The Nuapada district administration in Odisha has sacked three security guards of a hospital and issued showcause notices to 14 others after they staged a protest demanding adequate financial assistance to the family of their colleague who died on January 26, three days after taking a Covid-19 vaccine shot.

The guards, who are employed at the district headquarters hospital at Nuapada, were expressing solidarity with the family of their 25-year-old colleague Nanikram Keut who passed away three days after being administered the vaccine. Doctors had said that Nanikram, posted at the hospital for the past 13 months, appeared “perfectly healthy” and had no history of pre-existing health disorders prior to the vaccination. Nanikram was to get married next month.

The guards had been deployed at the hospital by a security agency. Sources said the Nuapada collector had asked the security agency to fire the protesting guards.

The district administration has been consistently maintaining that Nanikram’s death was not caused by the side-effects of the vaccine.

“The entire administration was perturbed following the negative publicity generated by the news about the death of a security guard because of the vaccine. The action taken by the administration is a reaction to the development,” said a senior official.

Nuapada chief district medical officer K.P. Behera told The Telegraph: “After the death of security guard Nanikram on January 26, his colleagues lodged a protest. The action has been taken on disciplinary grounds according to the direction of the higher authorities.”

Behera said Nanikram had died because of a blood-related disease. “We have the post-mortem report. He did not die because of the vaccine. His death was caused by some disorder which needs to be studied closely. He was alright before taking the vaccine,” he said.

A senior official of the security agency told this newspaper: “Even if their colleague had died, the security guards should not have protested. They should have come to us for a discussion. We have an agreement with the government.”

The security agency in its termination letter accused the guards of conspiracy, degrading the values and ethics of the company, misbehaving with senior staff, creating unhealthy atmosphere in the work area, gross irregularities and neglect of duty, acting in a manner prejudicial to the interests of the company or the government and violation of the rules and procedures of the company.

It also said that the guards were illegally demanding some financial help from the chief minister’s relief fund under the leadership of an outsider while being on duty.

Garib Sena, a non-political outfit working for the cause of the poor, threatened to launch an agitation over the action against the guards.

“They are poor people. What’s their fault? They were demanding financial help for the family members of their colleague who died three days after being vaccinated. The government should take a lenient view of the matter. If the termination order is not withdrawn, we will launch an agitation including road blockade,” said its president Ravi Mangaraj.