Assam: Health camp at Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary serves over 100 forest personnel, villagers
Guwahati, May 31
A health camp organised at the premises of the Forest Range office of Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Morigaon district of Assam provided service to 110 participants, including 87 forest staff engaged in the sanctuary and 23 villagers living close to the wildlife habitat.
The camp was organised in collaborative mode by Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary authority, Assam Health and Family Welfare Department and Aaranyak with support from Zoo Berlin under the objective of facilitating human wellbeing in and around wildlife protection areas on Saturday.
Pobitora WLS is known for its highest density population of Greater One-Horned Rhinoceros in the world.
A team of three doctors -- Dr Nozmul Hoque, Dr Paranjoy Hazarika, and Dr Dipak Chandra Deka -- and 11 other medical staff attended to participants who were checked up in the camp, as well as provided health-related advice and free medicines.
The camp was supervised by Dr P C Pator, SDM & HO of Jhargaon Block of Morigaon district.
The Range Officer of Pobitora WLS, Ujjal Choudhury, took the lead in facilitating the camp along with Dr Deba Kumar Dutta, Deputy Director of Rhino Research and Conservation Division (RRCD) of Aaranyak, with proactive assistance from Aaranyak, Researcher Ujjal Bayan, consultant Dr Khanin Changmai, Research Assistant Abhinav Bardaloi and volunteer Dhritiman Sonowal. RRCD consultant and Aaranyak Publicity Secretary Bijay Sankar Bora facilitated documentation of the camp with support from PRO Gunajit Mazumdar.
Aaranyak official Suranjan Sharma also attended and helped in organising the camp.
Dr P C Pator, SDM & HO of Jhargaon Block of Morigaon district, lauded Aaranyak and Assam Forest Department for facilitating the health camp and expressed interest in collaborating for more such camps in future in the greater interest of community members and frontline forest personnel who work round-the-clock to protect precious wildlife and bio-resources.
— ANI
Reader Comments
This is wonderful to see. It must be challenging for forest staff and villagers in remote areas to access healthcare. Glad to see organisations like Aaranyak stepping up.
While this is a good start, I hope such camps become a regular feature, not just a one-off event. The frontline forest guards need continuous support, not just sporadic aid.
It's heartening to see collaboration between Forest Department, Health Department, and NGOs. Pobitora is a gem of Assam, and caring for those who protect it is crucial. 🌿
Good to see Aaranyak and Zoo Berlin supporting local communities. But initiatives like these should also include awareness about zoonotic diseases, especially for those living near wildlife.
Impressive collaboration! Proper healthcare for those on the frontlines of conservation is essential. Kudos to the doctors and volunteers who made this possible. 👏
This is exactly the kind of holistic approach we need—human well-being alongside wildlife conservation. The villagers living in close proximity to the sanctuary also deserve such care.
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