For past 10 years Baihna Jatan Panchayat has been without adequate health facilities.  Imagine being ill and having to muster the energy to cross the dangerous river because no roads, transport or ambulance are available to take you to the nearest hospital.  Worse still, during the night, no motorboat operates, thus you have to row your way to medical help.  Could you do that?  I couldn’t.   Call to Action: Demand the district authorities to setup a Primary Health Care Centre in Baihna Jatan Panchayat so that residentsare not endangering their lives to travel far for medical attention.  Please call:   District Administration, Bilaspur District, Himachal Pradesh, Tel: +91418529565   VV-Correspondent Avdhesh Negi reports from Baihna Jatan Panchayat (an amalgamation of four villages), Bilaspur district, Himachal Pradesh where 2000 people have no access to adequate health care.   A fatigued Jagdish Kumar explains, “It has been from the start that there has been no health facilities in this village.  Few years ago, a dispensary was started but it is one and a half kilometers from here.  Before that there was neither a dispensary nor any health facility in the vicinity of this panchayat.  The dispensary which is functionable has less facilities.  So if you need more facilities, you have to go to Bilaspur which is 10-20Km. from here.  If somebody falls ill during the day then one can go on a motor boat to get medical attention but in the night there is no motor boat facility available.”   If people need better or more health facilities they have to go to big cities 25 km. away.  To go from Baihna Jatan village panchayat to Bilaspur city there is no a taxi or ambulance available.  People have to put their lives in danger by putting themselves in a boat to reach their destination.   Chandrakanta a Nurse in Baihna Jatan confirms that there are no real facilities here and patients otherwise have to go to the city Bilaspur for medical attention, “There are (only) facilities for immunization and also some basic facilities like first aid.”    All is not lost.  The power of a community’s voice teamed with a camera can be seen through a similar case whereVV-PACS Correspondent Saroj Paraste uncovered abysmal conditions of maternal and child health care in Sakhri Village, Madhya Pradesh.The video resulted in action being taken against the errant workers and has now ensured that the 137 families of Sakhri which includes 295 women and 66 children receive the health care they require on a regular basis.  He did this by showcasing his video directly to the Block Programme Managerwho then launched an investigation.   This is why we need your support.  Please call the number above to ensure that Jagdish Kumar and the 2000 residents of Baihna Jatan Panchayat receive the medical services they deserve.   Stories of medical negligence can be found here.   Written by Manjinder Singh Sidhu