BENGALURU: In a shocking incident, a 50-year-old COVID-19 patient committed suicide by jumping from the sixth floor of Victoria Hospital on Monday. He was being treated in the Trauma Care Centre. A senior officer of VV Puram police station said that the resident of Tilak Nagar had been admitted on April 24 after he complained of breathing problems and high fever. He tested positive for coronavirus and was shifted to a special ward.

Balaji Pai, a special officer from Trauma Care Centre, told the police that at around 8am, when doctors were attending to patients in the ICU, the man used the fire and emergency exit to take the extreme step. He asked for breakfast before jumping to his death.

The body was taken for postmortem and later handed over to kin of the deceased to conduct the last rites, as per protocol. The family told the police that the man had been in Dubai for several years and had come to the city a few months ago. He was working as an auto driver.

He suffered from renal failure
The deceased - P466 - suffered from chronic renal failure and was on dialysis. He had one dialysis session on Saturday and then again on Monday, and was responding well. The fire exit was open as repair work was going on - all other fire exits were locked. 

If you are having thoughts of suicide or are in emotional  distress, help is available. You can get in touch with  the SAHAI helpline at 080-25497777, open from Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 10pm.