For Hamidia hospital's poor patients, Prerna brings a sliver of hope

Like most government hospitals, Hamidia—the associate hospital of the Gandhi Medical college at Bhopal—is always overflowing with patients, most of whom can’t afford the medicines and tests. It is for these patients that Sardar Dayal Singh Saluja, 78, has been working for the last eight years. "Somehow, the idea of donating money to gurdwaras or temples never appealed to me," he says. The ‘Prerna Seva Trust’ was built with the help of the "many who want to serve personally and the most who want to remain behind the scenes", says Saluja. "Our motto is to try to meet every need of the patient and his kin," he says. The trust arranges medicines and blood, pays for tests, even arranges for blankets and cooking materials. It also pays for cremations and sometimes for a small monthly aid for families who have lost a bread-winner. "We are able to meet the needs of only 50-odd patients everyday. It is by no means enough, but that is all we can manage," he says, rather apologetically.

It was after a long bout of illness, following a coronary bypass surgery in Chennai, that Saluja decided to do something other than "merely earning money and bringing up the children". It was during his search for something worthwhile to do that he landed up in the burns ward of the Hamidia hospital. He was appalled to see the pathetic state of the patients and their kin. "I was in tears," he says. He began by distributing 25 litres of milk everyday in the hospital and handing over cash to anyone who wanted it. "But I found that the money was being misused and I realised that such haphazard functioning will not do," he says.

It was then that he formed the ‘Prerna Seva Trust’ and started a campaign to associate others with him. Soon he had enlisted the support of several businessmen. Most gave money but some like Shyam Kishore Shukla, a Class A railway contractor, are now also personally involved.

Work begins at dawn when milk packets are supplied to the patients. Then comes the job of arranging blood, medicines and tests. "We used to spend around Rs 30,000 a month on medicines. Then somebody suggested we approach the doctors for the samples they get from pharma companies. To my pleasant surprise, more than 40 doctors readily agreed," says Saluja. Help also came from other unexpected quarters. Thus the dairy shop which used to supply curd for the food packets (for the once-a-week kadhi), agreed to supply it free after the shopowner came to know about the trust. "Kya saara punya aap hi kamoage. Hamko bhi to kuch kamane do (You’ll keep all the blessings for yourself? Let us also get some)," the shop owner reportedly told Saluja over the phone. Even the shops supplying medicines do so on a no-profit-no-loss basis.

The trust maintains a data bank of voluntary donors to meet the blood needs of patients. Cooking stoves, kerosene, flour packets etc are given to patients or their kin who want to cook for themselves. In the evenings, 300 packets containing five rotis and a sabzi are distributed to the kin living in the hospital premises at Re 1 per packet.

If a patient who is the sole breadwinner of a family dies, the trust extends an aid of Rs 300 per month to the family for a year. For the handicapped, wheelchairs and crutches are arranged. But the best testament of the trust’s efforts comes from Basanti Bai, who’s been waiting for five days to get admitted in the overcrowded hospital. "But for this food, I would have gone back to my village." Adds Vijay Mourya, who’s been working for the trust for the last five years, "Majboor hain, varna mein to yehan kaam karne ke paise bhi nahi leta" (I’m helpless, or I wouldn’t even take money to work here). For further information, contact: Prerna Seva Trust, Rain Basera Building, Hamidia Hospital, Bhopal. Tel: 549202, 463897