Man breaks Ramadan fast to save thalassemic child
Patna, May 24: A Muslim in Bihar chose humanity over religious customs, broke his Ramadan fast to donate blood to an eight-year-old Hindu thalassemic boy and saved his life.
Jawed Alam on Tuesday donated blood to Rajesh Kumar in Gopalganj district, a district health official said.
The boy was rushed to the emergency of Sadar hospital by his father. The patient complained of uneasiness and weakness, and required immediate blood transfusion.
There was no blood matching Rajesh's blood group available in the blood bank. They said it would take at least two-to-three days to arrange it.
The boy's condition deteriorated quickly. His father had travelled some 200 km from the Kuchaikote area and was fast losing hope as he waited in the corridors of the blood bank.
It was then that a hospital sweeper and cleaner, informed Anwar Hussain, a member of District Blood Donor Team (DBDT) about the child.
Hussain requested his friend Jawed Alam, an active member of DBDT to rush to Sadar hospital.
"When my friend Anwar requested me to donate blood to a seriously ill thalassemia patient, I politely informed him that I was observing Ramzan fast.
"But he convinced me to arrive and consulted doctors. At first even the doctors refused my offer as I was fasting," Jawed said.
"They agreed only after I took their advice, broke my fast and consumed fruit juice and some solids," the young Muslim man in his 30s said.
He said: "My religion teaches me to help a fellow human first, so I broke my fast and donated blood to save little Rajesh. Islam preaches that humanity is bigger than everything."
Thalassemia is a blood disorder and a thalassemic patient needs blood transfusion after every three-to-four weeks.
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Power tariffs under BESCOM to rise from May 1
Bengaluru (PTI): Power bills for consumers under the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) will go up from May 1, following an order issued by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) on Friday.
The hike comes after KERC allowed the BESCOM to recover a revenue deficit of Rs 2,068 crore incurred in 2024-25, from the consumers.
As a result, for every unit of electricity consumed in 2024-25, the customers will be charged an additional 56 paise, it said.
"BESCOM shall calculate, for each of the active consumers of FY2024-25 the amount to be recovered based on their actual energy consumption during FY2024-25. Such amount shall be recovered during FY 2026-27 in equal monthly instalments, to be called as 'FY25 True up Charges', commencing from the first meter reading date falling on or after 1 May 2026 and concluding with the reading date ending on 30 April 2027," the order said.
"It is further ordered that BESCOM shall maintain a separate head of account, allocated for the purpose, to record the adjustment of the said amount to ensure full recovery of the deficit," it added.
Similarly Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (CESC) has also recorded a revenue deficit of Rs 121.71 crore and can collect an additional 15 paisa per unit for consumption in 2024-25, official sources said.
