A doctor at Ranchi’s Sadar hospital with the help of district administration and Ranchi railways has successfully helped a Telugu speaking nonagenarian woman reach home safely after she was abandoned at the hospital last month by her family members.

According to officials at Sadar hospital, the elderly woman identified as Chinna Madhu, was anonymously dropped at the government run hospital by her son-in law. Hospital authorities then admitted her to a ward suspecting Covid. Successive tests on her confirmed the infection post which she underwent treatment as an anonymous person.

The woman’s son Govind Rao and her son-in law Appa Rao works as lineman under Ranchi railway division, said railway officials.

“She could barely speak, and was very weak. Moreover the language which she spoke was difficult to understand,” remarked a nurse. She recovered fully on May 16.

However, her extended stay at the hospital raised eyebrows of Dr Ajit Kumar, a surgeon posted here on Covid duty, who on Wednesday night posted her photograph on social media seeking help to trace her family.

“The photo went viral. Even many city based journalists shared it to help us trace the family. This morning, we got a tip from a resident about her identity. We learnt that son and son-in law of the lady are railway employees in Ranchi. After finding their names, we contacted Ranchi railway division authorities who tracked her kids,” said Dr Kumar.

On Wednesday night the woman was shifted to a city based old age home with the help of district administration to prevent re-infection.

“After the intervention of senior officials of railway, we got in touch with the son-in law who originally dropped the lady at the hospital. In the evening, I personally took them to the shelter home, picked the lady to drop her in her home in railway colony. The lady’s son said that he too was down with Covid,” said Ajit.