Amartya Chakraborty, a 19-year-old three-time former national para-swimming champion, passed away at the GB Pant Hospital here on Wednesday due to “sudden cardio-respiratory arrest”.
Amartya, a resident of Salkia in West Bengal’s Howrah district, was undergoing treatment at the hospital for a spinal cord disorder that had rendered his lower body nearly paralysed.
The champion swimmer, who won around 30 medals at the national level, made his mark in the sub-junior and junior levels between 2015 and 2017 after he was classified under temporary disability category.
However, due to a disability-related protest he was not allowed to compete in the Asian Youth Para Games in Dubai in December 2017.
The report said, “Amartya’s spinal cord had become completely unbalanced” and the lower part of the body had stopped working. In medical terms, this is called arteriovenous malformation (AVM). As a result, he is lying on the bed”.
A days before the champion swimmer’s death that Amartya’s condition was serious and his father couldn’t afford his treatment in a private hospital.
His father, Amitosh, was quoted as saying that his son could only be treated at AIIMS (Delhi) or in hospitals in England and the United States, and that treating him abroad would cost around Rs 50 lakh.
Renowned India swimmer Meenakshi Pahuja was doing everything she could to get Amartya back on his feet, and the swimmer’s parents had knocked on every door for additional help, including the Sports Ministry, Sports Authority of India, and the Paralympic Committee of India.
According to the report, the father received a monthly salary of Rs 18,000 and had spent his entire life savings on his son’s care.