Telangana: No Stretcher at Govt Hospital, Family Carries Woman’s Body

In a deeply distressing incident that has sparked outrage online, a family in Telangana’s Warangal was allegedly forced to carry the body of a deceased woman with their bare hands after hospital staff reportedly failed to provide a stretcher.

The incident occurred on Friday, February 13, at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital in Warangal. The woman, a resident of Khammam district, had been rushed to the hospital after suffering a heart attack. Despite medical efforts, she passed away during treatment.

What followed has drawn widespread criticism. A video circulating on social media shows two grieving family members lifting the woman’s body and walking through the hospital premises toward a vehicle parked outside. With no stretcher made available, the family had no choice but to shoulder the burden themselves — both emotionally and physically.

The visuals have reignited concerns about the state of basic infrastructure and patient support services in government hospitals.

Not an Isolated Incident

Unfortunately, this is not the first time such an incident has surfaced in Telangana.

In 2019, a similar tragedy unfolded in Karimnagar. A daily-wage worker from Konaram village in Peddapalli district, lost his seven-year-old daughter while she was undergoing treatment for a liver ailment at the Karimnagar District Hospital.

Struggling with grief and financial hardship, the grieving father reportedly approached hospital authorities for ambulance support to transport his daughter’s body to his native village. He was allegedly told that the ambulance was not functional. With no money to afford private transport, the helpless father carried his daughter’s body in his arms to a nearby bus stand.

Moved by his plight, a bus driver eventually helped transport the body back to his village. The incident had triggered protests from local residents, who accused hospital authorities of failing to provide even the most basic facilities.

Questions Over Accountability

The latest episode in Warangal has once again put the spotlight on systemic lapses in public healthcare institutions. While government hospitals cater to thousands of economically vulnerable families every day, incidents like these underline the urgent need for better infrastructure, accountability, and sensitivity in handling grieving families.

As the video continues to circulate, citizens are demanding answers — and more importantly, change — to ensure that no family has to endure such indignity during their most painful moments.