Pune News | Sickle cell, HIV, dialysis & hemophilia patients to now travel free in ST buses, state government took the decision for the benefits of the patients
Pune: Pune News | The state government has come up with a big decision which will be beneficial for the patients suffering from sickle cell, HIV, dialysis and hemophilia. Now these patients can travel free of cost in Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) buses.
The decision has been initiated by the state government because the patients of all these diseases regularly visit District Hospital, Upazila Hospital for various medical services and treatment. Also they have to go to medical colleges. They always have to travel to taluka or district places. As a result, the travel expenses of the patients increase.
The General Manager of the Corporation has sent a revised circular in this regard to all the Traffic Department Controllers in the state. The free travel scheme will save the travel expenses of the patients. The Health Department has thanked the Transport Corporation for implementing this scheme. In the state, the ‘Sickle Cell Control’ program has been implemented in 21 districts since 2008. These districts include Thane, Nashik, Nandurbar, Amravati, Gondia, Gadchiroli, Palghar, Nagpur, Wardha, Chandrapur, Bhandara, Yavatmal, Dhule, Jalgaon, Buldhana, Nanded, Washim, Akola, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Raigad and Hingoli. At present, there are 22,082 sickle cell patients in the state and the number of sickle cell carriers is 2,61,633, the health department informed.
Box Item (What is sickle cell)
Sickle cell is a genetic disease. There are two types of blood cells, red and white. Red blood cells in the normal human body are round in shape. However, in a ‘sickle cell’ patient, the cells become sickle-shaped due to lack of oxygen supply. If both mother and father are sickle cell sufferers or carriers, their children get sickle cell disease. It is a very serious and genetic disease, and the patient needs to donate blood. Due to lack of blood in the body, the patient is frequently sick