In city of super-specialty hospitals, quacks in black tent clinics thrive
HT reporters venture into the realm of black tents, ’jari-buti’ and self-styled ‘vaidyajis’ to find treatment being offered for as little as ₹20 under the nose of the authorities in the state capital with no proper licensing and permission to function
The state capital is home to top-tier multi-specialty hospitals, state-of-the-art diagnostic centres, and government-backed medical colleges. But the city is also witnessing the quiet proliferation of a parallel, unregulated healthcare economy, operating from 20x20 feet, or even 10x10 clinics housed in black tents.
Run by quacks, these black tarpaulin tent clinics have sprung up beside busy roads, under flyovers and on vacant plots near marketplaces across various neighbourhoods in Lucknow, including Charbagh, Chinhat, Mahanagar and Cantt. Ironically, one such tent can be seen barely 500 metres from the Kalyan Singh Super Speciality Cancer Institute in Lucknow, one of the city’s well-known government-run hospitals in Arjunganj on Sultanpur Road.
An almost week-long investigation by HT reporters posing as patients in distress revealed how these makeshift healing setups claim to treat a spectrum of ailments.
Though primarily for improving sexual health, the practitioners who call themselves “Vaidyaji”, deal not with just common cold, piles, jaundice, joint pain, they also claim to cure diabetes, paralysis and offer a supposedly guaranteed cure for cancer. However, they don’t offer treatment for ailments related to the eyes and teeth.
Behind the curtains, bold colourful text describes the ailments and their treatment for a fee as low as ₹20 in contrast to the hefty amount or health insurance policies required to undergo treatment in the best hospitals.
These informal establishments lack any trace of legitimacy. They have no government licence, no displayed medical registration, no official pharmacy tie-up but claim to be affiliated with some “company”, sounding like an Ayurvedic brand.
As HT reporters approached one such tent at Sadar in Cantt, a 35-year-old man in his shorts and an untidy shirt welcomed them.
This 10x10 feet tent had a bamboo mat on the floor. There were hundreds of small jars claiming to have ‘jari-buti’ (herbal remedies) and ‘bhasam’ (ash-like preparations) medicines in the form of Mewa (dry fruit), Jayfal (nutmeg), Ayurvedic tablets, Misri (rock sugar), Dalchini (cinnamon) and Javitri (mace) among others.
The tent also has multiple photographs of deities. A radio set uninterruptedly blares jingles about the effectiveness of the treatment offered.
A similar so-called clinic near the Paper Mill trijunction operates out of a van’s trunk or boot. It has Vadiyaji’s picture with those of former senior cops in the city. HT doesn’t guarantee the authenticity of the pictures.
The ‘Vaidyaji’ first asks about the problem. He assesses a person’s overall health by checking the pulse (Naadi). The private parts are examined if there is a sexual disorder.
“The problem seems chronic. Are you married? You need medicine of 1000 power which will cost you ₹1400. The medicines have to be made which will need a day. The medicines will cure all 4-5 problems that you listed,” said the Vadyaji who later identified himself as Sonu. The reporters submitted ₹100 as an advance for which a receipt was also given with a direction to come a day later to collect 15 days of medicines and give a urine sample. The receipt is also the prescription, having follow-up records for patients. Payments are accepted only in cash.
In some cases, these “healers” claim to possess inherited knowledge of traditional remedies and try to gain the patient’s confidence. In some cases, the healers claim they learnt about remedies after taking training from Ayurveda companies.
“I’ve been here for the last year, with my entire family. I have been in this field for almost 10 years,” said Kuldeep, who said he studied till Class 5.
“Our generations have been involved in this profession. I grew up learning from them and then I took a 15-day course in the company where I was taught how to make jari-buti of all kinds,” said Kuldeep’s younger brother Manoj, 23, who said he never had any formal education.
According to these self-styled Vaidyajis, they have patients from all walks of life. One such tent in Arjunganj area was situated just a short commute away from world-class healthcare facilities, attracting many daily-wage workers, migrants, and even elderly patients from nearby villages.
“I came here due to gas and joint pain. The hospital gave me a date after three days. Here, he gave me a churan and said I’ll feel better tonight,” said Phoolmati Devi, 48, a domestic worker near the Arjunganj tent.
Two brothers at a Dewa road tent in Chinhat said, “We not only have customers from a poor background. We have fixed customers who are engineers, lawyers and people from other reputed professional backgrounds.”
“We get at least 4-5 patients daily during summer and 10 during the winter,” one of the brothers added.
