Dubai: An Indian social worker who was found dead last Sunday in Masafi in Fujairah, had hanged himself to death, Fujairah Police has confirmed.
Vasudevan Sugathan, aged 61, was employed as an X-ray technician at the Ministry of Health in Sharjah for the past 37 years. Among community members, he was better known for his work as the secretary of the Sharjah unit of Sevanam, an Indian community organization, affiliated to the Indian Consulate's Indian Community Welfare Committee.
Hundreds of residents, from across all emirates, bid him adieu at his funeral yesterday at the electric crematorium at Jebel Ali.
Last year, he had received an award from the Ministry of Health for his professional service, and also another award from Sharjah Indian Association for community services.
He is survived by his wife, his daughter and son, who are both working here in UAE. The family hails from Kollam in Kerala.
"On Sunday, Sugathan drove himself to Masafi from Sharjah and hanged himself to death at a construction site. He spoke to his children and asked them to take care of their mother. He also asked for their forgiveness, before switching off his mobile phone" a source close to the family, said.
"He was facing financial issues, apparently after borrowing money from some individuals. There were also some family issues."
"He had turned up for work on Sunday, but left after taking leave. His body was found the next day," added the source.
Sugathan's death is an irreplaceable loss for his family and for everyone who loved him, M K Rajan, UAE Chairman of Sevanam said.
"I have known him for 20 years and I don't think he had financial issues, which could not have been resolved. I'm not sure what led him to take that decision," said Rajan.
Sreedharan Prasad, community welfare convener at Sevanam, said: "He was one of the pillars of our association, being a founder member who established Sevanam 10 years ago."
He not only responded to those who were in need of help, but made sure a solution was found, said Prasad.
Remembering his last interaction with Sugathan, he said that few days ago 3 Indians who were on the way to Saudi Arabia were stranded at the Sharjah airport for few days due to a visa issue and they were suffering with no food or money, drinking just water from the restrooms. "Within minutes after I informed him about this, he got some of his contacts at the airport to hand out money to those people."
There have also been numerous cases where Sugathan helped get medical bills of tests waived off for the poorest of the poor labourers, Prasad added.
