Pregnant woman evacuated from remote hill village in Chandrapur

Indirabai Rama Jumanake, in her fifth high-risk pregnancy, was evacuated from Ghodankappi village in Chandrapur district on August 10. A team from the Patan Primary Health Centre trekked to her home and brought her safely to the Ayushman Bharat Centre at Patan, well before labour began.

The operation follows the death of Sangeeta Tulshiram Gedam, another pregnant woman from Ghodankappi, on June 14 due to excessive bleeding while being brought down the hill. Ghodankappi, home to the Kolam community, is 20km from the Patan PHC. An 800-metre stretch of steep rocky terrain remains vehicle-inaccessible and becomes treacherous during the monsoon.

Language barriers were overcome through the Mata Sakhi initiative, conceived by District Collector Vasumana Pant, which helped communicate with Indirabai in her familiar language. On Independence Day, guardian minister Dr Ashok Uike visited the family and assured accommodation for her children at Patan Ashram School and compensation for her husband's lost wages during her hospital stay.