Jharkhand Jaguar, an elite squad to eradicate Naxalism in the state, have adopted a village merely 15km from its headquarters in the capital, making this a first-of-its-kind policy decision for Jharkhand Police, which so far had only run community welfare programmes.
For now, the Jaguar, as the foster parent for Manatu village in Kanke block, is providing only healthcare services, said Jaguar IG (special task force) of R.K. Mallick.
Monitoring healthcare will be easy as the Jaguar have their base camp at Tendergram bordering Manatu, less than a kilometre away. And, the project has got off on a sure start, as was evident at the May 30 mega health camp.
"Right after we decided on adopting Manatu's health services, on May 30 we arranged a mega medical camp at our Tendergram camp for Manatu villagers. Over 500 villagers were checked at the camp and given medicines free of cost. We are roping in state health department to ensure proper medical facilities, including regular check-ups of villagers. We will provide healthcare staff all logistic support, including our campus, to hold medical camps," Mallick said.
Explaining the reason behind adopting Manatu, Mallick said a joint team of the Jaguar and health department had surveyed different villages under Manatu panchayat recently and found out that the village with the same name had half its population suffering from anaemia, malnutrition and other diseases.
While Manatu panchayat has a population of 6,060, 2,585 people live in Manatu village, which includes 93 and 610 from the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories. Most work as farmers and farm hands, but some people are also contract labourers.
"Twice in a week, doctors visit our camp at Tendergram for regular health check-ups of the squad. But, that doesn't take much time. That's why we decided to utilise the spare time of doctors for this community welfare programme at Manatu. For starters, at least twice in a month, such health camps will be organised for villagers. Those treated during the free medical camp on the first day were issued health cards and told to keep them safely for the next visit," said Saket Kumar Singh, Jaguar SP (STF).
The Jaguar will arrange ambulances for those facing serious health problems that require hospitalisation. These ambulances will drop the patient at the nearest nursing home, health centre or Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Bariatu, Ranchi, depending on the severity of the illness.
Contacted, Dr Sumant Mishra, health services director-in-chief, said the response of the first health camp on May 30 was excellent.
"We will support Jaguars' initiative in all possible ways, including deputing doctors and providing medicines," Mishra added.
"Improving health services in Manatu is our first priority for now," Mallick said. "But, in due course, we will venture into other areas as well in a phased manner. Other than health, the happiness quotient of villagers is important for us."
