Bengaluru, Jun 01, 2021: With the Covid-19 lockdown in place in several states, patients with serious medical conditions are having a hard time getting their medicines and treatment on time. There have been numerous accounts of how people have above and beyond to ensure that their loved ones remain healthy and receive the best treatment that they can. In one such incident, a construction worker from Karnataka had to take a desperate journey amidst the lockdown to get life-saving medicines for his son. According to a report by Deccan Herald, the father of the patient had to cycle 300 km from his native village Ganiganakoppal near Bannur in T Narasipur taluk to Bengaluru to get medicines for his son with special needs.
The construction worker’s son had been receiving his treatment at Bengaluru’s National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) for the past ten years, according to the report. However, considering the second wave of Covid pandemic in the country and the subsequent lockdown in the state, he could not take his son for the regular medical check-up. Deccan Herald reports that the father and son used to visit the hospital once in two months to procure medicines.
Considering the urgent need for medicines, the construction worker decided to peddle for 300 kilometres all by himself. He went to Bengaluru on a bicycle and left the village on May 23 and returned on May 26, with the medicines for his son. Speaking to Deccan Herald the father said that the doctors had said the chances of an epileptic attack were high if the medicines were stopped before the boy turned 18-years. Hence, to save his son he had to take the journey on the bicycle. He also mentioned that the doctors at NIMHANS gave him Rs 1,000 after they learned about the distressing situation he was put in.
The southern state is currently under a lockdown that will remain in place till June 7. The state government has said that it will consider extending the lockdown further on June 5.