Humla: As many as four children have lost their lives within a month due to non-availability of flights in remote mountainous district of Humla. They include three infants and a toddler. Though the babies who were suffering from different health complications and were referred to other hospitals by the District Hospital, they couldn’t receive timely medical intervention due to the lack of reliable transport facility in Humla. Simikot, the sole airport in the district, has been non-operational for long, causing severe conveniences to the people in the district, particularly during health emergencies.
The victims include a six-month-old child of Simkot Rural Municipality-6, a seven-month-old child of Simkot-7, a 17-month-old child of Kharpunath-1 and a five-month-old child of Chankhelli-4, according to District Hospital’s senior ANM Sarita Bohara. The prolonged disruption of flight has greatly affected the people, especially during health emergencies, she said. The decision of the Civil Aviation Authority to restrict flight operations to mountainous districts beyond the operation hours (after 12:30 pm) during the monsoon has aggravated the situation.
Besides, Humla frequently gets affected by adverse weather conditions in morning hours in the rainy season. The father of the child from Simkot-6 said he felt so sorry over the fate that befell his family. Likewise, the toddler of Kharpunath-1 was hospitalized on July 30 for pneumonia and diarrhea. His treatment within the district was not possible and he was referred to a hospital outside the district. The child died on August 11.
(RSS)
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