A voluntary organisation in the Sunderbans is equipping rural women to conduct basic health scans with instruments such as thermal guns and pulse oximeters to detect symptoms of Covid-19 faster.

“We have observed that people in rural areas like the Sunderbans often ignore symptoms and invite bigger problems by delaying medication. This has become more evident during the pandemic as many people have either died or suffered enormously owing to delay in detection,” said Subhasis Mondal, who is the secretary of Maa Saroda Women & Rural Welfare Society, the non-government organisation that works for the socio-economic empowerment of women in the Sunderbans and adjacent areas of North 24-Parganas.

Last Wednesday, women of 20 self-help groups and 10 Accredited Social Health Activist (Asha) workers and auxiliary nurses-cum-midwives (ANM) active in Hingalganj and Hasnabad blocks of the Sunderbans under Basirhat subdivision in North 24-Parganas, received medical equipment with financial support of an industrial gas production company, Linde Global Support Services Private Limited.

The initiative is aimed at bridging the gap between the detection of diseases and start of medication and start of medication which often gets delayed and results in deaths in the remote areas of the Sunderbans.

A member of the society explained the ground realities. “ There are two reasons for the delay (in diagnosis and medication). First, the unavailability of basic health scanning devices like pulse oximeter, thermal gun or thermometer with Asha workers. Second, the reluctance of people to visit rural health centres because of the distance. Our objective is to take the scanning initiative to the people by engaging women of self-help groups.”

Dipti Das Karmakar, 48, a self-help group leader in the Bispur area of Hasnabad, said Covid had been an “eye-opener”.

“Many people died of Covid only because they ignored the symptoms in the initial stages. In some cases, patients died before the required medication could begin. Now equipped with a thermal gun, pulse oximeter and a kit we can change this situation,” she said.

Asha worker Anima Das said: “It is a big support for us and for the people here. The only time we were provided these devices was for election day duty.”

Asked about remuneration, an official of the society said the daily allowance of workers is care of.

“It is in the range of Rs 150 per day per person,” he added.

The local administration is being kept in the loop. A regular health update is being sent to the block development officer and the block medical health officer every day, said Mondal. He added their organisation would pay for the blood tests of villagers if required.

A senior manager of the gas company, Susanta Mohanty, said that with this initiative, they aimed to create health awareness “so that people turn up to get health check-ups done on time”.

A senior health official of North 24-Parganas administration welcomed this corporate help.

“The government has certain limitations despite its commitment to people’s welfare. If more such organisations come up to extend support to the government, the gap in rural healthcare can be easily bridged,” he said.