In a kind gesture, Nurse Lini Puthussery’s husband Sajeesh, who received a government job following his wife’s death, has donated his first ever salary to the flood victims in Kerala. Lini had lost her life to the deadly Nipah virus, that she contracted while caring for the first victim of the virus.
Sajeesh had joined the Public Health Centre at Kothari as a lower divisional clerk a month ago, after left his job in Bahrain and returned to Kerala to take care of his two kids. He has decided to give away his earnings to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMRDF).
On Wednesday, Sajeesh met Minister for Labour and Excise TP Ramakrishnan to hand over the cheque as his contribution to the relief fund.
Nurse Lini was taking care of Mohammad Sadik, one of the first victims of the virus. Lini developed a fever just days after Sadik passed away. Lini was kept in the isolation ward and buried soon after her death. Her family was not allowed to cremate her body as officials feared spread of the virus.
On her last day, Lini had written a letter to her husband, Sajeesh, which read, "I think I am almost on my way; I don't think I'll be able to meet you. Please look after our children. Take them with you to the Gulf; don't be all alone like our father, please."
Following Lini's death, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan wrote on Facebook, “The loss of Lini, who had sacrificed her life for nursing a patient, is a grief for all of us. Lini’s sacrifice is incomparable. It is painful that Lini met with this tragedy while she was sincerely doing her duty. We, the people of the state, share the pain and loss of Lini’s family, friends and colleagues.”
Kerala has witnessed unprecedented rainfall over the past few weeks. On Wednesday alone, 25 people died due to rain related accidents, taking the death toll to 67 since August 8. All 14 districts of the state are on Red Alert. The Kochi airport has announced that operations have been stalled until Saturday as the flood waters have entered the complex.
Over 35 dams in Kerala have been opened following heavy rains. More rains have been forecast till Saturday. Several people are going back to their relief camps, including those who had returned to their homes in Ernakulam, Kozhikode, Malappuram and Wayanad districts.