46-yr-old dies after taking vaccine in UP
THE UP GOVT SAID MAHIPAL SINGH DIED DUE TO SEPTICEMIC SHOCK AND CARDIAC ARREST AND NOT DUE TO THE COVID-19 VACCINE
A 46- year- old health care worker died in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad district a day after receiving the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccination, with the Uttar Pradesh government on Monday disassociating his death to the vaccine shot.
The post- mortem report issued by the Moradabad chief medical officer ( CMO) a day after Mahipal Singh, who worked as the ward boy at the state-run Deen Dayal Upadhaya Hospital, attributed his death to “cardio pulmonary disease”.
“The death of Mahipal Singh has nothing to do with the Covid- 19 vaccine. The cause of Mahipal’s death is cardiac arrest as he was suffering from cardio-pulmonary disease,” the post-mortem report, seen by HT, stated.
Singh was among 20,076 health care workers in UP who received the Covid-19 vaccine shot on Saturday when Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the pan-India Covid- 19 vaccination exercise. Singh’s family members said he complained of breathlessness and chest pain after getting vaccinated, after which he was admitted in the district hospital where he succumbed.
His son, Vishal Singh,
alleged the doctors showed a callous attitude after his father was brought to the hospital.
“My father’s health deteriorated soon after getting Covid-19 vaccine shot. Initially, we thought it is normal but, by the evening, when he complained of breathlessness, chest pain and fever on Sunday, then we took him to the district hospital where doctors showed a callous approach towards my ailing father. By the time we reached emergency, my father was dead,” said Vishal Singh.
The state government said that Singh died due to septicemic shock and cardiac arrest. “An adverse event following immunisation (AEFI) committee probed the death of the man in Moradabad. The cause of death was septicemic shock and cardiac arrest and it has nothing to do with the vaccination,” the state’s additional chief secretary (health) Amit Mohan Prasad told reporters in Lucknow.
He said that some persons were spreading false news regarding the vaccine and vaccinations, and people should not trust them. “The two vaccines (Serum Intitute of India’s Covishield and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin) used in the country are safe,” Prasad added.
After Mahipal died on Sunday night, Moradabad district magistrate Rakesh Singh said that a high- level medical inquiry would be held. “The case of Mahipal is exceptional and a high- level medical inquiry will be ordered,” he said while asserting that the vaccines are fully safe and no major side effects have been reported among others vaccinated.
Moradabad CMO Dr MC Garg, too, said Singh’s death “has nothing to do with the Covid-19 vaccine”.
“Mahipal Singh died of cardiac arrest; it has nothing to do with the Covid-19 vaccine. The fact came to light in Singh’s post-mortem report,” he said.
The CMO said that on the orders of the district magistrate, he had also visited Singh’s home and met his family who also admitted that he suffered with pneumonia a few weeks ago.
“We have preserved his lungs, heart and blood samples for further tests. While carrying out the post-mortem, we also observed that the size of his heart was enlarged. It weighs around 500 gram, whereas in regular cases, it weighs around 200 grams. And we also found blood clotting in the heart. It clearly shows that he died of heart attack or septicemic shock,” he added.