-Abdul Rashid Agwan
It is rightly said that necessity is the mother of invention. It has been proved once again by a few soft hearted Indians by thinking of developing ‘bike ambulance’ to serve poor in case of dire emergencies.
At least one of them, Karimul Haque, a poor tea garden labor, rose to the national fame and received Padmashree award by the President of India last January. He is a pioneer in the field as he is doing this noble work since last two decades, starting with his cycle ambulance.
Hearing a story how a beggar in Hyderabad carried dead body of his wife on foot or on pushcart for some distance last November, Mohammed Shahroze Khan designed a bike ambulance early this year which can carry one patient at a time. It has all facilities to meet emergencies. His design is awaiting approval for commercial production.
In fact, such a designed bike ambulance has been launched in Mumbai last month by the chief minister of Maharashtra.
Two years back in April 2015, Karnataka government has also launched its own version of bike ambulance using Avenger 220CC.
Karimul Haque, spends half of his earnings to provide his bike ambulance 24 hour services free of charge to people in and around his village Dhulabari in Jalapaiguri district of West Bengal. This angel is fondly called as ‘Bike Ambulance Dada’ by local people. He has to travel almost 45 km to reach the hospital. It all started when his mother died whose life could have been saved had there been a similar facility available to him. Nevertheless, his own benignity has saved 3500 lives by December 2016.
Aman Yadav of Pandeypur in Uttar Pradesh has also dedicated himself in the service of poor and needy by using his bike as ambulance. He also provides first aid to the patients. Due to him, the zonal hospital has to improve its facilities.
Now, bike ambulance may be seen in the national capital too, thanks to the efforts of Advocate Praveen, who proposed to the Delhi government some time back to undertake such a service in Delhi free of charge. He reports that the office of the Lieutenant Governor is taking active interest to give his node to the idea.
The heart and mind of man has no bounds. There will always be merciful souls coming forward to serve mankind in their own innovative ways without bothering for challenges and resources.
Abdul Rashid Agwan is a renowned writer based in New Delhi.
