Window
Seat | Mrinal Chatterjee
Patients’
Rights Day
Anamika
Ray, a media academician, a mother of a 5 years old girl was 36 when she died
at a Delhi hospital on 19 July 2015. She had been admitted for a simple
operation. It got complicated and she was shifted to another hospital where she
breathed her last. A family got shattered.
A brilliant career (by that that she had completed her doctorate and had
made a name as a translator of fiction from Bengali to Assamese and vice versa)
came to an abrupt halt because of what her husband alleged as ‘medical
negligence’- a charge later proved and admitted by Delhi Medical Council.
Anamika’s is not a lone case. A report says in India thousands die or suffer
permanent damage because of medical negligence. Patients are looted and
swindled at every step of the treatment. Read the cover story of Outlook June
19, 2017 issue to know more about the scale and modus operendi.
Most
of us bear the loss and sit silently hoping someday somebody will do something
about it. Or, probably the government will take notice.
Dr.
Ankuran Dutta, her husband decided to fight back on behalf of all the patients.
He formed a trust Dr. Anamika Ray Memorial Trust and started a campaign for
patients’’ rights and against ‘medical terrorism’. The trust decided to observe
June 25, Anaika’s birthday as Patients’ Rights Day.
As
a patients we have certain rights, say for example- the right to get necessary
information about our medical situation, expected treatment costs, expected
outcome, redressal process and our medical record within 72 hours. We must be aware of our rights and exercise
that right. Often we are brow bitten or asked to rely upon the doctors. It is
ok to believe but it is not wise to get cheated. With the big hospitals out to
make money, they want the patients to spend more money and go for expensive
procedures when cheaper and better alternatives are available.
People
must be aware of their rights and there needs to be a transparent redressal
system. The Trust is doing its bit for that. To know about the campaign, please
visit: http;//smt.armt.in
Rath Yatra
Today, 25 June 2017 happens to be Asada Sukla Dwitiya. On this day the presiding deity of
Shreemandira, Puri, Lord Jagannath along with Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra
are taken on three colourful chariots to their maternal aunt’s home- Sri
Gundicha Temple. This festival is known as Rath Yatra.
Rath Yatra is celebrated in many places in India and abroad. The
Rath Yatra at Mahesh, West Bengal is quite well-known.
However, Rath Yatra at Puri, a temple town in Odisha, one of the
four holy pitha of the Hindus is one
of the grandest spectacles on the earth.
Full of drama and panoply of rituals and ceremonies, Rath Yatra is
rooted in ancient traditions, myths and legends. It embodies the most colorful
elements of the classical and folk cultures of the Indian subcontinent and the
Odisha region.
One interesting feature about Rath Yatra at Puri is: here the
presiding deities of the temple are taken out on a procession. In many temples
deities are taken out in procession. But in few temples the presiding deities
are taken out. Usually a representative of the presiding deity is taken out on
the procession. But here at Puri and in most of the Jagannath Temples across
the world- the presiding deities are taken out. This has a symbolic
significance. It is as if the deities want to mingle with the masses as much as
the masses want to have a darshan of
the Lord. It signifies the importance of the masses in creating their God. The
God is as much the creation of its devotees as the devotees are of Him.
Rath Yatra
Recently Subas Pani, the former Chief Secretary of Odisha, a well-known scholar
on Jagannath philosophy has published a book titled Rath Yatra. It was released at Kaling Literature Festival in Bhubaneswar recently.
Pani did his
PhD on Jayadeva’s Geetagovinda. He has
authored several books on the culture and heritage of Odisha.
Published by Niyogi Books, this 226 page, well illustrated book with
beautiful photographs of the grand spectacle is a comprehensive account of Rath
Yatra at Puri. It provides the background of the origin of Lord Jagannath, who
has strong links with the heritage of the aborigine tribes. Rich in detail, the
book covers a wide span including the legends surrounding the temple, the
unique architectural style of the temple complex, the elaborate preparatory
summer festivals leading up to the main festival and the varied rituals
associated with making of the chariots and the actual Yatra or the journey.
Read this if you want to know about Rath Yatra, or just browse the
beautiful photographs of one of the grandest spectacle on earth.
Tailpiece 1 Motivational
Message of the Year
If you do not love your job… take a home loan. You will start
loving it.
Take another
loan, you will start loving your boss as well.
Get married…
you will start loving your office as well.
(Courtesy:
Social Media forward)
Tailpiece 2 Yoga
Tips
Whatever your
wife says, move your head up and down twice. This is the best yoga. This will
not only reduce your insomnia, irritability, restlessness and keep your
blood-pressure normal but also keep you content. This is the key to a happy
life.
Warning: don’t
ever move your head sidewise. That could be dangerous for your health.
Mrinal Chatterjee, a journalist turned media
academician lives on the valley of Paniohala Hills at Dhenkanal, Odisha. He
also writes fiction.
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