Free ambulance gives relief to pregnant women

BY SUDHA DEV,Saptari, Mar. 11: In  the past, pregnant women in Rupani Rural Municipality, Saptari district, had to worry about ambulance and delivery facilities. However, this problem has been resolved after the municipality introduced free ambulance service.

Afsana Khatun, 45, from Ward No. 1, said that now the ambulance arrives almost immediately after calling. She said the municipality's ambulance provides free transportation to hospitals in Rajbiraj, Biratnagar, Dharan and other places, in cases where women cannot give birth at the local birthing centres.

Similarly, 54-year-old Gujiya Kumari Ram from the same area shared that her daughter-in-law gave birth to her baby a month ago. She said, "When my daughter-in-law was pregnant, I was able to take her for check-ups, get video X-rays, arrange for the necessary medicines and when she went into labour, we used the ambulance to take her to the hospital for childbirth. All of this was provided free of charge." 

She said that four years ago, when her daughter-in-law was pregnant for the first time, they had to spend over Rs. 70,000 for delivery. However, with the services provided by the municipality, including health care and ambulance facilities, no expense was incurred for the second childbirth.

Punita Mandal, 30, from Ward No. 3, who gave birth to her second child eight months ago. She said that the municipality's free services for pregnant women, including video X-rays, medicines, ambulances, blood tests and urine checks, have made things much easier for her and other women in similar situations.

She said, "Due to the lack of resources, women from poor families in the village still do not receive proper checkups beyond basic ones at the local health post. However, with all the free tests available for pregnant women, I was able to get proper check-ups."

Rupani Rural Municipality Chairman Dinesh Kumar Yadav informed that there are three birthing centres in the rural municipality, one each in Kataya, Terahauta and Rupani. All these centres are staffed by trained health workers, where women are able to give birth. 

He said, "Whenever a pregnant woman needs an ambulance, as soon as the information is given, the ambulance is sent immediately. The rural municipality also provides free and fully-equipped childbirth services at the birthing centres, and it is responsible for transporting women to Rajbiraj or any other hospital for childbirth, free of charge."

The municipality organises a health camp once a month, where people can get check-ups and free ECG services. "The municipality continues to provide all types of free medicines available from the government to the general public," he said, "Starting from the next fiscal year, there is a plan to provide free nutritious food for pregnant women. The municipality has been working with a focus on pregnant women, alongside other sectors."