Pune: A routine visit by relatives to check on a patient at an old-age home has exposed a disturbing reality: 16 elderly residents from the ASK Old Age Home were found abandoned in an open ground near Bharat Forge. The sight shocked the visiting family, prompting an immediate demand for action.
The patient in question had earlier been admitted to Sassoon General Hospital and later shifted to the ASK Old Age Home in Uruli Devachi, as per government procedure. But when the family arrived to check on him, they stumbled upon elderly residents kept in the open without basic facilities.
The issue quickly escalated, upon which Minister of State for Medical Education Madhuri Misal ordered a detailed probe and instructed officials to submit findings within a week. Acting on her directive, a three-member inquiry committee has now been formed.
Who’s on the Committee?
Dr Pallavi Sapale, Joint Director, Directorate of Medical Education and Research (Committee Chair)
Dr Sanjay Surase, Medical Superintendent, Sir JJ Group of Hospitals
Dr Gajanan Chavan, Professor, Forensic Medicine
The committee will inspect Sassoon General Hospital on November 21 and conduct an on-ground verification of the ASK Old Age Home, checking not only the condition of the residents but also whether the institution is even legally registered. The case of elderly patient Prakash Purohit will also be scrutinised in detail.
BJP’s co-campaign publicity head Pushkar Tuljapurkar has already written to Sassoon Hospital, questioning how his uncle-in-law, Prakash Purohit, moved in and out of hospitals and the old-age home without clear documentation. Tuljapurkar alleged that the home’s operator, Dadasaheb Gaikwad, could not provide proper records—neither of admissions nor of discharges.
He also pointed out that the Fursungi facility of the home is in a dilapidated condition and is currently shut. Critically ill patients from Sassoon, Tuljapurkar claims, were kept in the open ground with no adherence to rules or care standards.
Gaikwad, meanwhile, insists the premises are on rent and claims rising rent has forced him to shift the residents. He says he is staging a hunger strike near Bharat Forge to demand government land for the home.
Sassoon Hospital’s Response
Sassoon authorities maintain that the patient received proper care while admitted and that he was shifted to a government-recognised facility as per protocol. Hospital superintendent Dr Yellappa Jadhav said, “The team is currently verifying records related to the patient’s return to the hospital in February.”
With the committee now officially in place, the focus shifts to what the inquiry will uncover and how quickly conditions of the affected elderly residents will improve.
