THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK
Daltonganj, January 11: In Palamu, there is currently no donor for food baskets for 2,208 tuberculosis (TB) patients. No ‘Nik Chhay Mitr’ has come forward to assist.
A food basket donor provides nutritional supplements to a TB patient for at least six months. Each food basket costs over ₹800 per month, containing essentials like cereals or millets, vegetable oil, milk, and other items.
District TB Officer’s appeal to donors
Palamu district TB officer Dr Anil Kumar Sriwastaw in his press briefing today said, “No one is coming forward to give food basket to the 2,208 TB patients who have given their consent to receive this humanitarian freebies for a minimum of six months.”
“I and my team tried hard to discover such donors. There were many who heard us too attentive to our first plea for food basket but later on these many declined to take our phone calls even,” said a highly emotional TB head of Palamu Dr Anil.
He stated that, in the absence of donors, they would resort to begging, walking through the streets and asking passersby for help for TB patients. Donation boxes will be set up in public places, closely monitored by local elites or elected members of the Panchayati Raj institutions.
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Treating Multi-Drug Resistant TB and availability of test kits
While there is a donor crisis for food baskets for TB patients in Palamu, there are 60 identified patients with multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). Their treatment is ongoing and may last anywhere from 11 to 20 months.
Dr. Anil further informed the press that there are no issues with the availability of True NAAT and CBNAAT test kits, which are readily accessible. However, he acknowledged that there are occasional shortages of kits.
About the drugs for the TB patients Dr Anil said, ” We manage it when there is a short supply but none of our TB patients goes without the drugs. We give them our bought anti-TB drugs.”
41 panchayats on verge of being TB-free
Dr. Anil Kumar Sriwastaw, the District TB Officer, is known for his calm and measured approach, avoiding any loud statements. He acknowledged that much still needs to be done in the fight against tuberculosis.
A total of 41 panchayats in Palamu are on the verge of being declared TB-free, but one obstacle is preventing this— the lack of food basket donors.
The success rate of TB treatment in the district stands at an impressive 92%. Regarding the remaining 8%, Dr. Anil highlighted issues such as patient migration and the presence of comorbidities like HIV, diabetes, alcoholism, and smoking, which complicate the treatment process.
