Pravin used to be so proud of his life once – he had a good job with which could provide for all the needs of his elderly parents and also afford his wife Preeti’s IVF treatment. Everything was going well until he lost his job recently to routine company layoffs. From then on, everything went downhill. Pravin, a sales professional with over 16 years experience had to take up a job with a low salary package just to keep his family afloat in these hard times. Right around that time, his mother was diagnosed with a heart disease. The only silver lining was when his wife announced her pregnancy.


Being with his babies in the NICU ward is the only thing that makes Pravin smile now

“I was determined to work hard and find a better job soon for the sake of my children – whom we had waited 6 years to conceive. But as fate would have it, they came much earlier into the world than they should have, and are struggling to survive.”-Pravin, father

‘They said they could save either the mother or the babies, not both. But my parents said we want them both alive’

As this was her first viable pregnancy, Preeti followed everything the doctor said, but did not ignore customs as well and planned an elaborate godh bharai (baby shower). Preeti was supposed to leave for her maternal house as per Hindu customs on the 10th of March for this ceremony, but her water broke on the 1st of March unexpectedly.

“She was writhing in pain and we rushed her to the nearest hospital in Mira Road, Mumbai. They said we can only save either the mother or the babies, not both. I was going through a lot of strain but my parents gave me confidence, saying: we need to save both, no question about that. That’s when we took her to a better hospital without further delay,”-Pravin

Preeti can only see her babies once a week due to her health issues

Preeti and Pravin’s babies – a girl and a boy - were born alive, but just barely. They are severely underweight and cannot breathe without oxygen support. They also suffered from jaundice right after birth. They are given milk feeds through tubes now. Preeti wants to see her children daily, but that’s not possible as she has still not recovered from her C-section.

“My stitches have not healed properly. I cannot walk properly. I want to meet my kids and hold them close to my heart every single day but I am not able to do it. But I pump milk daily for them and my husband makes sure they drink that,”-Preeti

This father needs your help to save his babies who need NICU care to survive

His babies need at least 7 more weeks in the hospital to become healthy again, but Pravin does not have money to pay for one more day’s NICU charges. Till now, he had been borrowing heavily from relatives and friends, but now he has nobody else to ask. His mother’s illness on one side and his wife’s weakness has added to his troubles. He is not able to manage all these expenses now.

“I used to earn Rs 80,000 at one point in my life. Now I earn barely 15,000. And I need lakhs for their treatment. For the past two weeks, I haven’t been able to go to work and I worry I might lose this job too. How will I save my children? Please help me,”-Pravin.