VIRUDHUNAGAR: Sivakasi started making a name for itself as the firecracker hub of India after 1960. But sadly, accidents and deaths too have been continuing for the last 62 years. The firecracker industry is emblematic of a reverse subsidy phenomenon where the poor generate riches for the exchequer through taxes on produce created through their sweat and blood but get very little in return from the State. The town which is synonymous with an industry that generated Rs 800 crore in revenue and contributed Rs 112 crore in indirect taxes in one year (2020-21) alone, doesn’t even have a proper medical facility to save lives.
Though there is a dedicated multispecialty burns unit at the Sivakasi Government Hospital, victims of firecracker explosions are either referred to the Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai located at a distance of 85km from Sivakasi or the Government Hospital in Tirunelveli 102km away. Given the nature of these fire injuries, patients need immediate, critical, and multispecialty medical attention, but the facility at Sivakasi GH is found wanting at several levels.
According to TNIE’s ground assessment, the separate burns unit building on the Sivakasi GH campus has a 10-bed ward with air-condition facilities. But there are no specialised doctors available to treat patients. The entire hospital is hamstrung by shortage of doctors, and sometimes nurses had to chip in to treat patients, sources said.
“Firecracker unit workers are mostly poor. Even taking the blast victims to other government hospitals entails considerable expenditure which is beyond the means of the victims’ families. In 2012 blast at Om Sakthi Firecracker Unit, 55 people were killed on the spot and more than 20 were injured. We pleaded with the then State government to build a multispecialty burns unit on a par with the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital in Chennai to save lives and demanded Rs 5 lakh solatium for the families of the deceased.
After we gheraoed AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam, the government announced setting up of a multispecialty hospital under Rule 110 in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. The hospital has come, but there are no adequate doctors or equipment. The hospital doesn’t even have own ambulance,” lamented CITU District Secretary P N Deva. “Patients are referred to Madurai Government Rajaji Hospital, but the doctors at GRH refer them to a local private hospital. Unable to bear the medical expenses at the private hospital, a few victims get discharged even before their treatment is completed. They soon die at their homes,” Deva said.
Speaking to TNIE, Joint Director of Health Services Dr Manoharan said the special burns unit was established in 2017 at a cost of Rs 5 crore. “Most of the blast victims are burnt and lacerated. If the victims have below 30 per cent burn injuries, there is a possibility to save their lives with proper treatment. The explosions inflict multiple injuries on the victims including fractures, burn wounds, and skin damage. We are trying to treat them with the facilities we have,” he said. The post of plastic surgeon has been lying vacant for more than five years at the hospital. We are referring patients to Madurai GH or Tirunelveli GH based on patients’ wounds, Dr Manoharan said.
Explaining the difference between normal burn injuries and those caused by firecracker explosions, Government Rajaji Hospital plastic surgeon Dr S Aram said, “Mostly, there won’t be fourth-degree burns in firecracker explosion victims. There will be more fractures and damage to soft tissues in such victims. Most common are head and facial injuries. The treatment would require multiple specialists including orthopaedicians and neurosurgeons. For normal burn injuries, a plastic surgeon can treat the victims, but that’s not the case with blast victims. The Government Rajaji Hospital is equipped to provide multispecialty care 24X7,” Dr S Aram said.
“Victims with 30 per cent to 80 per cent injuries must be referred to the facility at the earliest. Giving first aid and maintaining body fluid level of patients are important. At Sivakasi GH, doctors provide all such treatments to victims before referring them to us. GRH has a full-fledged skin bank and the hospital also offers artificial skin to treat victims. All these treatments are covered under the State government’s free insurance scheme,” Dr S Aram said.
Blast toll rises to 3
Virudhunagar: The fire cracker unit blast at Amman Kovil Patti two days ago, claimed its third victim on Monday. B Devindran (33) from Viswanatham, who had sustained 80 per cent burns and was receiving treatment at GRH, Madurai, succumbed.