Santa Claus shook a leg with more than 60 children and several elders undergoing treatment for cancer at a carnival in a New Town hospital on Friday.
The Christmas Carnival was held at Premashraya, the residential facility for underprivileged cancer patients, at Tata Medical Center in New Town’s Action Area I DC Block.
A Class VII boy from Canning was the star of a dance session conducted by a professional dance troupe.
In a blue sweatshirt and sporting a Santa hat, the boy, who was diagnosed with blood cancer six months ago, rocked the dance floor along with a 60-year-old woman, who had undergone chemotherapy in the morning.
Nearly everyone in the auditorium had Santa hats on and even those who were sitting could be seen tapping their feet or waving their hands as peppy dance numbers played out one after the other.
Sanjeev Kumar Agarwal the chief financial officer of the Tata Medical Centre took to the stage along with senior hospital functionaries to dance.
“We had smaller events even during Covid. But this year we decided to scale up the celebrations as Christmas is all about spreading cheese and happiness,” Agarwal said.
The carnival, presented by Rotary Club of Calcutta Visionaries, Dist 3291, had outdoor activities too.
Sudeshna Dutt, the head of operations at Premashraya, said the programme was a welcome break not only for the patients but also for the employees of the facility.
“It brings joy to children, men and women who are fighting the odds every day,” Dutt said.
The children received toys, chocolate and other gifts from the Rotary Club of Calcutta Visionaries. “It was really special as our club members got a chance to turn Santa for a day,” Vidhi Chandak, chairperson of the cancer committee at the club.
Surgery saves 6-year-old child’s vision
A six-year-old girl who was on the verge of losing eyesight because of an acute infection in the sinuses, got her vision back following a surgery at a private hospital this month.
Doctors at Apollo Multispeciality Hospitals, where the girl from Durgapur was treated, said her condition — “acute sinusitis with severely advanced right-sided orbital cellulitis” — was “extremely rare” with a global incidence rate of one per cent.
In simple terms, an infection in her sinuses had spread to her right eye. The accumulation of pus had caused swelling of the eye and pushed the eyeball outwards.
She was referred to Apollo from another hospital. She was admitted on December 10 and underwent surgery on December 12. “It was a challenging procedure,” said Shantanu Panja, senior ENT, head and neck surgeon, who led the operation.