Daring rescue saves starving family in Wayanad cave
Kalpetta: In a daring eight-hour operation, four forest officers rescued a six-member tribal family, including four children under the age of five, who were found starving in a water-filled cave downstream from Soochipara waterfall. The rescue mission was carried out after landslides devastated parts of Wayanad.
Kalpetta forest range officer K Ashif, along with section forest officer Jayachandran, beat forest officer K Anil Kumar, and forest rapid response team member Anoop Thomas, traversed rocky terrain to reach the family. Ashif recounted, “Initially, she [the mother, Santha] was reluctant to speak to us... It was only then that she disclosed about her husband and three other starving kids, the youngest just one year old.”
After lodging Santha and her eldest child at the forest quarters, the team embarked on a four-kilometer trek through treacherous terrain to reach the rest of the family. Using a rope, the officers climbed down to the cave and found the father, Krishnan, and the three children squatting under a makeshift sheet. “We feared they would not accompany us, but when we explained the gravity of the situation and the danger of staying there, Krishnan agreed to follow us,” Ashif said.
The team then fashioned a sling from a blanket to safely transport the children up the slippery, rocky terrain. "It was very risky—failure would have led to us falling into a 100-meter gorge. While walking back to the camp, we took turns carrying the babies in the sling," Jayachandran added.
The rescued family is now lodged at a forest department facility in Attamala.
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After SC nod to passive euthanasia, 86-year-old cancer patient urges K'taka govt to frame guidelines
Bengaluru: Following the Supreme Court’s approval of passive euthanasia for a 32-year-old patient in a permanent vegetative state, 86-year-old retired teacher H.B. Karibasamma, who has been fighting for the same for the past 25 years, has urged the Karnataka government to frame guidelines for mercy killing and set up separate wards in government hospitals for those seeking to die with dignity.
Karibasamma, who has been suffering from colon cancer for several years, said the state government has not yet implemented the Supreme Court’s directions on euthanasia.
According to Deccan Herald, she said, “Though the state government promised to implement the directions of the Supreme Court with regard to euthanasia last year, it has not yet framed guidelines. So, many people like me, who have been suffering from incurable diseases, are unable to die with dignity.”
“I urge the government to implement them before April 22. If not, I will launch a hunger strike at Jayadeva Circle in the city from April 23,” she said.
