Anna fan fights system to save homeless

With police and ambulance services allegedly unwilling, the MNC executive took the 70-year-old dying man from under a flyover to Safdarjung Hospital and has been helping him for the last 13 days

Anna fan fights system to save homeless

With police and ambulance services allegedly unwilling, the MNC executive took the 70-year-old dying man from under a flyover to Safdarjung Hospital and has been helping him for the last 13 days

Anna has inspired many and not just to fight corruption. 32-year-old Manas Das is a prime example. For the last thirteen days, the MNC executive has been striving to save the life of a destitute, who was neglected not only by passers-by but also the authorities.

Now what? Das is trying to get this man to an old age home.

Das, who works as a communication expert with a private company in Gurgaon, said, "I was observing this about 70-year-old guy for a few days, sitting under Mahipalpur flyover near Radisson hotel. I always found him sleeping in bare minimum cloth and all kinds of garbage and dung all over his body. People used to urinate and throw waste in the area."

Good samaritan: 32-year-old Manas Das says he has tried to locate
the family of the destitute, but without any success so far. Pics/Mid Dayu00a0

First step
On August 18, Das stood there for a while, gathered courage and asked: 'Papa kuchh khayenge' (Father, do you want some food)? "The moment I asked, his face lit up and he looked at me with curiosity. I rushed to a nearby sweet stall, bought a bottle of water, some dhokla, laddoo and a packet of biscuits. I was planning to get back to work after feeding him. However, soon I realised he needed some medical attention soon or else he would die," said Das.

Das called the police PCR for help at around seven that evening. Once the cops reached they started arguing that this person had family members begging near the traffic light. They asked Das to stand there for an hour and see the results.

By then around 50 people had gathered and the PCR van left without doing anything. After that some onlookers presented a grim picture of the vagabond. The crowd said that the man was leading a pathetic life and he had no family. He hadn't had any food for more than 10 days. "I again dialled 100 but the response was no different," recalled Das.

After all this, at around 8.15 pm, Das dialled Centralised Accident and Trauma Services (CATS) and received a good response. "I got immediate help from CATS ambulance services. However the attendant refused to touch him. I myself took him to Safdarjung Hospital. I reached there at around 9.30 pm. After some fighting with the CMO and other physicians in this hospital they admitted the guy but didn't allot any bed. Instead they gave him a place in one of the passages near ward no. 11. The doctors gave him IV fluid, conducted a CT scan of his head and did all the paperwork for his admission. By the time I reached home it was almost 1:30 am," Das explained.

Doing his bit
Since he had to go to office the next day, the Good Samaritan got late in reaching the hospital. However, from office he kept mailing several organisations involved in taking care of senior citizens. "I reached hospital at around 6 pm but was not happy to see the situation. The person accountable for managing the ward was not doing his duty efficiently. The poor man was left on the bed all alone without even a mattress. I went twice to the CMO's office and finally wrote an application to the medical superintendent by mentioning all the irregularities and carelessness," he said.

As the man didn't have clothes, Das got him some. "After receiving preliminary treatment, he started uttering some words. He mentioned an address of Wazirpur in a Punjabi accent. Next day, as it was my weekly off, I even went to that place to enquire but without success."

A foul smell started to emanate from the men and people were complaining. With the help of a ward boy, Das cleaned him up and changed his clothes. He even offered some money to the ward boys to keep the area clean, but they refused seeing the nature of work.

For the last thirteen days, Das has been caring for the poor man. Despite being arthritic, he has been doing the rounds of the hospital. "Due to this movement, my knees are hurting but I think the poor guy needs attention and so I am doing my duty. Anna has inspired me to not just think of myself, but think of the greater good," he said.

Striking a chord
The two have started forming an emotional attachment. And the old man has also tried to share details of a painful episode of his past. "Somebody attacked either his father or daughter or both by a knife sometime back. He went to police station to file a complaint and he was falsely accused there. I think he also says that his daughter's name is Pinky," Das revealed.

Dr. SK Das Additional Medical Superintendent and Head of Social Welfare Department at Safdarjung Hospital said, "We have been doing all that is required to bring the poor man back to normal. We keep suggesting to the attendant whatever necessary. We had asked him to do an ECG and in the reports there is nothing to panic about. He has protein deficiency; that is the primary concern for now."

The destitute has started regaining his health, but still can't remember his name. Now Das is in talks with some old age homes in the Capital. "There is an organisation 'Sai Vridh Ashram' which has shown interest. Now my only concern is to shift him to an old age home and ensure a better life for him. He needs affection and a human connection," added Das, who is struggling to get an NOC from the police station - a document necessary for admitting any destitute to an old age home.

70,000
Official no. of the homeless in Delhi

1,50,000
Is the figure as per some NGOs