Coronavirus patient’s namesake hospitalised, released after an hour

TARNTARAN: In a major goof-up, health and police officials on Thursday forcibly ferried a 27-year-old man of Chhichrewal village in an ambulance and got him admitted to the Tarn Taran civil hospital as a Covid-19 patient in a case of “mistaken identity”.

The man, who was discharged from the hospital an hour later, was the namesake of another man of Sursingh village in the district who had tested positive for coronavirus after returning from Huzur Sahib, Nanded.

The Chhichrewal man, who works as a nurse in a private hospital in Amritsar, said the officials forcibly pushed him into an ambulance even as he pleaded that he was not the person they were looking for. Immediately after taking him to the hospital, police had also sealed his house.

On Thursday, the district reported seven new cases of Covid-19 — all Nanded-returnees. Two of the seven cases were reported from Sursingh village, which has already been declared as containment zone as five cases were reported from the village on Tuesday.

“At around 9 am, the officials came to my house to take me to hospital. I told them that I am not the person they were looking for, but they forcibly threw me in the ambulance in which a positive patient was already present. The same ambulance dropped me at my home when I was discharged from the hospital. I am afraid I might have got infection,” he said while taking to HT over phone.

Police said the mix-up took place as the Chhihrewal youth had also returned from Hazur Sahib and his samples were also taken for the testing. “I came back from Hazur Sahib 14 days ago and my samples were taken on Wednesday and the report is awaited. I am healthy and my 14-day quarantine period has been completed. Now, though my report will come in the coming days, I will have to get my re-testing done,” said the victim.

Chabhal police station SHO Prabhjit Singh, said, “His name was mismatched by the doctors. We just followed their instructions. Besides dropping him at his home, we have now lifted the barricading outside his house.”

DC Pardeep Kumar Sabharwal said: “The man was hospitalised due to mistaken identity. Now the right person has been admitted to the hospital.”

THE TARN TARAN MAN SAID POLICE AND HEALTH OFFICIALS FORCIBLY PUSHED HIM INTO AMBULANCE EVEN AS HE TRIED TO CLEAR CONFUSION