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As this man lies in coma for 31 years... State, IAF take over his land
Updated On: 12 August, 2011 07:11 AM IST | | Vinod Kumar Menon
As 39-yr-old Suraj Kaup lies inert, his ageing father does the rounds of collector's office to get land promised to him; mum wishes for mercy killing
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As 39-yr-old Suraj Kaup lies inert, his ageing father does the rounds of collector's office to get land promised to him; mum wishes for mercy killing
u00a0
Saying that life has not been kind to Jagannath Kaup would be an affront to his adversity.u00a0The 66-year-old has been through hell and back.
Suraj was eight when he accidentally poked his eye with a
compass. An overdose of anaesthesia during the surgery
resulted in him being in a vegetative state ever since
And the ruinous journey has forced him to live with a comatose son, the memories of a second, dead one, reversal of fortune in business, loss of house and property, and compensation promised by the government that is yet to materialise.
For all intents and purposes, it was an overdose of anaesthesia during a minor surgery on his eight-year-old son that crushed any semblance of the usual for the Kalina-based Kaup family. The son, Suraj, will turn 40 on September 1, and has been in a semi-comatose state for the last 31 years.
The Kaups have since stretched every resource, economic and emotional, as they nurse Suraj all through these long years.
u00a0
To compound their tragedy, they lost their second son as well. Prithviraj was in the third year of his engineering in 1997, when an accident at Aksa beach claimed his life.
To top it, the piece of land allotted to the family as a gesture of clemency by the state was taken over for constructing houses for government servants. The plot promised to him in its place has also been taken over, this one by defence forces.
The about turn
But Kaup has seen better times. Until the early 80s, he ran a flourishing automobile repair workshop near Colaba. His clientele included bureaucrats, politicians, senior doctors and businessmen. An incident on February 13, 1980, capsized all of that. Calamity clung to them.
His son, Suraj, then in Std III at Garodia English High School in Ghatkopar East, was at home in the same suburb preparing for a test. While using a compass, he accidentally hit his left eye with it.
u00a0
His mother, Sugandhi (now 60), heard his cry and rushed to him. Unable to see any bruises or blood, she took him to the family doctor who spotted a small blood clot in the eye and advised a minor surgery.
On February 15, Suraj was to undergo the surgery at a nursing home in Ghatkopar (East).
It was a minor procedure, which doctors said would not take more than 15 minutes. Suraj was wheeled in to the operation theatre at 7 am.
Two hours elapsed but the doctors did not emerge from the OT. When they did, they were in a state of panic. Recalls Kaup, "The doctors rushed out of the OT, panicked, saying that Suraj had developed some neurological problem. They summoned a neurosurgeon. It was a case of anaesthesia overdose."
Suraj stayed on at the nursing home with no sign of improvement. He'd come to, scream 'daddy, daddy'u00a0 and slip right back into unconsciousness.
u00a0
Saying that life has not been kind to Jagannath Kaup would be an affront to his adversity.u00a0The 66-year-old has been through hell and back.
Suraj was eight when he accidentally poked his eye with a
compass. An overdose of anaesthesia during the surgery
resulted in him being in a vegetative state ever since
And the ruinous journey has forced him to live with a comatose son, the memories of a second, dead one, reversal of fortune in business, loss of house and property, and compensation promised by the government that is yet to materialise.
For all intents and purposes, it was an overdose of anaesthesia during a minor surgery on his eight-year-old son that crushed any semblance of the usual for the Kalina-based Kaup family. The son, Suraj, will turn 40 on September 1, and has been in a semi-comatose state for the last 31 years.
The Kaups have since stretched every resource, economic and emotional, as they nurse Suraj all through these long years.
u00a0
To compound their tragedy, they lost their second son as well. Prithviraj was in the third year of his engineering in 1997, when an accident at Aksa beach claimed his life.
To top it, the piece of land allotted to the family as a gesture of clemency by the state was taken over for constructing houses for government servants. The plot promised to him in its place has also been taken over, this one by defence forces.
The about turn
But Kaup has seen better times. Until the early 80s, he ran a flourishing automobile repair workshop near Colaba. His clientele included bureaucrats, politicians, senior doctors and businessmen. An incident on February 13, 1980, capsized all of that. Calamity clung to them.
His son, Suraj, then in Std III at Garodia English High School in Ghatkopar East, was at home in the same suburb preparing for a test. While using a compass, he accidentally hit his left eye with it.
u00a0
His mother, Sugandhi (now 60), heard his cry and rushed to him. Unable to see any bruises or blood, she took him to the family doctor who spotted a small blood clot in the eye and advised a minor surgery.
On February 15, Suraj was to undergo the surgery at a nursing home in Ghatkopar (East).
It was a minor procedure, which doctors said would not take more than 15 minutes. Suraj was wheeled in to the operation theatre at 7 am.
Two hours elapsed but the doctors did not emerge from the OT. When they did, they were in a state of panic. Recalls Kaup, "The doctors rushed out of the OT, panicked, saying that Suraj had developed some neurological problem. They summoned a neurosurgeon. It was a case of anaesthesia overdose."
Suraj stayed on at the nursing home with no sign of improvement. He'd come to, scream 'daddy, daddy'u00a0 and slip right back into unconsciousness.
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| The first plot (1) that was allotted to Jagannath Kaup has a government colony built on it, and the plot that was offered as a replacement (2) is now barricaded by the Indian Air Force. (Top) Suraj was eight years old when he accidentally poked himself with a compass and has been in a comatose state since Read Next Story Trending StoriesLatest Photos |
