long battle, the stretcher was managed with doctors in Air India flight last evening at 1940 hrs to Kolkata. He collapsed and now stranded at Kolkata airport to bring the body back, she added.”If had he been shifted on time to Kolkata, he would have been survived but the inhuman and illegal arguments of the hospital authority, my father died without treatment,” Shaswati alleged.He further stated that they will move to court against the hospital.
Meanwhile, the hospital officials said they did not accept the old notes following instructions of the Central government and RBI but could not justify the statement.