An under-construction bridge of Delhi Metro in East Delhi collapsed in 2008 claiming the lives of two labourers and injuring many others. The local hospital administered basic first aid, couldn’t do anything much, and the injured returned to die unable to afford the cost of medicines.
To
most of us, many such unfortunate events come as daily feed on morning
newspapers, we read them with apathy or sometimes with a bit of sensitivity,
and then conveniently choose to forget about them even before the day’s newspaper
reading is over. Even when some such things happen before our very eyes, even if
they relate to somebody in our neighborhood, all we normally do is convince
ourselves, sooner or later, that it’s not something concerning us, and simply get
busy with our own lives. But an ordinary old man of Delhi who was a witness to the
happenings mentioned above was just not ready to dump them conveniently into
oblivion and go ahead coolly with his own life. That poor men die for want of
medicines was something that pierced deep into his heart. His heart was so
attuned to empathize with the sufferings of the poor that the incident shook
him into churning out some solution to the problem at any cost. Even if it
meant turning the course of his own life, even if it meant making more
miserable his own already miserable life, this old man Omkar Nath got determined
unto himself that he will do something to see to it that no more such poor
people die for want of medicines. And, therein he had found his life-Mission.
And what a life-saving Mission it really was!
Omkar
Nath Sharma says: “I thought, why not collect medicines for the poor? No one else
seems to be doing it but why isn’t it possible? I thought, maybe it isn’t that
easy but wouldn’t the efforts be worth if I really do succeed. I thought, if
that way I could save at least one life, if I could help at least one family,
how fine.” And, it is this positive thought, this urge to impact positively the
lives of his poor fellow beings that set off this retired lab technician, Omkar
Nath on his one man unique Mission.
His
work day starts at 6 O’clock each morning when he puts on his self designed
uniform, a saffron kurta (shirt) on which is written “Mobile Medicine Bank for
the Poor Patients”. Wearing this garb, which features also his mobile numbers, he
sets out from his rented home in Mangalpuri slums and goes from door to door
in different areas of Delhi asking for unused medicines. He collects them
mainly from areas where middle class and upper middle class people live. He
says: “My 27 years of work as a medical attendant gave me confidence and
knowledge enough to take up this adventure, this begging for medicines for the
sake of those who couldn’t afford them. While on the one side I’ve seen people
who can’t even afford to buy some cheaper medicines like simple painkillers or
antibiotics, on the other side, I’ve seen people simply throwing out unused
medicines after recovery. And, all that I could think of doing was to avoid
this wastage and intervene to see to it that such medicines become of some help
to the poor.” After collecting the medicines he sits down to sort them out,
especially to weed out those with expired dates, and then goes distributing
them to various charitable hospitals, NGO’s and clinics in and around Delhi. He
serves the needy through these institutions not only because it’s convenient
but also because it helps him ward off certain legal hurdles.
As
his work began to roll at a faster rate, as the quantity of medicines that he
could collect expanded, Omkar Nath rented a single room to serve him and his
needy patients as a Medicine Bank. Soon a few generous persons and some NGOs
came to his help. Today his Medicine Bank “Raahat Hi Raahat” has a couple of fridges and a few
other items of furniture to help him collect and store more medicines to be
distributed to needy patients and his beneficiary hospitals including two
government hospitals, Clinics and NGOs. Statistics show that, on an average, he
collects medicines worth around Rs. 10 lakh per month.
At
the age of 12 a car hit Omkar Nath and crippled him for life. His knees were
damaged and he can walk now only with a limp. Besides his aged and ailing wife,
he has a mentally challenged son at home, to be looked after. But life has
taught him to look at the miseries of others and do something to alleviate them
than keep crying over his own miseries. At times long back, he has had to even
wash dishes and stay on railway platforms to keep his family of wife and two
sons going. This poor old Humanitarian, who is 79 years now, cannot afford the
metro rail fare, so he travels by buses aided by his senior citizen pass. In
remote areas where buses do not ply, he simply walks, unmindful of his age and
disability. Collecting medicines, cataloguing them, distributing them... all
these have now become a routine for Omkar Nath and it’s something he just
wouldn’t give up, come what may.
Talking
to Mission AHIMSA, Omkar Nath Sharma says: “Recently I helped an NGO send a truck load of
medicines, cloths and food items to the Quake-hit Nepal by collecting from various
people across Delhi. Over the years, I’ve been able to develop a sound
relationship with numerous people. Even people who once used to shun me and
scorn me now admire my work and offer help in various ways. Yes, it’s my single-minded
determination and untiring efforts which is helping me keep my Mission alive.
But, looking from another angle, it is the kind-hearted people of Delhi who come
forward to donate me their unused medicines who really keep the Mission alive. But,
you see, the need is so big and what can this one little man do. I wish the
youth of this country come out with similar such Missions to reach out help to more
and more of the poor and the needy across the length and breadth of our
country. I
also wish an NGO could be formed to carry out the collection and distribution of
unused medicines in a systematic and advanced manner.”
