Sri Lankan refugee, found unconscious on Tamil Nadu shores, dies

A 71-year-old woman refugee, who had fled crisis-ridden Sri Lanka along with her 81-year-old husband on a boat and was found unconscious on the shore at Dhanushkodi on June 27, died at Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai on Saturday night. 

Of the 96 who have so far reached Indian shores on illegal ferries after the island nation plunged into an economic crisis, this is the first death, the Indian media reported.

The couple, Parameswari and her husband Periyannan Sivan, from Mannar, were admitted to Ramanathapuram Government Hospital as they suffered from dehydration and shock. They were subsequently referred to Government Rajaji Hospital the same night. 

Doctors at GRH told Times of India that Parameswari had a blood clot in her brain and a craniotomy surgery was done to remove it. However, she continued to be in ICU and died without responding to treatment. They said the woman was diabetic and hypertensive.

The elderly couple had travelled to Tamil Nadu to reunite with their two sons Sahayaseelan and Raja and daughter Udhayarani who are residing at the Valavandankottai refugee camp in Thuvakudi, Trichy. It was around 7am on June 27 that local fishermen spotted the duo unconscious near Kothandaramar temple. Periyannan Sivan is being treated at GRH and is stable.