Doctors from 4 dists rise to the occasion

AMRITSAR : Hundreds of doctors have been called in from the four neighbouring districts of Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur, Pathankot and Jalandhar to treat the 90-odd people injured in Friday’s train accident.

“These doctors are helping us treat the injured at the civil hospital and at the Guru Nanak Dev Hospital. Leaves of staff in Amritsar district have been cancelled and they have been on duty since. We are working to ensure that the injured survive,” said Amritsar civil surgeon, Dr Hardeep Singh Ghai.

Amritsar-i sub-divisional magistrate Rajesh Sharma said that by Saturday afternoon, the toll had risen to 61.

He added, “Ninety four are injured and of these 10 are critical. Of the injured, 43 are being treated at the GND Hospital, ten at the Amandeep Hospital, eight at the civil hospital, four at the Guru Ramdas Hospital, one at the Army Hospital and one at the Ivy Hospital. Twenty seven people who received minor injuries have been discharged.”

Tarn Taran civil surgeon Dr Samsher Singh said, “We reached the Amritsar Civil Hospital on Friday night. More than 50 doctors of Tarn Taran and other medical staff have been deployed here.”

Amritsar senior medical officer (SMO) Dr Rajinder Arora said, “We have opened all medical stores of the hospital and the staff have been working since the accident. There is no shortage of any medicine.”

Non-government organisations have set up camp at the GND Hospital and the civil hospital and are providing meals to the attendants of the injured. Volunteers from these organisations — the Khalsa Aid and the Mai Sewa Foundation — are also donating blood.

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) is also proving langar (free meals).

MSF president Kirandeep Kaur said, “Our members had also reached the spot to help lift the bodies. Since then we have also been providing help to the injured and their attendants.”

RELATIVES WAITED THE NIGHT FOR BODIES

Hundreds of relatives of those killed had to wait through the night at the mortuaries of the civil hospital and the GND Hospital to claim the bodies with post-mortems starting early on Saturday.

The autopsies continued till late evening.