Dubai Hospital Waives Off AED 762,000 Bill Of Indian Covid Patient

by Vaishnavi Venkataraman
Dubai Hospital Waives Off AED 762,000 Bill Of Indian Covid Patient

Covid has turned the world upside down, but one thing that has shined high during these rough times is humanity! Dubai has always taken the lead when it comes to helping the needy. In the past, restaurants in the city have come forward to provide free food for Covid-affected victims. And now, a Dubai hospital has gone a step further! The hospital waived off more than AED 762,000 in medical bills of an Indian worker on humanitarian grounds. Also read about this 99-Yr Old-‘Phuppi’ From Mumbai Who Prepares Food For Migrants.

What Happened?

Rajesh Lingaiah Odnala, a construction worker from Hyderabad, tested positive for Covid on 23 April. He was then admitted to a Dubai hospital for treatment. After 80 days of treatment, he was discharged along with a a whopping bill of AED 762,555. Rajesh’s family wanted to head back to India, but had no money for flight tickets.

Credits: Khaleej Times

Rajesh’s wife Laxmi is a washerwoman by profession. The couple have a daughter; Mounika (18) – a student of B. Com student and a son; Madhu (16)- studying in Class 12. Clearly, the family was in no state to pay the hefty hospital bills.

On that note, Bhaijaans Biryani- A Pakistani Restaurant In Dubai Is Offering FREE Food For Healthcare Workers.

An Angel In Disguise

This was when a local Telugu NRI came to the rescue of Rajesh. Gundelli Narasimha, the president of the Gulf Workers Protection Society in Dubai had been monitoring Rajesh’s health condition from the very beginning. He wanted to help the situation, and took the matter to the attention of Sumanth Reddy, a volunteer in Indian Consulate in Dubai.

With the help of another social worker, requested Harjeet Singh, Consul (Labour) of Indian Consulate in Dubai to help the poor worker head back home. Singh then wrote to the Dubai Hospital requesting them to waive off the bills, on humanitarian grounds. The hospital instantly responded positively and waived the bill.

The social workers also provided free flight tickets for Rajesh and his escort Dyavara Kankaiah. Besides, he was also given Rs 10,000 for pocket expenses. Rajesh and his escort landed in Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad in the early hours of Wednesday, 15 July. He was granted a 14-day home quarantine and was sent to his native village. Meanwhile, Chef Vikas Khanna Distributed 100,000 Kgs Of Supplies Among Dabbawalas of Mumbai. 

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Surinder Pal Singh Oberoi, has virtually launched chartered flights to bring distressed compatriots back. Earlier this week, 177 people returned to Chandigarh and reunited with their families. Besides, three more flights are lined up for this month, followed by four in August. Oberoi said the repatriate flights are specifically for low-income workers who have lost their jobs and are running out of money. This also included stranded Indians who came to the country for a vacation, on a budget.

For the next month”s flights, we have sought a list of stranded people from Indian Missions in the UAE. All flights will take off from the Ras Al Khaimah Airport,” Oberoi said. On that note, Bhaijaans Biryani- A Pakistani Restaurant In Dubai Is Offering FREE Food For Healthcare Workers.

Pregnant women, old, sick and families are given priority. The next line up of scheduled Spicejet flights will carry 177 passengers, on July 13, 19 and 25. Each flight costs between 40-42 lakhs, and this is taken care by Oberoi’s Sarbat Da Bhala Charitable Trust. Oberoi also added that over 75-80 per cent of the people boarding these specially arranged flights are those who are literally left homeless and penniless. Oberoi has also provided shelter homes for them to stay until they are repatriated.

“Five to seven per cent people who travelling in our flights are the stranded tourists who can”t afford to buy the ticket at full price. Then we have passengers who have capacity to bear 10-40 per cent of the ticket cost. Also the airfare of a few travellers is borne by their employers,” he said. Click here for the full story.