A gaping hole in a man’s skull with worms wriggling in the wound — in a tragic incident in Kapurthala, an elderly man was found in this deplorable condition, with deep wounds in his head, languishing for days on the sidewalk without treatment or care.The helpless elderly man was found lying in a pitiful condition on the sidewalk of the main road just outside Civil Hospital.A large part of his head and skull had rotted away and insects were squirming in the deep wound. Even amidst this painful scene, he received no first aid.On Friday, the plight of the destitute man came to the notice of Diljit Singh Dhaliwal, in-charge of Waris Punjab De, Kapurthala. Activists said that even after being taken to Civil Hospital, the authorities at first refused to admit him.However, after passersby raised an alarm, some good Samaritans persuaded the hospital authorities to treat him and, subsequently, after first aid, the man was referred to the Medical College, Amritsar.Dhaliwal said, “During our routine activities on the road outside Civil Hospital, the man’s condition came to my notice. We tried to get him admitted to the Civil Hospital for treatment, but they refused to take him in, citing deep infestation of his skull, with part of the skull bone rotted. Eventually, we had to fight and put pressure to get him treated. After that, the hospital staff provided first aid and his head was bandaged.”Dhaliwal added, “Due to the gravity of his wounds, he was referred to Amritsar.There had been an increase in the frequency of such incidents in Kapurthala. Days ago, another man was found lying at a different spot in Kapurthala after he was left handicapped in one leg and couldn’t stand up.”He said, “Volunteers brought that to our notice amid fears that the man might be attacked by dogs at night. He was also brought in for treatment. A human being must never face this kind of ordeal.”Officiating Civil Surgeon, Kapurthala, Dr Anu Sharma said, “The infestation in the man’s skull was caused due to neglected wounds which must have been ignored for a long time. His wounds were sterilised, cleaned and dressed at Civil Hospital. The man suffered a very heavy infestation with many maggots reaching the skull; therefore, Civil Hospital wouldn’t have been able to do justice in terms of treatment due to the severity of his condition. He needed tertiary care, hence he has been referred to Amritsar Medical College.”She added, “Such cases are indeed being reported and the challenge is the lack of caregivers. Since such patients lack attendants, we need NGOs and civic organisations to step up to offer care for such destitute persons.”