Soon after the tsunami, when in many South Andaman villages, agricultural land in proximity to habitats was submerged, there was a severe outbreak of fever. Mosquito breeding in the newly emerged swamps was being blamed by the villagers. The Health Department as usual categorically denied any outbreak of malaria or vector-borne diseases.
In the wake of inaction from the Health Department, the scared villagers decided to approach Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) for seeking their assistance in finding out the cause.
I too was part of the group, and we reached their Dollygunje facility. A huge building with less traffic inside. Serene and peaceful atmosphere to carry out research activities! We approached the receptionist for an appointment with the Director. He downright said, “Our Director does not meet outside people.”
We tried to convince him, and at last, a scientist sitting next to us enquired about the matter. We handed over him the letter and other documents. He also tried to explain their research activities and their helplessness. After going through the letter, he saw a document from Census of India, 1931, a chapter on Weil’s disease (Leptospirosis) and swamp reclamation. He was impressed and assured that he will speak to the Director and convince him to meet us.
After 30 minutes of deliberation with the Director, he came out with a triumphant smile on his otherwise dry face and asked us to follow him. He said that we were lucky to meet the Director, as he never meets outsiders.
“Your Holiness, a group of villagers has come to seek your help on health problem in their villages.”
“What can I do for you?” asked the Director.
We explained in detail about the outbreak of fever in our village.
Initially, he did not show any particular interest in the subject, but was convinced that, when an NGO approached him with a problem, he should also do a bit of social service, not as part of his job. But suddenly, something clicked and he called his group of scientists. He enquired about the status of their present assignments and when they said that they were free for the moment, he introduced us to them and asked them to take up an investigation and survey on Mosquito Breeding and Probability of Vector-borne Diseases in submerged areas of South Andaman post-tsunami. This was going to be their next assignment.
We were happy that this team will come out with some results that will convince the administration to initiate steps to control mosquito breeding as well as swamp reclamation work.
In a day or two, a team of scientists arrived in the village and started taking samples from the fields, fixing mosquito trapping nets in houses close to the fields. It went on for weeks and they showed enthusiasm when they saw some positive results. One of the members asked me to gather the villagers to collect blood samples. They did collect the samples. But when one of the villagers asked them about medication, he said, “Most of us are veterinarians.” I was a little taken aback.
They took the samples and went to their labs. We never heard from them afterwards. After about a year, I came across a scientific journal, in which the details of a scientific paper were published, and the names of the Director, and his colleagues were inscribed in bold letters. The subject was about possibility of vector-borne diseases in South Andaman post-tsunami.
I am proud that our intervention with community participation did give birth to a research paper. Who cares what happened to the villagers!