Post News Network
Nabarangpur, Jan 29: A Class-VIII student of Kasturba Gandhi Girls’ School at Maidalpur in this district died Thursday as her parents failed to make arrangements for her treatment on time due to poverty.
Significantly, the girl’s father has been issued a health insurance card under the Biju Krushak Kalyan Yojana. But still she could not be provided free treatment as her name was not mentioned in the card.
Deceased Sunita Harijan was suffering from some illness for the past one month. She had complained of headache and nausea. Later, she suffered from fever and was given treatment by the school authorities, who sent her home January 22.
However, her condition worsened after she went home. Following this, her
family members took her to the district headquarters hospital. The doctors
advised to conduct CT scan on her and referred her to Koraput district
headquarters hospital due to unavailability of specialists in the Nabarangpur hospital.
However, Sunita’s parents took her home instead of taking her to the Koraput hospital as they had apprehensions that a lot of money would be required for providing her treatment. Sunita’s father Dambaru Harijan was issued a health insurance card. Though several members of her family were covered under the scheme, she could not avail benefits of it as her name was not mentioned in the card.
Due to the delay in providing treatment, Sunita’s condition turned critical. Her school headmistress Pratima Kumar Jadav, somehow, came to know about the whole matter. Following this, she along with a girls’ coordinator Rajlaxmi Panda went to Sunita’s home Wednesday and immediately admitted her to the district headquarters hospital here. She was later shifted to the Koraput
hospital, but her disease could not be diagnosed as there was no facility for conducting CT scan.
The girl’s condition deteriorated further following which she breathed her last Thursday.
