Yoga guru Baba Ramdev, who continued his fast against corruption for the sixth day on Thursday, has agreed to take lemon juice and honey in the evening, but may be force-fed glucose, a senior district official said here.
“He is not going to break his fast. I have asked him to take lemon juice and honey and he has complied. He will take it in the evening,” R. Meenakshi Sundaram, district magistrate of Haridwar, told IANS over phone. “His condition has worsened. So, we requested him,” he added. “We also requested him to take glucose but he refused. His body will get the required amount of glucose from honey,” added Sundaram.
However, the official said if there was a threat to his life, the authorities won’t shy away from forcibly giving him glucose. “There are symptoms of dehydration in Baba’s body. Glucose is very essential for his body and if there is a threat to his life we won’t shy away from giving it forcibly. We have to save his life,” he said. “We have no intention of breaking his fast or hindering his agitation.”
Meanwhile, the authorities have demanded a list of those on fast from the Patanjali Yogpeeth, Sundaram told reporters. “There are thousands of people present here. But not all are on fast. After we get the list, we will monitor their health. We would need about 100 doctors,” he added. Earlier, chief medical officer Yogesh Sharma had examined Ramdev. “As of now, we don't find the need to feed him forcefully, but if his condition worsens, we will do that,” he told reporters. Sharma said Ramdev’s weight had dropped from 60 to 58.5 kg.
“We are requesting him to take liquids like milk and juices. It will be better if he ends his fast,” Sharma added. Baba Ramdev sat on a fast June 4 at Delhi’s Ramlila ground to demand the retrieval of black money stashed abroad by rich Indians. He and his followers were forcibly evicted post midnight, after which he returned to his ashram here to continue the fast.