Kamal Barua, who had donated his kidney in 2001, donating blood at the camp

Dec. 22: From across the border and near the foothills, the sounds of staccato gunfire could be heard at brief intervals. But there were no signs of panic inside the sparse room turned into a makeshift camp at the Kumarikata state dispensary.

It was Tuesday, December 16, a day after the Royal Bhutan Army launched its offensive against Northeast rebels inside the country. For the team from the Gauhati Medical College Hospital, it was virtually a journey to a war zone — at Kumarikata in Nalbari district — close to the Indo-Bhutan border.

The mission was to create awareness about the merits of voluntary blood donation. The team from the GMCH comprised two lady doctors and five paramedics. The camp was jointly organised by the Kumarikata branch of the Assam Science Society and Kumarikata state dispensary headed by Chandradhar Barman.

“Barman gave us an assurance about safety over the phone and we proceeded at 7 am. As we drove through Rangiya, we saw convoys of army trucks,” said Habibul Islam, medical director of the blood bank.

The team also saw an army helicopter being refuelled at Tamulpur, perhaps to evacuate the injured from across the border.

“We were keen on the camp after being told that the local people had made all preparations and waiting for us. And according to the national blood policy, blood should come from voluntary donors, especially those collected from camps,” Islam said.

Amid the sounds of gunshots on the way, when the medical team arrived at Kumarikata state dispensary, the shamiana was already up and the chairs were neatly arranged by local school students.

After a brief inaugural function, the first round of blood donation was flagged off by Arbani Begum, a 55-year-old matriarch. People from all walks of life donated blood. Altogether 350 ml was collected.

In an extraordinary gesture, Kamal Baruah, who had donated one of his kidneys to his father in 2001, donated blood.

The organisers claimed that if the military operation had not started, the army officers and the jawans would have joined the camp and the number of collected blood units would have gone up considerably.

The team started the return journey at 3 pm. On the way back, a lone jawan kept vigil on the bridge. Flocks of sparrows feasted on the rice left in the fields and stretches of yellow mustard flowers bloomed, spreading their sweet-pungent smell in the air.