Former India captain Gulabrai S Ramchand, who was admitted to the Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai on Monday after developing heart complications, is making steady progress and has been discharged from the Intensive Care Unit.
"He is still very weak," his wife Leela said, "but had to be shifted out of the ICU as we cannot afford it."
Leela Ramchand told rediff.com, "This is the third time he has been brought to hospital. I am very concerned as he is unable to eat well. I am still not satisfied about his condition."
Asked whether the Board of Control for Cricket in India or the Mumbai Cricket Association had offered any financial assistance, she replied: "I sent a request to Mr Sharad Diwadkar (Executive Secretary, BCCI) today [Thursday] requesting for help. I have sent all required medical documents and we hope to get help at the earliest."
The BCCI has a medical scheme which entitles former cricketers up to Rs 300,000 in assistance.
BCCI Secretary S K Nair said the Board has not received any request for assistance from the Ramchand family.
"If the letter comes in, we will give it the highest priority. We will give all the financial assistance that can be provided," Nair said.
"Under normal circumstances, it is the finance committee that takes such decisions, but they might not meet for some time. So, as an interim measure, BCCI President Jagmohan Dalmiya can sanction the amount. It may take around 2 to 3 days for the matter to be sorted out," he added.
"The maximum amount for compensation is Rs 3 lakh, but we do make exceptions based on the gravity of the situation. For instance, (former Indian leg-spinner) B S Chandrashekar was allocated Rs 5 lakh," Nair said.
Diwadkar pointed out that most former cricketers are covered under a medical scheme and are also eligible to receive help from the BCCI's Benevolent Fund.
"Present day cricketers are covered under an insurance scheme for 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. Senior cricketers are insured for Rs 5 lakh while the juniors are covered under a policy worth Rs 3 lakh," he said.
"We will have to see under which scheme Ramchand has applied," he added.
Ramchand played 33 Tests between 1952 and 1959 and led India to a famous victory over Richie Benaud's Australians in the 1959-60 series, when Jasu Patel took a record 14 wickets at the Green Park, Kanpur. He captained India in five Tests, scoring over a thousand runs and also took 41 wickets.
