Sreedharan to be discharged Thursday

NEW DELHI - Delhi Metro chief E. Sreedharan, who underwent a bypass surgery last week, will be discharged from hospital Thursday, a doctor treating him said Wednesday.

Sreedharan is convalescing after a bypass surgery at the Apollo Hospital here.

“We will discharge Sreedharan tomorrow (Thursday). He is recuperating well,” senior cardiologist S.K Gupta told IANS.

“His family is meeting him regularly. After being discharged he will have to take rest and follow the precautions that a heart patient should take. We have advised that he should not join work at least for six weeks,” he added.

Sreedharan will be home in time to celebrate Vishu, the Malayalam New Year festival, Thursday with his family.

The Delhi Metro chief was rushed to the hospital April 7 after he complained of severe chest pain at the Delhi Airport, from where he was to fly to Kolkata.

A multi-disciplinary team of doctors operated on him the next day after his right and left coronary arteries were found entirely and partly blocked. Four grafts were planted during to bypass the blockages.

Sreedharan is known to have a busy schedule and frequently travels to other metro cities, often as a consultant on other Metro projects that are underway.

But Delhi Metro’s works are not affected due to the absence of the top boss.

“We don’t know yet when he will join back. However, the work and organisation haven’t been affected. We have the systems in place to cope with his absence,” Delhi Metro’s spokesperson Anuj Dayal said.

Sreedharan revolutionised the capital’s transport with the rapidly expanding network of Metro, work on which began in 2002. He is also lauded for his stint as head of the Konkan Railways.