Healthcare Crisis: Woman Miscarries, Carried On Cot For Four Km In Chhattisgarh's Bastar

Jagdalpur: Healthcare remains a far cry for Naxal-affected villages of Bastar. Patients being carried on cots to hospitals for treatment is a common occurrence in the region.

One such incident was reported from Gudiapadar village in Jagdalpur where a pregnant woman suffered a miscarriage and was taken on a cot for four kilometres to an ambulance in pitch dark. The woman was admitted to Dimarapal hospital in a critical condition. However, she is out of danger now, said doctors.

Locals said, Lakshmi Markam miscarried on the night of October 10. As she lied on the floor unconscious and soaked in blood, her family called the 108 ambulance. However, the ambulance could not ply all the way to the village due to absence of a motorable road.

Left with no option, Lakshmi's family members and a few villagers put her on a cot and carried her to Chitalpur village traversing through a muddy path, dense forest, hills and a stream. The ambulance waiting at Chitalpur took her to Dimarapal hospital.

Obstetrics and Gynecology Specialist Dr Alpana Bansal said Lakshmi was brought to the hospital in a critical condition. "She had lost a lot of blood and our team worked tirelessly to treat her," she said. Dr Bansal said Lakshmi had to be transfused four units of blood. "She was unable to get up when she arrived. Now she has started to move around. She will be kept in the hospital for a few days and given appropriate treatment," she said.

Gudiapadar was once a stronghold of Naxalites and was liberated four years back. But even today, the village remains deprived of even the basic facilities.

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