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“I run a small prasad stall that primarily sells laddus near a Ganesha temple. When people come and buy laddus from me, I say a little prayer for them under my breath. I believe in the Lord, and I believe that prayers can lead to solutions. This is why, despite the horrible mental and financial state that I am in, I believe with all my heart that my son will be cured one day.” – Jai Prakash, father
Jai Prakash, his wife Radha and their three children are staunch believers in Lord Ganesha. They begin and end their day with prayers. It is exactly what has kept them going for the past five years; ever since their 8-year-old son, their youngest has been battling a grave blood disease. They have seen everything – their child struggling to wake up in the morning, squirming in pain and becoming a weak shadow of his former active self. Every day now, they wake up hoping for a miracle so that they can afford his treatment and nurse him back to health.
‘He can go to school only to get his homework checked’
This 8-year-old is suffering from pure red cell aplasia, a blood disorder characterised by an anomaly in red blood cells, where the cells responsible for carrying oxygen around in the body, don’t form normally. This leads to anemia and low blood count, which in turn necessitates regular blood transfusions. Their poor child gets so weak and fatigued when his blood count dips in a month – which makes going to school regularly impossible for him. He only goes to meet his teachers and get his homework and other assignments checked, once in a while.
“He used to go to school every day, around 2.5 years ago. We stopped sending him to school regularly after he fainted and injured himself badly, one day. He told us that he lost consciousness suddenly and then didn’t remember anything after that. This incident shocked us and we haven’t taken a chance with his life ever since. He is at home most of the time now, always surrounded by books. He doesn’t want to let his illness defeat him like that, my poor boy.” – Radha, mother
A bone marrow transplant can cure him, but his poor family can’t afford it
There is a definitive cure for this 8-year-old’s condition – a bone marrow transplant. It is the only way that he can beat his disorder and become ‘normal’, or else he could lose his life to infections or iron deposition in vital organs arising from regular blood transfusions. However, the procedure is not cheap; it costs more than INR 25 lakhs, which is completely out of the reach of his lower-middle class family.Charity No : 319201431163
“How much money can I make doing the Lord’s work? I do not do it because I see it as a business. I believe in Lord Ganesha and his ability to shower blessings on those who need it the most. I do not have any savings. My friends and family have refused to help me also. I don’t have anything monetary. Please consider my son as your own and help us. Please.” – Jai Prakash
With your kind help, this devoted father can save his son before it is too late. Click here to contribute.
Identity of the child is protected in adherence to government guidelines.
