For the past month, Krishnappa has been travelling for 120 km every day from home to hospital and back to see his newborn baby boy. Krishnappa can’t stay in the hospital as his wife, Ashwini, is still recovering from the delivery and needs help at home. He also has a daughter (3) to take care of. However, despite all his efforts, Krishnappa is struggling to keep his 1-month-old in the NICU – it’s the only way he can take him back home again.

“By the time I get home from the hospital, it’s already evening and there’s no work for me then. I’m only a tractor driver. I haven’t earned a single rupee in a month, we’ve just been surviving on borrowed money.” - Krishnappa, father

Ashwini can only go to the hospital every 2 days

Ashwini’s health deteriorated due to the delivery, she could see the baby only 20 days after his birth

Just as she entered the seventh month of pregnancy, Ashwini experienced severe pain and bleeding. The same evening, Krishnappa rushed her to the hospital. Their baby boy was born underweight, struggling to breathe. The hospital did not have a NICU facility, and their baby was immediately taken to another hospital in an ambulance.

A temple visit when Ashwini was pregnant

“I had to leave my wife in the hospital and go with our baby. She needed me too, but we were both worried that our baby wouldn’t survive the night. Ashwini saw him for the first time only 20 days after he was born because she was too weak to travel after the delivery.”

While Ashwini is slowly recovering and can visit her baby every 2 days now, their baby still needs to stay in the NICU for at least 1 more month. He is slowly gaining weight and strength and was even taken off ventilator support, but without NICU care all his progress will be in vain.

The medical expenses are piling up, but this father has no income to afford the treatment

Krishnappa drives tractors on others farm for Rs. 10,000 per month on the outskirts of Bangalore. He has two cows whose milk he sells for about Rs. 5,000 every month. He’s the sole breadwinner in this family of 4, and most of his income goes in household expenses. Krishnappa has spent his entire savings on his newborn’s treatment so far – Rs. 30,000. He has nothing else left.

The couple's wedding photo

“The bills are piling up, and his fight isn’t over yet. He needs to continue treatment, but I have no way to afford it. The person I work for has offered to loan me Rs. 1 lakh, but I need 11 lakhs to save him.”

Ashwini now gets to hold her baby for 3 hours a day, but even that doesn’t seem enough. Krishnappa has never held the baby. He’s waiting for the day he can hold him and take him home healthy. Krishnappa has no other source of income and no one to help him.

Krishnappa has managed on his own all this while, now he needs your help to save his baby.