Mumbai: As Air India drags its feet, baby's head swells alarmingly

While her fathers salary is still in limbo little Eliza Waghmares health is getting even more delicate With every passing day the cerebrospinal fluid continues to accumulate in the fourmontholds brain leading to its compression and a further increase in the size of her head Her worried parents Anand and Jayanti Waghmare are now planning to take her to KEM hospital in a day or twoOn October 29 midday carried a frontpage report titled Premature baby needs surgery but dad denied salary about the Waghmare familys plight Not only has Elizas health been fragile due to her premature delivery but it is becoming increasingly difficult for her father Anand an Air India employee to manage her medical expenses because he has not been paid since April Anand has allegedly not received his salary because he exposed corruption in the national carrierCan see veins and brain stemAnand said Eliza is playful and continues to have regular feed but we are now worried about the accumulation of the infected fluid which is resulting in her head becoming bigger and bigger we can even see the veins and brain stems nowEliza in the arms of her parents Anand and Jayanti WaghmareHe added Ive already spoken to her treating doctors at KEM and theyve advised us to get Eliza to the hospital on Wednesday If required we will admit her Weve been told about the risk involved in her treatment Also they cannot go ahead with the second procedure unless Eliza gains weight She is presently malnourished and her head has more fluid compared to the rest of her body The head also forms a major portion of her body weight at birth she weighed only 102 kg and now shes around 3 kgWhen Eliza was at KEM the nurse would measure the circumference of her head and monitor its size every day However ever since we brought her home from the hospital we havent been maintaining any such record said AnandNo money no propertyAt this point the family is in no condition to shift Eliza to a private hospital either Anand said I will require a lot of money to treat my Eliza in a private hospital Presently neither do I have the money nor any property to mortgage for her treatment The family currently resides in the Air India quarters at Kalina which Anand had been asked to vacate They have been allowed to keep this flat thanks to a stay on the eviction notice by the Bombay High CourtAt least KEM doctors and the dean are aware of my daughters case I have to arrange medicines which I can manage through the financial support Im receiving from some friends said Anand Dr D P Mazumdar Elizas treating neurosurgeon and KEM dean Dr Avinash Supe preferred not to comment on the infants caseDisciplinary inquiryMeanwhile the Air India disciplinary enquiry against Anand which has been postponed thrice since August finally took place on Monday The enquiry committee met Anand at the Engineering HQ Kalina According to Anand he was chargesheeted on April 11 on three grounds willful insubordination absence without leaveoverstaying sanctioned leave and willful neglect of work under the Industrial Employment Standing Orders 1946 Anand who is also a law graduate presented his side of the case and submitted relevant papers He also carried Jayanti and Elizas medical documents He said The panel members recorded the submissions and also felt sorry about my personal circumstancesDespite being sorry the officials could do precious little for Anand When he requested them to the release his salary which has been pending since April the panel said they were not empowered to make or accept such a request Inquiry officer Kamal Chowdhury was so touched with Elizas plight that he attempted to give some cash to Anand which he refused The next date for hearing has been fixed on November 23 the place would be decided accordinglyAIESL saysA senior management member of Air India Engineering Services Ltd AIESL Delhi told midday on the condition of anonymity Were a very transparent company and have encouraged our staff to write to us directly about any issue theyre facing Every complaint we receive is seriously looked into Also we look at genuine family issues of our employees with utmost sensitivity and try to support them to the maximumWhen asked about Anands case he said The employee has filed a writ petition in the Bombay High Court and we will have to wait for the courts verdict Ill have to get Waghmares file but I do remember that hed asked for a posting to Nagpur He was sent there after being promotedRegarding the nonpayment of his salary the official said Since Waghmare has been transferred from Mumbai to Nagpur all his time sheets are maintained and recorded in Nagpur He has been absent from work for months and no one will pay him for not coming to workWhen informed about Anands claims of submitting a letter to his reporting officer on February 25 citing his wifes pregnancy complications the official said Merely writing a letter and not waiting for any official approval amounts to display of callous attitude and calls for a disciplinary enquiry which we have initiatedRubbishes claimsAnand has rubbished the claims made by the senior officer He said hed asked to be shifted to Nagpur a couple of years ago but that request was denied He said when he complained about the wrongdoings happening in Air India to its chairman managing director internal vigilance committee and the CEO of AIESL no action was taken and instead he was abruptly transferred to Nagpur on January 15 relieved from his duties in Mumbai the same day and asked to report for work in Nagpur the next day January 16 He was not even given any accommodation for his then pregnant wife and son Anand also said he did not return to Mumbai without any prior intimation or permissionNeeds urgent surgeryAccording to Dr Wiqar Shaikh professor of medicine and unit head of the Grant Medical College immediate surgery is imperative for baby Eliza He said If the size of the head is increasing due to the fluid accumulation the child should be immediately taken for a neurosurgical intervention rather than being kept at homeSilver liningTo give the Waghmare family some respite the All India Aircraft Engineers Association Bombay extended a helping hand They presented a cheque of Rs 110000 to Anand on Monday to aid Elizas treatment Anand said I express my gratitude to themCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates