SAMPLE LETTER:
Dear __________,
INDIA: Safe drinking water immediately required in a village in Orissa which had 8 deaths from diarrhea
Name of the affected village: Uparagadala village, Dasamantapur Block, Koraput district, Orissa state, India
Place of incident: Uparagadala village, Dasamantapur Block, Koraput district, Orissa state, India
Date of incident: since 2007
I am writing to you to express my deep concern about the villagers who face a lack of safe drinking water and may face death from water borne diseases such as diarrhea. In 2009 there were 8 deaths from diarrhea and in 2010 6-7 villagers suffered from diarrhea. I am aware that several districts including Rayagada, Koraput, Nuapada, and Kalahandi have been facing diarrheal deaths every year. In 2010 in particular, the death toll was over 100 and those affected were more than 2,000.
Despite these distressing statistics, I am informed that the government has not taken the situation seriously. No long-term steps have been taken to prevent deaths in these areas. Instead, they merely provide emergency relief. I am of the opinion that the government should ensure safe drinking water and other basic facilities that can eventually prevent water-borne diseases. Uparagadala village, that I have learned about recently, is one of the examples of an area that the government has failed to ensure the right to health leading to death and disease every year.
I am informed that there are only two wells with hand-pumps for 180 households. The majority is made up of tribes and 15 Dalits families, Harizans also reside in the village. A couple of years ago, one hand-pump well was built near the tribal communities and another for other communities including Harizans.
I am shocked to learn that since early last year Harizans and others have been drinking water from a nearby river as they found the water from one of the wells was not drinkable. There is a strong iron smell to the water and it is visibly reddish-yellow in color. They discovered that the water got thick and more reddish after boiling. With no other recourse, they started using muddy river water for drinking. The women boil it sometimes but not always.
I am informed that 6-7 villagers suffered from diarrhea during the rainy season in 2010. Fortunately all of them were either taken to the emergency health camp set up for diarrhea or given medicines by an Auxiliary Nursing Midwife (ANM). I am further informed that the villagers have lodged complaints about the unsafe drinking water facilities most recently in the Nodal meeting attended by Panchayat (elected village council) Executive Officer and seven Panchayat Raj members held in May and June. The administrative authority has responded that they would take care of the irregularities, but no actual steps have been taken as of today.
In addition, women in the village particularly have been deprived of their right to health. I have learned that Ms. Nilabhati Bagh belonging to the Harizan community went to the Community Health Centre (CHC) to give birth to her third baby a few years ago. When calling an ambulance, she was asked by the driver to pay INR 200 for the service. In CHC, she had to pay INR 200 to the doctor and 200 to the female health worker. For her fourth child, she was not encouraged to go to the CHC. She is not the only case in the village.
Another woman in her 30s, Suryo Takri, delivered her son at the CHC a year and half ago. She was also asked to pay INR 200 for an ambulance, INR 300 to the doctor, INR 100 to the female nurse, and INR 800 for medicines. Her entire health care subsidy of INR 1,400 was spent on bribes for the CHC staff members. And to make matters worse, she and her family members who looked after her in labor at the CHC had to take a public bus to return home after delivery on the same day. The ambulance driver refused to take her home saying that he had another patient to pick up. As it is clearly shown in these two cases, the cash subsidy that aims at encouraging rural women to deliver their babies in a safer institutional facility were spent on corrupt public servants.
It was also found that the Koraput district hospital does not provide ambulances for women from other districts. A woman, whose husband is from Uparagadala village, said that when she went to the Koraput district hospital for delivery, since her residence was in a neighboring district closer to the Koraput district hospital, she was not provided with an ambulance and also had to pay INR 1,000 for medicines.
I am of the opinion that physical inaccessibility caused by lack of proper roads is a big obstacle for women seeking care in the public health institutions. The CHC is 12 kilometers away from the village and women find it difficult to go to the center during the rainy season as the road gets flooded. In addition, the ambulance fee and medicine cost is a corrupt practice that discourages women from giving birth in an institutional setting and contributing to increased child mortality. I have learned that on May 26, one tribal woman gave birth at home instead of going to the CHC. Her mother-in-law was aware that the driver would ask for ambulance fee and she would have to pay for medicines and others items. She thought her daughter-in-law would be able to deliver her baby at home without any complications. But after being in labor and delivering the baby some problems with the new baby surfaced and she immediately called for an ambulance at 11pm on that day. The driver did not come immediately but came in the early morning on the following day. Sadly, the new born baby died in the ambulance on the way to the CHC.
It is known that tribal women have been deprived of government public health facilities for generations. They try to keep their own traditional practices for labor and health care. They are usually hesitant to approach public health institutions because their services do not favor tribal women. Corrupt medical personnel, including doctors, furthermore take bribes from rural women and contribute to maintaining a high child-mortality rate.
I therefore, urge you to ensure the right to health of villagers, and women in particular. It is immediately required that safe drinking water and sanitation facilities be provided, as well as proper road connections to the village. Above all, in order to eradicate child and maternal mortality and morbidity, the corruption practiced by medical officials and other public servants should be stopped.
The case narrated here is just one example of many. Therefore, I further urge the government authority to take steps to establish safe drinking water and other necessary facilities to prevent the water borne diseases over the four districts including Koraput. I am highly concerned that children could again be the hapless victims of governmental negligence this year as the rainy season approaches.
I look forward to your prompt response and action.
----------------
PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:
1. Mr. Naveen Patnaik
Chief Minister
Naveen Nivas, Aerodrome Road
P.O.Bhubaneswar
751001 Orissa
INDIA
E-mail: cmo@ori.nic.in
2. Mr. B.K Patnaik
Chief Secretary, Panchayati Raj
Government of Orissa, Bhubaneswar
Orissa
INDIA
E-mail: csori@ori.nic.in
3. Sushil Kumar Lohani
Commissioner-cum-Director
Special Projects, Government of Orissa
Bhubaneswar, Orissa
INDIA
E-mail: lohanisk@yahoo.com
4. Ms. Anu Garg, IAS
Commissioner- cum- Secretary
Department of Health and Family Welfare
Government of Orissa
Bhubaneswar, Orissa
INDIA
Fax: +91 674 239 5235
E-mail: orhealth@ori.nic.in
5. Suresh Chandra Mahapatra, IAS
Principal Secretary
Department of Water Resources
Government of Orissa
Bhubaneswar, Orissa
INDIA
E-mail: wrsec@ori.nic.in
6. Vilasrao Deshmukh
Minister of Ministry of Rural Development
Government of Orissa
Bhubaneswar, Orissa
INDIA
Fax: +91 674 23385876
E-mail: minoffice@nic.in
7. Collector
Sri Sachin R. Jadhav, IAS
Collectorate, Koraput PO
Koraput, Orissa
764020
INDIA
E-mail: dm-koraput@nic.in
8. Justice K.G. Balakrishnan
Chairperson
National Human Rights Commission
Faridkot House, Copernicus Marg
New Delhi 110001
INDIA
Fax + 91 11 2338 4863
E-mail: chairnhrc@nic.in
Chairperson
National Human Rights Commission
Faridkot House, Copernicus Marg
New Delhi 110001
INDIA
Fax + 91 11 2338 4863
E-mail: chairnhrc@nic.in
9. Chairperson
National Commission for Women
4, Deen Dayal Upadhayaya Marg,
New Delhi - 110 002
Fax: +91 11 2323 6154
E-mail: complaintcell-ncw@nic.in
No comments:
Post a Comment