File photo of Hindu migrants from Pakistan living in mud houses on the outskirts of Jodhpur
JAIPUR: Baser Mal from Sindh in Pakistan, who was living as a refugee, died of Covid-19 on May 2 in his makeshift mud house on the outskirts of Jodhpur. Before Mal, a Hindu, succumbed to coronavirus infection, he was taken to two private hospitals in Jodhpur only to be denied a bed due to his non-citizen status.
The ongoing pandemic has spelled trouble for the Hindu migrants from Pakistan living in eight districts of Rajasthan. They are struggling for beds, vaccines, insurance cover and free ration provided by the state due to their foreign status. Since March 20, seven of them have died in Jodhpur, which has 2,500 such families waiting for Indian citizenship for the last 5-15 years.