THANE, June 16 -- What was supposed to be a night of mourning turned into one of disbelief and relief for a family in Ulhasnagar after their 64-year-old patriarch-declared dead by a private doctor-was found breathing just as the family was preparing for his last rites. The man, Abhimanyu Girdhar Tayde, who had been battling jaundice and a gall bladder lump, is now recovering in hospital and very much alive. "I've eaten a full meal-including eggs-and I feel completely fine," he told HT, from his hospital bed at Criticare Hospital. It all began around 8pm on Thursday when Tayde collapsed at home. "He had been discharged from JJ Hospital earlier with medicines for jaundice. But that evening, he fell unconscious," said his son Sachin Tayde. In a panic, Sachin and a relative rushed him to nearby Shivneri Hospital. With no stretcher in sight, they requested help. "Dr Prabhu Ahuja came outside, checked him quickly, and told us he was dead. He even asked us to get his Aadhaar card so he could issue the death certificate," Sachin recounted. The family returned home in shock, their world turned upside down. Preparations began for the last rites. But just as a relative began placing cotton in Tayde's nose-a part of the funeral ritual-he noticed something unusual: the man was still breathing. "We saw his stomach moving, ever so slightly. We couldn't believe our eyes," Sachin said. The family immediately bundled Tayde into a vehicle and rushed him to Criticare Hospital. Doctors there confirmed he was very much alive. "Tayde was brought in around 8:45pm. He had extremely low blood sugar and was barely responsive. We started oxygen and other emergency treatment right away. Within minutes, he regained consciousness," said Dr Prakash Kaurani of Criticare Hospital. "His ECG was normal, and we've since moved him to the ICU for jaundice treatment." The turnaround has left the family grateful. Tayde is now alert, chatting with hospital staff, and even cracking jokes with his visitors. As for the doctor who initially declared him dead, Dr Ahuja, offered an unusual explanation. "It was raining heavily, and the traffic noise was loud. I examined him outside the hospital and couldn't hear a heartbeat clearly. I advised the family to take him to a ventilator-equipped facility," he told HT. He added that the family later brought Tayde's Aadhaar but never informed him that Tayde had revived, so he proceeded to issue a death certificate. The Tayde family, however, is not amused. "Had we not noticed his breathing, we might have cremated him alive," said Sachin, visibly distressed. "This level of negligence is terrifying. We're still deciding whether to take legal action."...