In the thick of Telangana’s forest belt, where rivers swell and roads vanish during the monsoon, a new kind of lifeline has emerged — one that comes in a metal box. For Allem Roja, a 30-year-old Koya Adivasi woman from Pochapur hamlet in SS Tadvai mandal of Mulugu district, reaching a hospital used to be an ordeal. The local government primary health centre (PHC) is just 5 kilometres away, but without a bridge or a proper road, especially in the rains, it may as well have been in another world.
“Now, with this container health centre in our village, we are able to get first-aid and treatment for fevers and minor ailments right here,” says Roja, cradling her one-year-old daughter during a visit to the facility with mild fever and fatigue on July 31. Following a general check-up, medical officer at the Kodishala PHC, B. Pavan Kumar prescribes her medicines and rest. Everything she needs is provided on the spot.
