Dr.E.R.Rao (MD, Pediatrics) : Touch of Healing

In rural India the doctor to population ratio is 1:1700. Imagine there is just one qualified doctor for as many as 1,700 people. Dr.E.Raghavendra Rao(MD) of Barpali is someone who served the public under the Odisha State Government for thirty long years. during his state government service career he has worked in the remote tribal areas of Odisha be it Chitrakonda, Koraput, Khalikote, Balangir or Titilagarh before settling down at Barpali.

During the 80’s of the last Century there was no immunisation programme by the Odisha state government. Thousands of children happened to be affected by polio. Dr.Rao has innovated a technique to cure the children affected with this dreaded disease. He toned and stimulated the muscular metabolism of the affected limbs with electric current called Faradic Treatment. This treatment involves a month long hard work, but yields results.  While working at Balangir and titilagarh during 80’s of the last century he treated hundreads of such patients sucessfully.  

It was the year 1998 while he was serving at Community Health Centre(CHC), Barpali his son fell terminally sick. He took leave inorder to attend to his son. In the meanwhile he was transferred to Kantabanji by the involvement of a local politician. Overnight he was kicked out from the house where he was residing on a rental. He was helpless. He went to take shelter at the house of the barber who was serving him every weekend, of course on a rental. He could have returned to his hometown Berhampur at Ganjam Dist., Odisha, where he got landed property to lead a retired life. But, “No”. He was too stubborn to surrender to the given circumstances of life. He resigned from the job and stayed back at home. But the needy people pour from far and wide distances to get the cure from the ailments. 

Though working for the society, but he is poor in socialising, because he lacks time. He is a workaholic and never got any Sundays or religious holidays while at Barpali. Only when he steps out of the base camp, he avails un-disturbed sleep at night hours. Apart from work he is passionate about few other things in life, be it watching cricket or solving the cross-words in the daily news paper till late night.

kiranbima@gmail.com                    

Whatsapp # +918249314972

E. Kiran Mohan(the writer)      c/o.Dr.E.R.Rao (M.D)

Main Road, Near SBI,

At/PO : Barpali-768029

Dist. Bargarh, Odisha, India