In Dubai hospital, critically ill man has bills of over Rs 18,00,000

Dubai, Mar 25: A critically ill Indian man, who was visiting his son in Dubai, has surging bills over lakhs in a Dubai hospital after he was diagnosed with lung infection, leading to a multi-organ failure, UAE media reported.

Surendra Nath Khanna, 66, who hails from Punjab, was rushed to hospital after he complained of acute breathlessness on March 15, the next morning after he arrived in Dubai with his wife.

His son Anubhav did not avail any travel or medical insurance for his parents and is currently shelling out over Rs 300,000 every day on his father's treatment. He till now has unpaid bills mounting to over Rs 18,00,000.

"When my parents arrived, I could see that my father was a bit breathless, but he didn't show any signs of being sick. But, in the morning, we had to call an ambulance as he suffered from breathlessness," Khanna's son Anubhav, who migrated to Dubai 11 months back, was quoted as saying by Khaleej Times newspaper.

He said that doctors diagnosed it to be a severe lung infection and his limbs began getting discoloured.

According to the report, the growing infection affected Khanna's left hand which had to be amputated. His right leg seems to be affected with gangrene and may need to be amputated as well.

He said his father developed breathlessness and cough, which were dismissed as seasonal ailment by local doctors few days prior to the travel.

Urging the community to come forward and help the family, Neeraj Agrawal, Head of Chancery and acting Consul-General of India to the UAE, said, "The consulate officials and the community volunteer medical team are in touch with the family and doctors. We are keeping a close watch and helping in whatever capacity we can," the paper quoted the Indian official as saying.