Pune: Journalist Dies of COVID, Family Alleges Hospital Denied Treatment Without Advance Payment
Mrunal Jadhav
Pune, September 2, 2020: Pandurang Raikar, a 42-year-old news reporter of TV9 news channel, died of Coronavirus disease (COVID19) today. He was admitted in the jumbo COVID hospital in Shivajinagar on Tuesday after a hospital in Ahmednagar refused treatment without advance payment.
Pandurang Raikar started his career in journalism at ABP Mazha (Mumbai) and then worked with TV 9 (Ahmednagar) and later in Pune. Raikar, a journalist for 14 years, is survived by his wife and two kids.
According to his family members, on 20 August Raikar had a fever and cold. He consulted a local doctor for treatment here. When he was tested for COVID his reports were negative on 27 August. He then returned to his hometown of Kopargaon in Ahmednagar district on August 28. After he felt unwell on August 29 and 30, he had an antigen test on August 31 and the report came positive.
His close relative Kunal Raikar said that the journalist and his wife rushed to a private hospital in Kopargaon for treatment. “The hospital asked him to pay Rs 40,000 as advance fees. It was only after the intervention of the Ahmednagar district collector that the journalist was admitted after two hours delay. However, his condition deteriorated following which he was taken to Jumbo Hospital in Pune. They reached around 8.30 pm on Tuesday. However, he succumbed today morning”, Kunal said.
From the last six months, Pandurang Raikar was covering news about COVID19. He had also reported about the launch of the Jumbo COVID Hospital on COEP ground and today he expired in the same hospital.
