Mumbai: Snake bite, lack of hospital in Aarey claims woman’s life

Early Wednesday morning a 26yearold woman died from a snake bite in Aarey Milk Colony The event has amplified the longstanding demand by local residents for a wellequipped government hospital to ensure timely medical treatment during emergenciesThe recent incident occurred around 230 am when the woman identified as Komal Gadekar Patekar her husband and their oneyearold daughter were asleep at home The womans fatherinlaw said ldquoMy daughterinlaw screamed and told us about being bitten by the snake on her leg We saw the snake was still in the roomrdquoDesperate for medical help the family sought assistance from a neighbour with an autorickshaw and headed to SevenHills Hospital believing it would have the necessary facilities However the family alleged that upon arrival doctors informed them that the hospital did not have antisnake venom and advised them to go to the BMCrun R N Cooper HospitalThe womans condition deteriorated en route to Cooper Hospital ldquoShe started gasping for air on the wayrdquo the fatherinlaw said Despite their efforts upon arrival at about 330 am doctors declared the woman dead A postmortem examination was later carried out Her oneyearold daughter is now without a mother said the fatherinlawResidents of Aarey Milk Colony have reiterated their urgent plea for a government hospital in the area to prevent such tragedies in the future highlighting the critical need for accessible and immediate medical care Aarey resident and wildlife enthusiast Kaushalendra Dubey emphasized the urgent need for a fullyequipped hospital in the Aarey Milk Colony ldquoIts crucial that we have a facility here to provide immediate treatment for snake bites humananimal conflicts and other emergencies If a hospital with necessary resources such as antisnake venom had been available the woman could have received prompt care and her life might have been savedrdquoThe Aarey Milk Colony that is spread over 12 sq km has 28 tribal hamlets with over 8000 tribal voters who have been staying there for more than 100 years Midday has repeatedly highlighted the lack of medical facilities in Aarey Milk Colony a critical issue that leaves tribal and other residents without adequate support during medical emergenciesAccording to a study published in a scientific journal there were 12 million snakebite deaths in India during the 20year period 2000 to 2019 an average of 58000 per year Around 70 per cent of these occurred in limited low altitude rural areas of eight states Bihar Jharkhand Madhya Pradesh Odisha Uttar Pradesh Andhra Pradesh including Telangana Rajasthan and Gujarat Half of all deaths occurred during the monsoon period from June to September Available data indicated that most envenomations were due to Russellrsquos vipers followed by kraits and cobrasSnake bites at Aarey2024 Earlier this year a resident survived a snake bite2023 In September a 16yearold boy survived a snake bite2017 On July 12 Yashodha Kadu 20 died after she was bitten by a spectacled cobra while she was asleep at Jivachapada Aarey Milk Colony2017 In October a sixyearold boy died after being bitten by a snake at Aareyrsquos tribal hamlet Vanichapada at Unit 5