Activities at Health Camps and Community Centre at Sunderban Area, S 24 Parganas

The Foundation has been running two health camps at Ramchandrakhali and Masjidbari villages in Sunderban area, South 24 Parganas. Further the Foundation is planning to establish Community Centre at one of the location for providing better service to the poor population living in the area and in nearby islands. This Centre will arrange various programmes to improve quality of life of the poor population of the area. Some of these programmes will be (1) to provide regular medical treatment by qualified Doctors,(2) awareness generation for healthy living by taking care of sanitation in the households, using safe water for drinking, adopting hand washing behaviour, using sanitary toilets, proper solid waste management etc. (3) to advice on low cost nutritious diet intake, compulsory attendance of pregnant mothers to take antenatal care and safe delivery at hospitals to substantially reduce infant and maternal mortality of the poor, (4) inducing regular attendance to school by the children and successfully adopting full immunization coverage of the children. These would help a lot in ensuring proper education and safe health to all men,women and children of the poor people living in the neighbouring areas of Sunderbans.

1. Health camps for offering relief to 'Aila' affected villages of the delta region of Sundarbans, West Bengal

A Cyclone ('Aila') struck the islands of Sundarbans in the southern part of West Bengal on 25th of May, 2009, at a maximum speed of 110 km/hr breaching 400 kms length of embankments of river and flooding 54 islands by 15 ft. high waves of sea water killed over 275 people and rendered thousands homeless. Many people died subsequently due to diarrhoea and infectious disease. The Foundation carried out social service activity by organizing health camps for offering free treatment and medicine to the people in the affected villages.

It was found subsequently that, organizing one or two health camp in the 'Aila' affected area could not give effective and sustained relief to the people residing in these areas. These people needed regular medical relief, as they were very poor and lost a lot in the recent calamity. The Foundation then started organizing regular health camps at several villages in the affected area.

Since June 2009, the Foundation organized regular health camps at ‘Aila” affected areas in the following locations : (1) Deulbari village in Kultoli block, (2) Dhola, Sankarpur village of Mathurapur -1 block and in (3) Ramchandrakhali village in Basanti Block in South 24 Parganas and Decknamari village of Sandeshkhali-1 Block, in North 24 Parganas in ‘Sundarbon’ area. In these health camps, hundreds of patients were treated with supply of medicines free of cost. Effects of Aila devastations and ordeal of poor patients are shown in the accompanying photographs. Brief details of the activities undertaken by the Foundation in each location are furnished below.

Fig.3:Roadside makeshift shanties.
Fig.4: A Quack doctor treating a patient of at Dekhnamari village, Sandeshkhali-I block diarrhoea affected after 'Aila'

2.Regular Health Camps at Dheknamari village of Sandeshkhali -1 Block, of North 24 Parganas

Regular fortnightly health camps were organised at a Church premises in the village of Decknamari, from 1.10 2009 to 31 12 2009. The village was situated by the side of river Bidyadhari having large areas of wetlands. Villagers used these wetlands for fishing purposes. Many fishermen who live in the village are also engaged in fishing in the river. The village is mostly habitated by 'Adibasi' people. The 'Aila' not only fell many mud houses but also inundated the fishery 'Bheris' by long breaches in the embankment of the Bidhyadhari river. A major breach was not repaired though several months passed and people were living in makeshift tents (shanties) covered by plastic sheets and tarpaulins on road side. Because of regular inundation by high tide of river water in the wetland areas and low lying grounds the people could not build their houses to live in. The Foundation examined total 855 patients and supplied necessary medicines to them free of cost. Serious cases were referred to Tertiary referral hospitals, Kolkata. The Foundation closed the camp as the people left their shanties in the embankment after its repair when they went to their homes in their villages. Majority patients attending the clinic were women and children. Most of the patients were found to be suffering from diarrhoeal disease, respiratory tract infection and dyspepsia. However, many of the women were found to be suffering from anxiety state and depression. They were telling their ordeal that they lost all they had, many lost their family members, and they were living in a retched condition.

3. Regular health camp at Ramchandrakhali village of Basanti Block of South 24 Parganas

The Foundation started regular free medical camps on Sundays at Ramchandrakhali village in Basanti Block of Sundarban area of South 24 Parganas since 28th March 2010. This Camp is now organised on all Sundays every month. Villagers in the area are very poor and are mostly engaged in agricultural activity and fishing. Because of inundation of paddy fields by saline water during Aila catastrophe, paddy cultivation has been affected in some areas. The Medical camp is housed in a primary school named ‘Hogolduri Rani Rashmani Prathamic Vidyalaya’ situated by the side of Hena river, to provide medical treatment for relief to population of Ramchandrakhali and nearby islands of Pathankhali. No qualified medical professional was available there. Allopathic physicians of the Foundation are attending the camp on 2nd & 4th Sundays, a Homeopathic doctor is attending on 1st Sunday of the month, and Specialist doctors are attending the clinic on 3rd Sunday of the month. On the 1st Sunday additional Eye Clinics are held to examine the power of Eye and supply spectacles at substantially reduced price.

Patients are being examined Basanti Block (Patients waiting for examination)