A 93-year-old trade union leader from Kolkata became the “first woman” in the country whose body has been donated for medical research to find out the effects of coronavirus on humans, an organisation that spearheaded cadaver donation in Bengal said.
Jyotsna Bose was admitted to a hospital situated in North Kolkata on May 14. However, she breathed her last two days later.
A statement issued by the non-profit organisation, ‘Gandarpan’, also said that Jyotsna Bose is the second person from West Bengal after its founder Brojo Roy, to have got a pathological autopsy conducted on her body at a state-run hospital here, following death due to COVID-19.
Another victim of the virus, ophthalmologist Dr Biswajit Chakraborty’s remains have also been donated for the same purpose, making him the third such person in the state.
“Hers is the first female body in the country donated for pathological autopsy following death due to COVID-19,” Bose’s grand-daughter Dr Tista Basu told news agency PTI.
Jyotsna Bose was born in 1927 in Chittagong, which is now in present-day Bangladesh. According to the news agency, her family went through a crippling financial crisis because of which she could not complete her studies. She started working with British Telephones as an operator.