Bathinda NGO gets nod to serve langar to cancer patients temporarily

BATHINDA: Giving into the persistent demands of the non-governmental organization (NGO) Shri Harikrishan Welfare Society of Koreana village in Bathinda , the authorities at Acharya Tulsi Dass Regional Cancer Treatment and Research Centre in Bikaner have allowed it to serve langar to the family members of the cancer patients for a week.

The authorities have asked the NGO to obtain permission from the Rajasthan health department for preparing and serving langar on regular basis. A few days ago, the Bikaner district administration had stopped the NGO from serving the food.

The NGO along with former MLA from Talwandi Sabo in Bathinda Jeet Mohinder Singh Sidhu had taken up the matter with Bikaner MP and Union minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.

On Tuesday, the members will approach principal secretary of the Rajasthan health department to seek permission to use hospital premises for preparing and serving langar.

Six years ago, residents of Koreana had formed the NGO and started providing food to the cancer patients undergoing treatment at Bikaner and their attendants. They were preparing langar in a dharamshala, but had shifted to hospital where the authorities debarred them from using the premises. The society provides food to nearly 2,500 persons everyday till midnight.

Society vice-president Avtar Singh Koreana told TOI, “Earlier, we were operating from a dharamshala, but it was too much of an hassle, especially in preparing chapatis. We started to prepare the langar at the hospital itself, but we were stopped from using the premises and have been asked to obtain permission. We are going to Jaipur, seeking permission.”

Jeet Mohinder said, “We are trying to prevail upon health authorities to allow this to continue as it is extremely helpful to the attendants of the cancer patients. The NGO collects ration from Koreana and many other villages in Talwandi Sabo area.

When contacted, Bikaner medical college principal Harvindra Singh Kumar said: “The NGO is doing a yeoman service, but we have standing instructions not to allow land to anyone without permission from the state government. We have asked them to get permission from the government, as we have no objection in the preparation of langar.”