In Odishas Sambalpur district, a doctor has opened a One Rupee clinic to offer medical treatment to the poor, needy and underprivileged people.

Shankar Ramchandani is an assistant professor in the department of medicine at Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR), Burla. He has opened this one-rupee clinic in Burla town and patients just have to pay only a Rupee for treatment. Ramchandani said that this one Rupee clinic is a part of his long-standing wish to offer free treatment to the poor and deprived people beyond his duty hour.

The 38-year-old doctor said that he had joined VIMSAR as a senior resident doctor and senior residents are not allowed for private practice. So, he couldn’t start the One-Rupee clinic. Then later, he was promoted as assistant professor lately and he is allowed to do private practice after his duty hours. Thus, started the clinic in a rented house as of now.

On asking why he charged one Rupee, Ramchandani said that he charged one Rupee from the poor and underprivileged people as he doesn’t want these people to feel that they are taking the service free of cost. They should think that they have paid a certain amount for their treatment.

The clinic has been set up at the Kachha Market area in Burla town and it will remain open from 7 to 8 a.m. in the morning and 6 to 7 p.m. in the evening.

The One-Rupee clinic has given him an opportunity to serve the needy, poor, unprivileged, along with elderly, physically challenged people and also to the people who don’t have any access to appropriate medical care.

He said that he is a doctor of the masses and not the classes. Ramchandani said that hundreds of people come to the OPD of VIMSAR regularly and a long queue of patients can be seen to consult the doctors. He further said that he has seen elderly people and those with disabilities wait for hours for consulting with doctors in OPD. They don’t then have to wait for hours and suffer at the hospital. They can visit his clinic and get consultation at only Rupee 1.

Sikha Ramchandani, Ramchandanis wife, who is a dental surgeon, is also helping him. The clinic was inaugurated on Friday and almost 33 patients came on the first day to the clinic.

Ramchandani had hit the headlines when he carried a leprosy patient in his arms and dropped him in his house in 2019. He said that his late father, Brahmanand Ramchandani had told him to set up a nursing home. However, a nursing home needs a huge investment and as of now is not possible to offer treatment to poor people at Rupee 1 in a nursing home. So, he decided to open this One-Rupee clinic.

Ramchandani received much attention from everyone with extensive appreciation when he attended a COVID-19 patient beyond his duty hour and he also carried him to VIMSAR in his own car amidst the plague of novel coronavirus last year.

Source: The New Indian Express