A Karnataka teen, presumed dead, 'woke up' just minutes before his cremation.
In a bizarre incident, a 17-year-old boy 'woke up' on the way to his funeral in a Karnataka village.
Kumar Marewad was bitten by a stray dog about a month ago, after which he developed high fever last week, reports
The Times of India. Kumar was put on life support at a hospital as his condition worsened. But the family shifted him back home when doctors said the infection had spread and he would not survive without a ventilator.
"We had decided to take Kumar home after doctors told us his chances of survival were bleak once taken off the ventilator," Kumar's brother-in-law Sharanappa Naikar told
The Times of India. Once home, when his relatives noticed no movement or breathing, they presumed Kumar was dead. They made arrangements for his funeral and headed to a nearby village for his last rites.
The procession was barely two km from its destination when Kumar apparently opened his eyes and started moving his hands and feet while breathing rapidly. He was immediately rushed to a hospital, where his condition remains critical.
"Kumar is on ventilator. We suspect he suffers from meningoencephalitis, an infection caused due to dog bite," says Dr Mahesh Neelakhantannavar in
The Times Of India report. Kumar's parents Ningappa and Manjula say that he is a daily wage labourer who stopped going to school after class IX to support the family. "He used to work as a construction labourer. His elder brother is physically challenged. We need support for his treatment," they said.