Bihar Floods: Third childbirth on NDRF rescue boat in 8 days
This is the third child delivery on NDRF boat in the last eight days ever since the specialised disaster management force was engaged in flood relief and evacuation operation in Bihar from August 12.
The stress associated with flood relief and evacuation operation paved way to joy for the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), when it facilitated the birth of a baby boy midstream in Burhi Gandak river, in flood ravaged Motihari of East Champaran district on Wednesday.
This was the third delivery in the last eight days on NDRF boat ever since the specialised disaster management force was requisitioned for flood relief and evacuation operation in Bihar on August 12.
The NDRF stumbled upon Manisha Devi, 28, wife of Nand Kishore Sahni, during routine evacuation operation in Patjilwa village of Chiraiya block of East Champaran district. Villagers intimated the NDRF team about the advanced stage of Devi’s pregnancy.
The woman went into labour as soon as the NDRF team took the woman on board its inflatable boat. Sensing that they would not be able to reach in time to Chiraiya, the nearest health facility, which was around 12 kms away, the NDRF team, assisted by a civil health worker, facilitated the child’s delivery on boat, said Vijay Sinha, commandant of the 9th NDRF battalion here.
This is the third delivery on a NDRF rescue boat. Hameeda Khatoon of Benipatti village in Madhubani district and Manju Devi in Gopalganj had delivered a baby girl each while being shifted to health facilities on August 16 and 18, respectively.
The NDRF had helped four women deliver their babies on its boats during flood relief and rescue operation in Bihar last year too. Twins were delivered on a rescue boat in one such case last year.
This was the eighth child delivery the NDRF had facilitated on its boats midstream since 2013 in Bihar. In one such case, a Bhojpur couple, to express gratitude, had named its son ‘NDRF Singh’ in September 2013.
Sinha said NDRF personnel undergo basic training in delivery and tackling cases of heart attack, trauma, involving fracture of bones and severe bleeding, and also cardiac pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and pre-hospital treatment of drowning patients.
The NDRF has so far shifted 100 pregnant women to health facilities in 18 of the 38 flood-affected districts of Bihar.
It has so far successfully evacuated 40,451 people of the 1.50 crore affected by floods in Bihar, which has so far claimed over 341 lives. Over 2,000 people have also benefitted from its medical relief camps set up in flood-hit areas.
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