“TB is still not given priority in public hospitals. It’s ironical that in Mumbai, which is home to Asia’s largest TB Hospital, a TB patient couldn’t find an ICU bed and died,” said Acharya.

The patient, James Godfrey, 72, died on April 30, 2020, hours after his oxygen was unhooked. He had been a resident at the nursing home for more than a month.

The patient, James Godfrey, 72, died on April 30, 2020, hours after his oxygen was unhooked. He had been a resident at the nursing home for more than a month.

If a patient is identified as needing evaluation for TB, they are labeled as "TB-Risk," prompting the correct isolation in the specialized hospital room and use of personal protective equipment.

At any given point, it has more than 800-bed occupancy with 240 beds reserved for MDR-TB patients. Three months ago, the hospital’s 300 beds were given away to KEM Hospital to treat non-TB patients.