A year back, Shal and his wife Litty Paul were struggling to save their 5-month-old baby who had a rare disease of the liver since birth. The baby had seen more hospital doors than most adults see in their entire lifetimes.
She was irritable and tired most of the time despite her parents comforting her through her troubles. But the real challenge was when the doctors told the worried parents that the baby would not survive without an urgent liver transplant.



She was irritable and tired most of the time despite her parents comforting her through her troubles. But the real challenge was when the doctors told the worried parents that the baby would not survive without an urgent liver transplant.
This family saw light at the end of the tunnel
Shal works as an administrative assistant in a school in Gonikoppal, Kodagu district in Karnataka. When the doctor said that the transplant would cost a whopping Rs 12.5 lakh, he was alarmed. “I could not imagine making that kind of money in such a short period of time. My wife, Litti, was a nurse but hadn’t gone back to work after delivery. Somehow I managed to pool close to Rs 2.5 lakh, but making the full amount was unimaginable,” says Shal. That is when their story was conveyed to an online community that cared about such causes. Slowly, things began looking up for the family.
Donors helped raise more than the target amount!
At first, Shal and Litti were anxious whether people would understand their urgency. But when they saw that little by little, people were donating in thousands to save their baby, they were quite shocked. “We couldn’t believe that people could be so kind. The messages that they posted along with the donations made us feel hopeful. Our baby could survive, thanks to 525 supporters who understood our pain,” adds Shal.
