Free heart surgery for poor at Gujarat hospital

June 5, 2004

June 3, 2004

Rajkot (Gujarat), June 3 (IANS) :

An industrialist's mission to help the poor is providing succour to thousands of

poor people who suffer from heart diseases.

For the last four years, the Sri Satya Sai Heart Hospital here has been

providing to the poor free medical care including heart surgery, which

otherwise can cost anything between Rs.50,000-200,000.

Till date it has treated around 45,000 patients, who mostly come from the 18,000

villages in Gujarat that lack primary healthcare facilities.

It's a place Bhiniben Ahir, a 55-year-old from a village 350 km from the state

capital Gandhinagar, came after she had lost all hope. "I had a hole in my

heart and surgery cost Rs.50,000. I couldn't afford and I was resigned to my

fate.

"But then I heard about this hospital and I knew I would be able to get cured."

Industrialist Kanubhai Patel started the hospital in August 2000 saying the Sai

Baba had inspired him.

"Once I told (Sai) Baba that I wanted to do something for the society. He said

build a heart hospital for the poor," Patel, chairman of the Vadodara-based

Banko group, told IANS.

Patel contributed Rs.30 million to build the Rs.150 million hospital, and the

rest came from a cooperative bank.

"To serve the poor is our mission," said hospital trustee Manoj Bhimani. "We

performed 51 free heart surgeries in 51 days this year."

The entrance of the hospital has several slogans emblazoned on it. Among them -

"Medical services provided should be free" and "Quality that you give to the

poor patient should not be inferior to that a rich man can get".

And the hospital has inspired others to donate too. Spiritual leader Swamy

Sachchidanand donated Rs.25,000. "It is a temple of god in the form of

hospital," said Sachchidanand.

Sai Baba in the mediaLinks to articles in newspapers, journals,

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