Every year snake bites occur in different districts of Bengal. The same phenomenon can be seen in the neighboring countries of India. According to a report, 64,000 people die due to snake bite in India every year. 80% of all snake bites in the world occur in the Indian subcontinent. An average of 2,000 snakebite deaths occur in West Bengal every year. Doctor Dayalbandhu Majumdar is an ophthalmologist by profession. Dr. Majumder has seen in his career in government hospitals in various districts of West Bengal that by the time a snakebite patient is brought to the hospital, it is ‘too late’. The unscientific treatment of hammers, guns, and ojhas ultimately harms the patients.
The picture is somewhat similar in Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh’s rural villages or slums. Farmers spend most of their day in fields and crops. The Terai region of Nepal is full of thickets. People have to go to this region because of farming. As reported by ‘The Kathmandu Post’, 2,700 women and children die every year in Nepal due to snake bites. So they need special awareness about what to do after a snake bite. The urge is felt by the members of Sundarbans ‘Canning Rational Society’. As thought so act. On October 26, 6 environmentalists left for Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh by bicycle.
The World Health Organization’s goal is to halve snakebite deaths by 2030. While cycling, Tushar and Shubhendu say, “We want death from snake bites to stop, not 50%.” That is possible only when proper awareness is developed. If bitten by a snake, take the patient to the hospital first, not Ojha or Gunin.” Eco-friendly pollution-free vehicles ride on bicycles and the snow-lovers are easily mingling with the people on both sides of their journey. An awareness poster banner is given to them.
From Canning in Sundarbans, they are cycling to three countries. 73-year-old Niranjan Sardar pressed the bicycle pedal. Kabil Jamadar and Ravi Saura are going to organize snakebite awareness camps in the villages and towns that fall on the way. The first hour is very important for the snakebite patient. If a snakebite patient is taken to the hospital quickly, life is saved.
Sundarban two-wheeler team spread awareness about treatment after snake bite in Raiganj, Malda, Alipurduar, Siliguri. Tushar and Sudipta, members of Canning’s ‘Rudimentary Cultural Society’, held an awareness camp at Khulna Medical College. Apart from doctors and health workers, many common people throng Khulna Medical College. The people of Khulna, doctors, and health workers extended their helping hands to them. Health worker Shakib is keeping track of the journey of the cyclists to Bangladesh. Sanjeev Sharma, professor of medicine, welcomes the cycle journey to Nepal. Apart from India, such initiatives in three neighboring countries have already shaken the people of those countries enough.
