Pregnant woman gets primitive 'vehicle' ride to hospital through jungle in pitch dark

Chamarajanagar: In a shocking incident, villagers in Chamarajanagar were compelled to carry a pregnant woman in a makeshift palanquin through thick forests in the dead of night to a hospital, 8 km away, as no transport was available, as per videos going viral on Thursday.

The videos of villagers carrying the pregnant woman in a 'doli' made of cloth on their shoulders have moved the public, who have slammed the authorities for not making any transport facility available to the people in remote forest villages.

The incident was reported from the district's Dodvani village, located in the fringes of Mala Mahadeshwara Hill (MM Hill) forest region.

Shantala developed labour pains much before the due date. As no villager owned a motor vehicle, a handful of people and her family members, including women, decided to carry her to the nearest hospital, located 8 km away in Sulvaadi.

They quickly built a 'doli' with cloth and a wooden staff, and carried Shantala, through the 8-km thick forest stretch, considered the abode of elephants.

Braving the threats of attacks by other wild animals like tigers, wild boars, cheetahs, the villagers who started their journey at 1 a.m. managed to reach the health centre by 6 a.m., where Shantala was attended by doctors and delivered a baby without any complications.

The government has launched a "Jana-Mana" scheme in the region, where 5 jeeps are being provided for emergency purposes for the use of villagers who have to walk for a minimum of 8 to 10 km for any emergencies. However, authorities are maintaining that they couldn't be reached on mobile due to signal problems.

District Health Officer Dr K. Vishveshwaraiah maintained that the woman should have got admitted a week before. "There are vehicles provided for the use of villagers and this incident had happened due to signal issues. Necessary action will be taken to set up alternative modes of communication," he said.