Pune: Vedant Sonune (18), a second-year arts student from Modern College residing at the PMC-run students ’ hostel on Ghole Road, wanted to become a police officer to give his parents in Jalna a better life. He died on Aug 3. His uncle Nana Pande said Vedant cleared the police recruitment physical exam in Thane but succumbed to dengue-induced encephalitis and multiple organ failure.
He added, “On Aug 1, he fell ill and his friend admitted him to Aundh Government Hospital. By the time I arrived, he had slipped into coma. We shifted him to Poona Hospital.
His parents never got to speak to him before he died.” Vedant’s hostel mates blamed PMC’s neglect towards cleanliness in the hostel for his death . The students pointed to another case on July 31 wherein a second-year engineering student passed away of suspected jaundice.
They said nothing is done despite complaints to deputy commissioner of PMC’s social welfare department Nitin Udas and hostel rector Jitendra Pawar about clogged toilets and bathrooms, unclean water, bed bugs, rodents, unclean surroundings and waterlogging, and exposed electrical wires. Both Pawar and Udas denied the allegations. State chief coordinator of MNS Prashant Kanojia said, “So many hostelites here have fever.
Just before our protest, they installed a water purifier and cleaned up the place.” Activist Kuldeep Ambekar has written to the State Human Rights Commission requesting an investigation and suspension of officials. Pawar said students did not approach him when they fell ill but went to the hospital.
“In the first case, the engineering student called up his uncle in Kalyan who took him away and he passed away there. In Vedant’s case, we helped his uncle get him admitted in Poona Hospital,” he added. He said three staff members clean the hostel every day.
“The claim that toilets are cleaned once in two weeks is wrong. We allow students to boil water in their rooms and installed purifiers in 2021 which fell into disrepair.” Udas said the PMC budget has set aside Rs1.
5 crore and a new building will come up in one and a half years. He added that the hostel has a direct PMC water connection, toilets and bathrooms are cleaned every day at 6am and fumigation is periodically done. “Our medical team conducted tests on Sunday and found 19 unwell students.
Doctors have prescribed medicines. One student has been hospitalised for further care. There are no reports of dengue so far.
Unwell students have been told to report to the rector,” he said. Udas added that in the first case, the student was feeling unwell and checked himself into at a private clinic on July 24 where the doctor got his blood tested for dengue which turned out negative. “His condition deteriorated and his relatives took him to Kalyan where he died.
I have his death report where the cause of death is stated as unknown and a postmortem recommended. We have received all the documents about the second student’s death. He went for police recruitment in Thane,” Udas added.
MLA Siddharth Shirole said, “It’s complete lack of empathy on the part of PMC. I have told the municipal commissioner to conduct an immediate enquiry and punish those found guilty of this gross negligence. I have also told them to get the repairs and hygiene issues done immediately.
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