A teenager who works at a grocery store in Baguiati and was returning home on Diwali night with a friend, spotted an injured civic volunteer of the Bidhannagar commissionerate lying unconscious on VIP Road in northeast Kolkata after he had met with a bike accident.
Sudipto Mondal,19 a Baguiati resident, was walking home after his shift at the grocery store late on Thursday. He spotted Prakash Ghosh, who was lying in the middle of VIP Road, near the Narayantala intersection, as cars and motorcycles zipped by, an officer of the Bidhannagar Commissionerate said.
Mondal and his friend lifted Ghosh, who had lost consciousness and was lying in a pool of blood, and placed him near the pavement that separates VIP Road from its service lane. Mondal then managed to flag down a passing ambulance and took Ghosh to a private healthcare unit off VIP Road, near the Baguiati bus stand, the officer said.
“The doctors there advised us to take him to RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. My friend and I only had Rs 20 between us. We somehow managed to convince the ambulance driver to help us transport Ghosh to the hospital,” Mondal told The Telegraph on Friday.
The two managed to reach RG Kar hospital, where they admitted Ghosh.
Although Mondal’s friend advised him to return home because they wanted to have Diwali dinner, he stayed put at the hospital to ensure Ghosh received proper medical care.
“I could not possibly leave him as he was badly injured and had nobody with him. Fortunately, we found an identity card from his wallet and I called the Bidhannagar commissionerate,” Mondal said.
A team from the Bidhannagar commissionerate then went to the hospital.
But Mondal stayed at the hospital till Ghosh regained consciousness.
According to a doctor who treated Ghosh, the civic volunteer had a head injury and received eight stitches.
“He had already lost consciousness when he was wheeled in but fortunately we had the golden hour in our favour and could save his life,” the doctor said.
Several healthcare experts said that in Kolkata, like in other cities across India, crucial time is lost in cases of road accidents because passers-by and motorists often hesitate to help out of fear of police harassment.
A senior officer of the Bidhannagar commissionerate said that Mondal’s prompt action and quick thinking were instrumental in saving Ghosh’s life.
Surajit Dey, assistant commissioner of police, airport zone, Bidhannagar commissionerate and Shantanu Sarkar, the inspector in-charge of the airport police station, felicitated Mondal at the Airport police station.
“What this teenager has done is really commendable. We scanned CCTV footage from the area and saw that Ghosh had lost control of his motorcycle after the rear wheel skidded somehow,” said Dey.
“However, despite him lying on the road for quite some time, not a single car or a two-wheeler stopped to help him till Mondal and friend came along. Despite having very little money, they still managed to not only get him to a hospital but also stayed till our team reached. They were there till 6am,” Dey said.
