Kendrapara: A wife gives courage and strength to her husband standing by him through thick and thin till death.
But here in Aul block, a woman deserted her husband as he has been suffering from Hepatitis B for last two years. He has also not been able to earn anything for the family. Worse, the villagers too have ostracised him.
According to sources, Pravakar Pradhan, 55, a resident of Atala village under Aul block, started suffering from Hepatitis B when he was going to Kolkata to earn livelihood two years back. Later, he became seriously sick and returned home.
He had undergone treatment at the primary health centre in Aul and then at the district headquarters hospital. After having failed to get relief, Pravakar went to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack for further treatment.
But, his wife left him and went to her parents’ house with her children fearing they would contract the disease.
Later, the villagers also socially boycotted Pravakar suspecting he might have been reeling under an unknown disease and it would spread among them. So, the villagers banned him from using the village pond and tube well.
Meanwhile, his brother Kailash, who is staying separately with his family, stood by him during his bad times and brought him to his home from SCB. Since then, he has been staying with his brother in the village, stated Pravakar.
Aul tehsildar, Aswini Kumar Bhuiyan and a medical team led by Dr Manoj Kumar Senapati recently visited Pravakar to conduct an inquiry.
Dr Senapati, the in-charge medical officer of Aul, said Prabhakar is infected with Hepatitis B virus and the patient generally suffers for a long time. The medical team held an awareness meeting in the village about Hepatitis B and explained to them that Hepatitis B virus does not infect others even if they mingle with the patient.
Bhuyian said the inquiry has revealed that Pravakar’s wife, before deserting him, had asked the villagers not to talk or mingle with her husband as he had been suffering from an unknown disease. As a result, Pravakar had to face all the problems, the tehsildar added.
Now, the situation has improved and the fellow villagers have started mingling with Pravakar. However, he is still leading an isolated life without his wife and children. He has even asked a couple of fellow villagers to go to his in-laws’ house and convince his wife to return.
Meanwhile, Pravakar’s health has improved with the local and district administration providing free medical treatment to him. PNN
