Post from Superspeciality

17 September 2011

I am amazed by this family who has given me an opportunity to help them to come here for a heart disease treatment.

Well, to be sincere, a couple from Bihar; this tag had made me imagine that the family must be a conservative where wife would have been supressed. But, now I've realized I was wrong.

The husband's name is Umesh and the patient, his wife's name is Anita. Umesh is a very cheerful person and he ensures that everyone is smiling around. He cracks meaningful jokes, delivers laugh-provoking phrases and a few filmy dialogues. I have observed that people quickly get along with him and within minutes he makes a friend wherever he is.

This is not the only reason why I'm impressed; I respect the love he has for his wife and the dedication he bestows. His wife, Anita is suffering a heart disease, her valves are blocked and after spending some 60-70 thousand rupees doctor finally referred her to the Superspeciality Hospital in Puttaparthy.

Throughout our train journey from Jogbani to Puttaparthy, he not only made us smile but befriended all the felow passengers in our coach. He cared for his wife, cracked jokes whenever she used to be sad and always motivated her that everything gonna be okay.

Today, it was a day to check her up in the Superspeciality. As the treatment is free of cost, there is a heavy rush of patients from all the corners. Because of which, hospital has a queue system and only 50 patients are given entrance in a day. The entrance starts at 5 am in the morning but the queue starts a night before. Umesh ji stayed awake whole night from 09 pm(it's 1130hrs now) and he ensured he was no, 1 on the queue. We stayed at room itself and joined him only in the morning at 4.30 am.

When I joined the queue in the morning, I was surprised, everyone knew him, everyone was impressed by his full of life nature.

He is worried if his wife would be okay, this is the last chance for him and the only place where he can hope for the treatment. Else, the cure is available abroad and requires huge cost which he would not be able to afford. During a general medical test, doctor suspected that both her valves might have been affected. So he is really worried now. He says, 'I would be nowhere if she would not be treated here.'.

We have just been called by the senior doctor here and he explained that she needs to be immediately admitted for a 'Balloon Operation' which would be after 4 days. I was so impressed by this doctor, he looked somewhat stern but he had a very pleasant voice and he made us understand about the 'Balloon operation' and the complication she has. He was very soft spoken. Do you get to meet such a doctor, that too without paying a fee?

The operation would have costs atleast 50 thousand or more than that in a private hospital. And, add more expenses for all the tests, medicines, admission charges, bed fee, etcetra etcetra. But here everything is free, a real blessing for poors.

So, now the family is staying back for atleast seven days. Umesh is asking me to stay back till his wife is okay coz he finds me as a support.

The admission procedure is underway, let's see....

Signing off for now...

A post from a window seat

15 September 2011

Train; window seat; gazing at fields, trees, hills and endless horizon.

30 Hours train ride from Howrah Station of Kolkata; have spent about 20 hours of hectic time in here. Opposite my seat is a family with 4 years child. ''He has a hole in his heart, and we're going Puttaparthy for his treatment'', said the child's dad. His mother has countless wrinkles that tells the story with what pain she might have been living. His father looks tired, frustrated in an old dirty kurta. They say the child is 4 years old but he looks like 2 years, might be a result of disease he has. I can read in the eyes of his mother, a prayer, expectation and a hope that her child will soon be okay.


I feel sorry for every sad things I see, and at the same time I always feel helpless why I can't cure their pain. And, I pray, 'God, if you can't give me any special power then at least don't make me see their pain'. The reply has always been silent.

Train has just stopped in a station, and vendors have lined up. Chai chai, biryani, toys, everything; followed by another round of beggars; another set of pains; and one more prayer comes with a silent reply.

Thank god, the train is moving now.
The weather is cool here much more favorable than what it was in Biratnagar.

Life, is just a variety, countless people, infinite expressions. Yesterday, I was in a land where Bengali was so hard to understand. Today, even Bengali people are struggling hard to decode the local Telegu language here. Regardless of the language they speak, their race or color, I can see they are all same, same like me, yet so different.

'm seeing out of window, paddy fields, farms and grape yard. Farmers are busy taking care of their plants; huts, buildings with their own stories of life.

Birds are flying high in the sky. I wish if I were that bird, I would have flown away far somewhere to find my own set of happiness.

I see positiveness everywhere. Hopes are still there. And, the child in front of me is now sleeping silently on his mother's lap as if nothing has happen to him.

Signing off until my next post..

C ya..

At Howrah; echoes within chaos

Too many people. The railway station is house packed with faces. Each face affixed in different heads. Each head has its own set of problems, happiness, shortcomings, complains. Passengers come and go, station remains same. Today, 'm here and tomorrow I will be somewhere else. A group of people has just dropped off the train and they are in rush either to reach somewhere out in the city or to catch another train. And, there are people, 'm one among them, who are staring at them, watching the ant rally, waiting for our turn to get out of this place.

Varieties of religions, rich, poor, ill healthy, normal abnormal, everyone can be seen sitting, smiling, walking, running under the same roof. Some are busy eating food and some are busy staring at them.

Among these all, I find it hard to see small kids begging, collecting remains of food from wastebags, poor woman carrying her child emotionally compelling guests to donate her money, and differently abled children who are acting completely different here. There are children at our homes who have this habit to choose what they don't like to eat; and there are classes of people who can't imagine their life without Pizzas and Burgers; and here are the mass whose children have never entered KFC or dominos; but they are no backward, they often get to taste those foods from the wastebins.

I find it difficult to remain here. Chaos...

Poors are tortured everywhere. First, they don't get to travel with comfort coz they can't afford costly higher class tickets, and second, even police and TTE find these people as an easy source of money. As far as I know, there is no weight limit of baggage you could carry on trains, and no exact definition of what you can carry. But poors and illeterate are often charged fine for carrying their goods. Poor people, they have no option than to donate the fee, else get ready for the charge.

It's been twenty-four hours since I boarded the train at Jogbani, and 'm not loving it. Along with me is a family whose female lead is suffering a heart disease. The male lead was complaining me the other night that he has never been in peace since he married her six years ago. I could do nothing than to express my condolence. His wife has made him spend almost sixtyfive thousand Indian Rupees until the 'Big' hospital in Siliguri suggested him to take her somewhere abroad or to Puttaparthy.

Puttaparthy is an abode of Sri Satya Sai Baba, where he has built a superspeciality Hospital especially to cure Heart disease. The special thing about this superspeciality hospital is it treats free of cost. No check up fee, no medicines charge, no operation fee, completely zero. That's the only place where this family could afford her treatment, and probably the only place in India where she could be treated. Well, we would get to see if she would get the positive result once we reach there.

Sri Satya Sai Baba, there are lots of controversies surrounding him, even after his death. There are people who worship him as an avatar of god, and there are people who criticize his every actions. Well if you ask me, I would say, it's like tossing the coin and getting the third side on. I dont hate people who hate him, and I don't adore people who like him. He is neither a god for me, nor a simple human; he stands on the third side of the coin that I often toss at times of despair.

Whatever, he is surely a god for people who get to have their disease treated free of cost in a superspeciality. In today's world where there is nothing free, specially the complex medical treatment is out of reach of poor, they become fortunate enough to cure their pain free of cost. And, then they would not care if the superspeciality is built from the Black money or white. In this world of corruption and selfishness, he is a god who does something for poor. And, then I won't care if he is fake or anything; he is god if he can gift a smile on face of poor.

Well, the twelve-hour waiting time on Howrah station has been a hectic halt. Went across the Ganges. Ganges River is considered the purest in Hindu religion. There were people who were bathing, a little far a man was washing his shoes there, and next to him a person was brushing his teeth. A few metres away, an old woman was washing her clothes and a person popped off collecting Ganga jal on a small jar that he would worship lord shiva with; a part of which he would retain for his last breath. The walk through the narrow street market named 'Bada Bazaar' was tiring. In contrast to its name, it was crowded, stinky and full of street foods. There are no rules of Hygiene and locals are enjoing every bit of street dishes.

It's 1349 Hrs now, and have my train only at 1550 hrs, and I have no other option now than to keep track of the rush in this station.

There are no beautiful girls, no high heels and plenty of housewives with dark circles accompanied by their husbands carrying at least two children and five bags.

Time for another round of chai....

Time to sign off till my next post, and that will be soon.

Missing my dearest sis; calculating the time difference everytime I watch the clock ticking; and thanking god everytime I miss her.

C ya....