St.John's Diasaster Relief Effort

As news of the Kashmir earthquake broke out on the 8^th of October, St.John’s was immediately in contact with St.Joseph’s Hospital in Baramulla. The St.Joseph’s Hospital is one of the hundreds of Rural Bond Centers, at which the graduates of the medical college have spent two years in the service of the underprivileged. The hospital itself dates to before the Indian Independence and has been witness to the violence of this disputed region of Kashmir. The adjacent St.Joseph’s School was doubling as the base camp of the Relief Team coordinated by three non-government organizations, namely Caritas (India), Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and Catholic Social Service (CSS).

The Relief Team in St.Joseph’s School, Baramulla, informed St.John’s that a medical team from Delhi had already reached Baramulla to help with the relief efforts. On consultation with the members, we were assured that we will be notified when further medical assistance is required. The call eventually came on the 17^th of October. As requested by the Relief Team in St.Joseph’s School, two doctors were dispatched from St.John’s Medical College Hospital to help with the relief efforts in Baramulla.

The doctors were flown to Srinagar immediately, and reached Baramulla the same day by road. They remained in Baramulla for a period of ten days during which they were frequently trekking to remote villages, including those in the worst hit Uri tahsil (Baramulla District). They were involved in all aspects of the relief efforts and provided their service up to the Line of Control bordering Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. They worked under the expert direction of the relief team at St.Joseph’s School, Baramulla.

Although only two doctors were dispatched to Baramulla from St.John’s, they were not the only alumni of St.John’s in Baramulla. The two doctors from Bangalore met four alumni of St.John’s in Baramulla (one doctor and three nurses) who had come in from various parts of India to help in the relief efforts. The commitment of the alumni of St.John’s to the service of the underprivileged is obvious in such relief efforts.