Head of DU's Pol Science Dept Veena Kukreja dies at Delhi hosp

New Delhi: Head of Delhi University's Political Science Department Veena Kukreja, who was undergoing treatment for COVID-19 at a hospital here, died in the early hours of Friday after suffering a cardiac arrest. She was 64.

Kukreja's colleagues condoled her demise while her department held a virtual prayer meeting in her memory.

Professor Bipin Tiwary, Kukreja's colleague from the department said she was admitted to Saroj Hospital in Rohini on April 24 after she tested positive for coronavirus. She was recovering well and had been moved out of the ICU to the COVID ward.

"I was in constant touch with her and I used to call her at 6-6.30 pm every day. I was monitoring things like whether her bed is clean, washroom is okay and whether she is being looked after. Yesterday also I spoke to her and she seemed quite jovial and was on the road to recovery. But around 2.30 am her BP and pulse dropped and she passed away," he said.

Tiwary said he was very close to Kukreja and her demise was a personal loss to him. Kukreja is survived by her elder sister, aged 72, and a nephew.

Kukreja would have turned 65 in August. She had been heading Delhi University's Political Science Department for the last three years.

According to her resume, Kukreja's work 'Contemporary Pakistan (2003)' had been recommended for the course on South Asia at Syracuse University, New York.