By Matters India Reporter
Dibrugarh, July 16, 2020: A senior nun in northeastern India, who was discharged after testing negative for Covid-19, died on July 16. She was 82.
Sister Michael Serrao, a member of the Institute of the Sisters of Charity of Saints Bartolomea Capitanio and Vincenza Gerosa (SCCG), also known as the Sisters of Maria Bambina, died at 9:30 am at St. Joseph’s Convent, Dibrugarh, Assam.
She was at Assam Medical College (AMC) in Dibrugarh after being tested Covid-19 positive from July 5 to 15. She was tested Covid-19 negative and was discharged on July 15.
The funeral service took place on the same day after completing the formalities under the supervision of the government authorities at Mercy Home Cemetery.
No one was allowed to attend the funeral as per the government guidelines for safety reasons, Church sources told Matters India.
People were requested to pray for the repose of the departed soul.
Sister Serrao was born on March 3, 1937, and pronounced her religious vows on March 25, 1960.
She had worked in several places in the region. She also worked as the financial administrator of the Diocese of Kohima in neighboring Nagaland state.
She was one of the 12 nuns working in the St. Vincenza Gerosa Hospital who had tested COVID-19 positive on July 5.
The local administration then sealed the hospital and declared it a contaminated zone.
Established in 1970 and managed by the Bambina nuns, the hospital is a premier healthcare center that serves people of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
The 70-bed general hospital has also General Nursing and Midwifery unit.
Assam, the worst affected among northeastern states by the coronavirus, has 18,666 confirmed cases and 46 deaths as of July 16, according to the Government of India sources.
The Sisters of Maria Bambina are engaged in health care and support systems. Many Sisters are rendering their services in pastoral work, prison ministry, hospitals and health centers including administration and direct services.