wow! this is truely awesome. it only enhances my respect and fascination for the people of karala in general. what is it about them... can it be anything other than comunist influence?? i may sound really biased, but the kind of rational awairness and sensibility karalites possess is truely noticible in almost every karalite i've met and known so far. i don't mean to say that non-karalites dont possess it. of course that would be stupid. all i'm saying is that in karala it is extremely visible. this is just personal opinion that ive dared to share publically. because i'm generally always in awe and respect of the machinery of the state.
On 9/1/13, avinash shahi <shahi88avin...@gmail.com> wrote: > New Delhi, Sun Sep 01 2013, 00:17 hrs > http://www.indianexpress.com/news/the-village-with-a-vision/1162473/0 > Cherukulathur village in Kerala's Kozhikode district has achieved an > unusual and noble landmark — 100 eye donations in 10 years. In this > hamlet of 650 homes, it has been a ritual since 2003 to donate the > eyes of a dead villager to two blind persons, each getting one eye. > Over the last 10 years, some 100 pairs of eyes have been donated, > corresponding to 100 deaths in the same period. It has benefited 206 > people, none from Cherukulathur though, as the village doesn't have a > single blind person. > > Eye harvesting in Cherukulathur has its beginnings in blood donation. > In the 1980s, patients from the village found it difficult to get > blood in the government hospital. A group of villagers discussed the > issue at TP Govidankutty Memorial Library, a vibrant > library-cum-reading room in the village. They decided to build their > own "blood group directory", which would have details of blood groups > of all the men of Cherukulathur. This would help not just fellow > villagers in times of need, but patients from other villages, too, who > would be treated at the government hospital 19 km away. So, whenever a > patient needed blood, the hospital would direct his or her relatives > to the village. > > But donating blood was not enough for the good samaritans of > Cherukulathur. TM Chandrasekharan, the secretary of TP Govidankutty > Memorial Library, says, "Over time, people realised that they should > donate beyond blood. But they did not know what." > > It was around this time, in 1996, that P Chathukutty, a social leader > in the village, organised a camp where villagers pledged to donate > their eyes. Months later, Chathukutty died, and became the first eye > donor. Thus, the village intellectuals who would meet at TP > Govidankutty Memorial Library decided that they would start donating > eyes. > > But it was not easy to convince villagers to donate their eyes. > Between 1996 and 2003, only four pairs of eyes were donated in the > village. A more systematic and coordinated approach was needed to > convert Cherukulathur into a "complete eye-donation village", says > Chandrasekharan. In 2003, doctors were brought in to conduct awareness > programmes, and some 15 squads were formed for door-to-door campaigns. > > Chandrasekharan says over the last decade, the village has harvested > eyes from "all deaths". "We don't have an eye bank. As soon as there > is a death in the village, someone known to the deceased informs the > library office-bearers, who, in turn, alert the government hospital > and two other private eye hospitals. We do not choose among the > hospitals. The medical teams then come to our village to collect the > eyes." > > Today, medical teams are a mobile phone call away, but in the years > past, recalls library officer MT Raveendran, "villagers would stand at > every junction to flag down the teams". Such was their determination > that "even rains or odd hours would not stop us from donating a > corpse's eye.'' Cherukulathur's story is well-known in nearby > districts, and library office-bearers are often invited to speak at > eye donation awareness programmes in north Kerala. > > Buoyed by their eye donation story, some villagers now want to donate > their bodies. Fifteen persons have given their written agreement to > the forensic department of the medical college in Kozhikode, > expressing their willingness to donate bodies for medical studies. > > Next month, TP Govidankutty library plans to organise a meeting to > honour the families of the 100 donors who have made Cherukulathur a > village with a vision. > > > -- > Avinash Shahi > M.Phil Research Scholar > Centre for The Study of Law and Governance > Jawaharlal Nehru University > New Delhi India > > Register at the dedicated AccessIndia list for discussing accessibility of > mobile phones / Tabs on: > http://mail.accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/mobile.accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ > > To unsubscribe send a message to > accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please > visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > Disclaimer: > 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the > person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; > > 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails > sent through this mailing list.. > Register at the dedicated AccessIndia list for discussing accessibility of mobile phones / Tabs on: http://mail.accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/mobile.accessindia_accessindia.org.in Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ To unsubscribe send a message to accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in Disclaimer: 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails sent through this mailing list..
