Legendary singer Mehdi Hassan put on ventilator

Karachi: India-born legendary Ghazal singer Mehdi Hassan was on Thursday put on a ventilator at a private clinic in Pakistan's Sindh provincial capital Karachi after he collapsed due to respiratory problems.

Eighty-four-year-old Hassan has been ill for the last few years due to a serious lung condition that has led to complications and breathing problems.

"He is still in the ICU and doctors are looking after him round the clock. All we can do now is pray for him and hope Allah gives him life," said Hassan's son, Asif Mehdi himself a singer.

Eighty-four-year-old Hassan has been ill for the last few years due to a serious lung condition.

The legendary singer, who was born into a family of traditional musicians at Luna village in Rajasthan in 1927 and the voice behind evergreen ghazals like 'Ab ke bichade' and 'Patta patta boota boota, had recently lost his voice due to his illness.

Asif said the doctors after analysing his condition put the ailing singer on a a ventilator. They conducted Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans and blood tests of the veteran singer.

Doctors said Hassan is suffering from chest and urine infection.

"He had trouble in breathing (on Tuesday). We immediately rushed him to the hospital. He is in ICU but there is no positive response from the doctors about his condition," Arif said.

Hassan, who has been suffering from lung problems for the past twelve years, was on Tuesday night rushed to Karachi's Agha Khan hospital's ICU section.

Asif said that his father had been in very poor health for the last two years and the family had been feeding him through the tube because of his illness.

"We have been feeding him through tube for the past two years and for the past one month, he has even lost his voice, which mesmerized millions of his fans," he added.

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