A 38-year-old man put on ventilator support at his home in Kolhapur district of Maharashtra for treatment of a lung ailment, died as the breathing machine stopped functioning allegedly owing to a power outage, prompting the police to begin a probe.

The incident occurred on Thursday night in Uchgaon village in Karvir tehsil of the western Maharashtra district, around 230 kms from here, police said. "The patient - Amesh Kale - was suffering from a lung illness for the past few years. He was kept on a ventilator at his House. However, the electricity distribution company snapped the power supply of the place on May 30 alleging non-payment of bill. After that his family made some temporary arrangement to restore the power supply for his treatment," an official of Gandhinagar police station in Uchgaon said on Friday.