THE father of deaf charity worker Ian Stillman claims prison authorities still have not given his son urgent medical treatment.

Roy Stillman, 77, of Tadcaster Road, York, was speaking after spending ten days in India where Ian is in jail after being convicted of possession of cannabis.

A doctor's report claimed that Ian, who had a leg amputated after a road accident in India, was having circulation problems which could lead to the loss of his healthy leg, and even his death.

Ian, who is 51, moved to India more than 25 years ago to run a charity for the deaf. He has been in prison in Simla, in the Himalayan foothills, for the past year. He has always denied the drug charges.

Mr Stillman said: "There is a real danger that he could lose his leg, and his life is in danger, but nothing seems to be happening. We are almost at the end of our tether with it.

"I went to see the High Commission twice. It is in their remit to ensure the care and welfare of British citizens, but they are not doing it. It is more than a month since the medical report was received, and he still hasn't been treated.

"We are now putting pressure on the Foreign Office to make sure something is done."

Mr Stillman visited Ian with his daughter Elspeth Dugdale.

It was the first time he had seen him for two years.

During his trip, Mr Stillman managed to arrange for Ian to visit the dentist, as well as take him to the tailor, the opticians, a pharmacy and a bookshop.

Mr Stillman said: "It was wonderful to see him and I'm sure it helped him mentally.

"Leaving was extremely hard though. As we flew out of Simla, we saw the tower of the jail and it hit us that he was still in there, that we were leaving him behind. That was upsetting."

Ian's family are currently attempting to arrange an appeal hearing in India's Supreme Court.

Updated: 11:05 Thursday, March 14, 2002