Doc turns saviour for thousands of snakebite victims

Poisonous snakebites are a real danger in Junnar and Ambegaon talukas. The fact that the patients have to rush to Pune for treatment aggravates the situation, where timely treatment is crucial. Rising to the occasion is a doctor from Narayangaon, Dr Sadanand Raut, who has saved thousands of snakebite victims from certain death.

Most of the villages of these talukas are situated near the Western Ghat. As a result, the areas are infested with poisonous snakes like cobra, Common Krait and Russel’s Viper.

To make matters worse, due to the absence of a full-fledged hospital, hundreds of patients from these talukas have to travel all the way to either Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital (YCMH) or Sassoon General Hospital in Pune for treatment.

Dr Raut (52) from Narayangaon in Junnar taluka, about 80 km from Pune, have not only saved lives of over 1,000 tribals, but also conducted snakebite awareness campaigns in Junnar and Ambegaon taluka for the last couple of years. He is helped by his wife.

Dr Raut, who hold a MD degree, started working in the tribal area when he saw many snakebite cases. He started his clinic at Narayangaon in 1992 and since then has been working for tribal people in the area.

His work has been appreciated by Oxford University professor Dr David Warrel, who is doing research on snakebites. He visited Dr Raut’s hospital on November 29, 2012.

Zilla Parishad (ZP) member Dnyneshwar Khandagale told dna, “Dr Raut has been working for tribal people for the last couple of years. With the help of some of the doctors he has been conducting awareness campaigns in remote villages in the talukas. Moreover, they have been addressing people about primary medicines and precautions to be taken after snakebites.”
Dr Raut told dna, “Most of the villages of the taluka are situated in remote areas where vehicles can’t travel. As a result, in many cases patients do not get medicine on time. Considering this, we have conducted several camps in many villages and have told them about primary medicines and precautions.”

11-year-old saved after cobra bite
An 11-year-old Std V student of Zilla Parishad school, Dharmendra Kisan Jawale was bitten by a cobra 15 days ago at his village in Junnar taluka. Thereafter, Dharmendra was dumped in the village temple for over eight hours by his parents, waiting for divine intervention to save his life.

Dharmendra was taken to a ‘godman’ at Bhimshankar by his parents for ‘supernatural power’. He kept Dharmendra under his observation for a couple of hours and released him after seeing him in a precarious condition, saying it is beyond his power to save him. Thereafter, Dharmendra was taken to Raut’s hospital where he was kept on ventilator for 15 days and ultimately his life was saved.

“The total bill of his medical expenses was over Rs1 lakh but we did not take money from them considering their financial problems,” Dr Raut said.