Page 2 - TB: The Ticking Time Bomb
P. 2
Dear Reader,
In the month of October, 2014, Satyamev Jayate devoted an episode to the grave
issue of Tuberculosis in India. The episode sought to underscore the fact that
tuberculosis in our country is a ticking time bomb ready to explode. The episode and
the live show, Mumkin Hai, that followed, drew an enormous response from all over
the country. While some took to Twitter, Facebook and our website, others reached
out via email, letters and phone calls.
During the field research for this episode, my team members and I personally came
face to face with the deadly and heartbreaking reality of tuberculosis across rural and
urban India. We felt the need to lend a hand in fighting this battle at multiple levels
in a multitude of ways. The episode itself was one such way. And when the feedback
to the episode poured in, we found that the stories that people generously shared
were moving, enlightening and important. So we thought of compiling these diverse
messages into a booklet and sharing them with you. We do so in the belief that these
stories of pain and of hope could be of some use to someone, somewhere.
On the afternoon of June 8, 2015, while we were in the throes of editing this booklet,
my phone buzzed. It was a message in Marathi that read: “Akshata SSC pass zhali.
Tila 61 takkey marka milalaa.” (Akshata has passed her SSC exam and obtained 61%
marks.) I was so overwhelmed by this piece of news that it took me a moment to
register the second sentence of the message: “Don varshaa nantar tichaa TB cha
report pahilyandaa normal nighaalaa aahey.”
Akshata is the 14-year-old daughter of Vishwanath, a Mumbai-based cobbler, who
had taken loans and spent thousands on her Multi Drug Resistant TB treatment, but
to no avail. He contacted our team after watching the episode. We were fortunately
able to connect Akshata to Médecins Sans Frontières and with their help, she not
only received medical treatment and checkups for free, but also ration and emotional
support—services that she didn’t imagine were available for TB patients.
Hundreds of helping hands are reaching out to TB patients in our country today.
Doctors, nurses, DOTS providers, community organisations—with dedication,
empathy and courage, they heal hundreds of Akshatas every day. For the thousands
of tuberculosis patients in our country these healers are a ray of hope in an otherwise
bleak landscape. This booklet is humbly dedicated to our healers and their valiant
patients.
Svati Chakravarty
Co-Director and Head of Field Research
Satyamev Jayate
June 2015
1
In the month of October, 2014, Satyamev Jayate devoted an episode to the grave
issue of Tuberculosis in India. The episode sought to underscore the fact that
tuberculosis in our country is a ticking time bomb ready to explode. The episode and
the live show, Mumkin Hai, that followed, drew an enormous response from all over
the country. While some took to Twitter, Facebook and our website, others reached
out via email, letters and phone calls.
During the field research for this episode, my team members and I personally came
face to face with the deadly and heartbreaking reality of tuberculosis across rural and
urban India. We felt the need to lend a hand in fighting this battle at multiple levels
in a multitude of ways. The episode itself was one such way. And when the feedback
to the episode poured in, we found that the stories that people generously shared
were moving, enlightening and important. So we thought of compiling these diverse
messages into a booklet and sharing them with you. We do so in the belief that these
stories of pain and of hope could be of some use to someone, somewhere.
On the afternoon of June 8, 2015, while we were in the throes of editing this booklet,
my phone buzzed. It was a message in Marathi that read: “Akshata SSC pass zhali.
Tila 61 takkey marka milalaa.” (Akshata has passed her SSC exam and obtained 61%
marks.) I was so overwhelmed by this piece of news that it took me a moment to
register the second sentence of the message: “Don varshaa nantar tichaa TB cha
report pahilyandaa normal nighaalaa aahey.”
Akshata is the 14-year-old daughter of Vishwanath, a Mumbai-based cobbler, who
had taken loans and spent thousands on her Multi Drug Resistant TB treatment, but
to no avail. He contacted our team after watching the episode. We were fortunately
able to connect Akshata to Médecins Sans Frontières and with their help, she not
only received medical treatment and checkups for free, but also ration and emotional
support—services that she didn’t imagine were available for TB patients.
Hundreds of helping hands are reaching out to TB patients in our country today.
Doctors, nurses, DOTS providers, community organisations—with dedication,
empathy and courage, they heal hundreds of Akshatas every day. For the thousands
of tuberculosis patients in our country these healers are a ray of hope in an otherwise
bleak landscape. This booklet is humbly dedicated to our healers and their valiant
patients.
Svati Chakravarty
Co-Director and Head of Field Research
Satyamev Jayate
June 2015
1
