Sick worker goes home after hospital treats him for free

A sick Indian farm worker finally went home yesterday after his SR 200,000 medical bills and airfare were paid by a Saudi hospital, the Indian Embassy, individual Saudis and the Al-Kharj governor.
Augustin Amalraj, who hails from Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu State in India, spent 15 months at King Khalid Hospital in Al-Kharj. He cannot speak or move and has to receive constant care.
He was discovered unconscious with multiple strokes and other ailments at the main entrance of King Khalid Hospital in Al-Kharj on Nov. 30, 2011. The hospital took care of him without payment.
He was initially discharged on March 27, 2012, but the hospital did not know where to send him because he did not have an iqama or passport. After a lengthy process, the Indian Embassy was able to confirm his identity.
His case came to the attention of Abdul Rahman Al-Tuwaim of King Khalid Hospital who succeeded in getting Saudis and expatriates to help him. Al-Tuwaim told Arab News that this was a special case.
He was taken from Al-Kharj to Riyadh by Indian social workers Ashraf Venghat and Shihab Kottukad. The two men eventually found an Indian expatriate from the same area in Tamil Nadu, Nalla Shivan, to escort him home. He boarded an Air India flight on a stretcher heavily sedated.
Kottukad said the air fare was paid by the Indian Embassy. He thanked the passport office in Al-Kharj, King Khalid Hospital officials, the Indian Embassy and the governorate of Al-Kharj for their assistance.