Body of 82-year-old missing COVID-19 patient found in Maharashtra hospital's toilet

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Jalgaon: Body of an 82-year-old coronavirus patient who had gone missing for eight days was found inside the toilet of a COVID-19 hospital in Jalgaon district on Wednesday.

The body of the 82-year-old woman from Bhusawal, who was suffering from coronavirus, was found at the Jalgaon Civil Hospital where she was being treated. Her body was discovered after its stench spread, and the door of the toilet had to be broken.

On June 1, the woman was admitted to the Jalgaon Civil Hospital for treatment in ward no. 7 of the COVID-19 Hospital, where she tested positive for the virus. The hospital administration filed a complaint about her disappearance from the hospital on June 2.

The police have said that a missing complaint, filed by the relatives of the 82-year-old woman, who was COVID-19 positive, was received from the hospital on June 6. The matter is being investigated. 

"We got a missing complaint from the hospital on June 6. We are investigating the matter further," said Jalgaon Superintendent of Police in a statement.

District guardian minister Gulabrao Patil assessed the incident and expressed his regret. He has assured that those who are guilty in this incident will be dealt with immediately and the matter will be reported to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

Collector Dr Avinash Dhakne described this incident as a very serious mistake and said that those who are guilty will be punished.

The incident has reportedly caused outrage amongst the people of the district. Maharashtra is the worst coronavirus affected state in the country. 

According to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of COVID-19 cases in the state are 94,041, including 46,086 active cases. While 44,517 cases are cured/discharged/migrated, 3,438 deaths have been reported.