Antony Joseph, 64, who died at a private hospital near his ancestral house at Cheranalloor on Sunday night was not just another successful entrepreneur.
He and his firm Manorama Oxygen Private Limited proved a saviour to many gasping for breath during the height of the pandemic when oxygen cylinders were in short supply. Notwithstanding staff shortage, Joseph ensured maximum possible productivity as trucks carrying oxygen cylinders criss-crossed the State with special pass.
“He was perhaps the go-to man for District Collectors during the pandemic. In his own words, it was a time when his phone rang almost non-stop. In fact, Collectors had issued orders not to stop Joseph’s trucks carrying oxygen cylinders no matter what. His firm had distributed oxygen cylinders for free to many healthcare institutions as well during the period,” said CICC Jayachandran, President of Maharaja’s College Alumni Association and owner of CICC Books. The deceased had also served as the general secretary of the alumni association.
Joseph was admitted to the hospital last Tuesday after getting diagnosed with dengue. While his condition remained stable initially, his blood platelets count plummeted drastically on Thursday following which he was moved to the intensive care unit. To make matters worse, he had a cardiac arrest, and his vital organs were also affected, said Mr. Jayachandran.
His body will be brought to the ancestral house at Cheranalloor on Tuesday at 8 a.m. The funeral will be held at the Cheranalloor church at 3 p.m.
