Appeals to GoI to fully implement RRD Act, 2016
KOHIMA, APRIL 7: It is in the nature of human beings to try to be of help to victims of motor accidents on the road.
But being a Good Samaritan in these situations, without proper knowledge or careful assessment, may at times prove counter-productive and even worsen the situation instead of being the help one intended to be.
Thirty-three-year-old Mohammed Javid became a paraplegic due to a motorcycle accident at Vellore in 2011.
Since then, his life has been confined to a wheelchair but it did not deter him from living out his passion for travelling.
Javid is a successful banker in the corporate sector and is happily married to a scientist.
Currently, he is touring across the 28 States and 6 Union Territories of India in a Tata Nexon to spread awareness about the importance of a proper First Aid and proper transfer of patients involved in road accidents.
He is accompanied by two persons: his brother Jasiq Zameer, an automobile engineer, and Kannadasan, a social worker.
Along with the objective of creating awareness on the importance of proper First Aid and patient transfer of persons involved in road accidents, Javid is also eyeing to set the Guinness World Record for the longest distance driven by a paraplegic person on a motor vehicle.
“Even though people helped me only with good intentions, all these things were not there for me and as a result my spinal injury worsened ultimately leading to my paralysis”, shared Javid during an interaction with journalists in Kohima.
Highlighting that around 4,50,000 accidents take place in India annually, out of which 1,50,000 people die, Javid informed that India has the highest number of casualties in road accidents.
There are 53 road accidents in the country every hour and 1 death every 4 minutes, he added.
‘Despite the high number of road accidents, there is not much awareness on how to administer proper First Aid and stretchers are not used for transporting a patient to the hospital. It was through this personal experience of mine that I decided to embark on this journey”, he added.
Queried how he is financing the whole trip, Javid informed that the budget for the trip was Rs 14 lakh, out of which Rs 4 lakh came from his savings and the remaining amount through donations from family and friends.
He also shared that while the roads are very good in other parts of India, most of the roads in the Northeastern States are in deplorable condition.
“National Highway 37 is the worst of all; the whole stretch of the 270 km is in a very poor condition”, he added.
Javid also appealed to the Central Government to fully implement the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
Most of the rights provided for in the Act are not fully implemented in many States, he said.
He also pointed out that India has few rehabilitation centres.
There are only 4 rehabilitation centres for people involved in life-altering injuries in the country and it is high time the Central Government address the issue, said Javid.
“While the life of a PwDs is generally hard throughout India, the life of PwDs is harsher and difficult for someone living in any of the Northeastern States of India”, he claimed.
He further appealed to all State Governments of the region to make the place more accessible and inclusive.
With Nagaland as the 14th State covered by the Javid and his team so far, the next stop for team will be Tezpur in Assam followed by Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh.
(Page News Service)
