Abu Dhabi: A family in Punjab is seeking help to repatriate an Indian man lying in a coma in a hospital in Al Ain.
“It has been a year since he has been in this vegetative state. There is pressure from every corner to discharge him from the hospital,” the victim’s brother Balveer Singh told XPRESS over phone from Hoshiapur district in Punjab, India.
Singh’s younger brother Khulvinder Singh was admitted to Al Jimi Hospital in Al Ain after a road accident on September 8, 2013.
Fateful accident
Khulvinder, 42, who was a foreman with a construction company based in Ras Al Khaimah, was working on a project in Al Ain when the accident happened.
“He has been with the company for more than nine years, but his employers are not offering him any accident compensation or settling his end-of-service benefits,” complained Balveer.
“We do not even know whether he has an insurance policy. The company has not responded to our request to send us a copy of his insurance claim.”
Moreover, he said company officials are calling the family regularly and putting pressure on them to discharge the patient.
The victim’s wife and two children are dependent on his income and the family told XPRESS they need the money to educate the children. “We are a poor agricultural family from Punjab. We are counting on the insurance claim money to meet his treatment expenses once Khulvinder is brought back home,” said his brother.
He said his brother’s treatment would cost more than Rs125,000 (around Dh8,000) a month at any local hospital in Punjab. “We want to bring him home to his family. But how can we do it without claiming the compensation money?”
Balveer Singh said his family has given power of attorney to a well-wisher to fight the legal battle against the company.
The company was not available for a comment.
