A 38-year-old differently-abled cricketer from Punjab named Vikram Singh reportedly passed away while travelling from Delhi to Gwalior in Chhattisgarh express. According to a media report, Singh's health suddenly took a turn for the worse and medical assistance failed to arrive on time despite numerous emergency calls.
According to The Times of India, Singh and his teammates had boarded the Chhattisgarh Express from the Hazrat Nizamuddin Station on Wednesday night. Shortly after departure, the veteran wheelchair cricketer began experiencing severe pain and his condition worsened as the train approached Mathura.
The report further claimed that an emergency call was made at 4:58 am for medical assistance but was ignored. With the train also delaying by 90 minutes, it reached Mathura t 8:10 am. Singh had already breathed his last by then.
"He was in pain in front of our eyes. We kept calling for help, but it never came," one of his teammates said, as quoted by The Times of India.
Railway authorities internally investigating into delayed response
When Mathura came, Government Railway Police (GRP) officials removed Singh's body and brought it up for postmortem. Additionally, the railway authorities have commenced inquiries about the delayed response.
The Indian Railways' medical systems' effectiveness have taken a hit due to the incident. One of the senior players responded to the incident and claimed, as quoted by The Times of India.
"This is not just a tragedy but a glaring reminder of the gaps in our railway medical emergency response."
