"Ek saala machhar aadmi ko hijda bana diya/ Khadi ki langoti,
sone ka pikdan…/ Ek saala machhar aadmi ko hijda bana diya…….
(One mosquito morphed a man into an eunuch/ Wearing a khadi undergarment
and using a gold spit pot…/ One mosquito morphed a man into an
eunuch)"
The
stereo system of one of the vans in the parking slot in front of emergency
ward of Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) was blaring
this famous dialogue of Nana Patekar from the film, Yashwant. It was
about 10 on Monday night.
Ironically,
mosquitoes in dozens were buzzing around the van, blaring Nana's satirical
dialogue in which this parasite figures umpteen times, and other places
bathed in the light near the ward of the state's premier health centre.
Some drunkards were locked in an animated debate on an absurd topic
near Chhotu's tea, snacks and cigarette stall near the ward, which
remains open in the night. A few patients' attendants and some RIMS
students were having tea at the stall.
But even the drunken fellows were feeling cheerless with the mosquitoes
invading them. Some of them were slapping on their legs and hands
to get rid of their sting. Sitting in my car I was waiting for a friend,
who had got his relative admitted to the RIMS. But it was an arduous
wait. For, the mosquitoes had entered my car through the windscreen
that I had kept open.
We
know that Ranchi, which may be notorious for other civic hazards,
is hardly known for mosquito menace as much as Patna, Muzaffarpur,
Darbhanga and other cities of its parent state are known. Though the
city is not mosquito free, we don't encounter as many mosquitoes in
our houses and apartments in Ranchi as we do in many other Bihar cities.
However,
half-an-hour stay on the RIMS campus on the Monday night reminded
me of Patna, Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga, particularly in the context
of mosquitoes. I wondered how the mosquitoes had such a strong presence
on the campus of a premier health centre, which had hundreds of patients
to look after and which is supposed to be free from such hazardous
parasites.
An
elegant board hanging on the ward's front wall reads: "RIMS-Important
facilities: MRI, CT scan, ECG, X-ray, Ultra Sound, ICU, Blood Bank".
But the board does not mention measures to keep the mosquitoes at
bay.
The
friend, who eventually came to meet me, informed me that there were
far more mosquitoes inside the wards. Patients find it hard to sleep
due to mosquito menace, he said. By then the mosquitoes had sucked
blood from my cheeks, ear, hands and legs too. A few medical students
loitering around Chhotu's stall enlightened me that a dirty drain
passing through the campus was the source of the mosquitoes. The RIMS
administration has taken no steps to cover the drain or keep it clean.
Further
investigations revealed that there were even more mosquitoes at the
Sadar Hospital on the Main Road. In fact, the mosquitoes find it safe
to stay at the government run health centres as they find these places
"safer" and free from disturbances, commented a wag.
Of
late, the Jharkhand Assembly has constituted a committee headed by
its vocal member Radhakrishna Kishore to inspect the RIMS campus and
suggest measures for its improvement. The committee has inspected
the RIMS many times. But I have not heard so far any member even mentioning
about the mosquito menace, not to speak of suggesting measures to
keep the hospital free from these insects. The RIMS recently has got
a new director, N.N. Agrawal. Let us see if he does something to keep
the patients safe from mosquito bites.
A
senior RIMS doctor told me rather casually, "You know, mosquitoes
lived even before human civilisation. Even dinosaurs suffered mosquito
bites." I say: "Doctor! You are thick-skinned and insensitive."
