JAMMU: In a commendable humanitarian initiative, the Army successfully evacuated a critically ill woman from the remote village of Chill, located at an altitude of 7,500 feet in the Dudu-Basantgarh area of Udhampur district, Jammu division, on Monday.
Lieutenant Colonel Suneel Bartwal, Public Relations Officer (Defence) in Jammu, reported that at approximately 8 PM on April 18, a local villager approached the military operating base seeking urgent medical assistance for his wife, Sheetla Devi, who was experiencing seizures. In response to the emergency, Army personnel mobilized quickly under difficult night conditions and arrived at the family’s residence, where they provided immediate first aid to stabilize the patient in challenging field conditions.
With the first light of April 19, a carefully orchestrated evacuation was executed to transport the patient to the nearest road head at Ghar Katiyas. This process involved navigating nearly 3 kilometers of rugged, forested terrain characterized by steep gradients and a lack of accessible roads. Army personnel carried the patient on a stretcher for approximately three hours to ensure her safe evacuation. Following this, she was transported by road to the Primary Health Centre (PHC) at Dudu, where she is currently stable and continuing to receive medical care.
Earlier this year, on January 29, Army troops provided emergency medical assistance to a 24-year-old woman named Ashu, who was suffering from complications post-labour in another remote, snow-bound village in Udhampur. Access to the nearest hospital, Ayushman Arogya Mandir Primary Health Centre in Latti, was hindered due to heavy snowfall, highlighting the ongoing commitment of the Army to address medical emergencies in challenging conditions.
