[dropcap]T[/dropcap]here is a saying that there are two places one should avoid at all costs if avoidable. The first is the police station and the other the hospital.
A police station is where people of dubious backgrounds or misbehaviour or misdemeanor or criminals are brought for correction until proven otherwise. But then, the use of the police force is a necessary institution. For as long as social life and criminal activities abound, there will always be a job for the police to step in as per their line of duty. In fact, the police station is like a hospital for criminal offenders. The best is to avoid any police station by remaining law abiding citizens.The hospital too and in a lesser degree but no less importance, are the pharmacies. Various ailments do occur and are manageable most of the time. However, humans although blessed with so much opportunities and privileges are also prone to numerous ailments. Cancer, tuberculosis, diabetes, AIDS, name any malady or disease, are all curable to some extent.
But not quite the human nature. The problem with human nature is its sometimes inexplicable quest or addiction for some affliction or the other. For instance, cancer is caused by various factors including smoking which in turn causes throat cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, renal cancer, even brain cancer. Each cancer requires a specialist doctor to deal with it.
Alcohol also causes variety of maladies like cirrhosis of the liver, blood pressure which in turn causes loss of appetite, constipation plus a number of related problems depending on the constitution of the affected person. Diabetes can hit anyone even those who don’t drink alcohol or smoke or even chew paan, tamul or gutkha. Likewise, any disease requires the attention of qualified doctors and the specialties they have to master are too numerous to recount here.
That is why the powers that be are, apart from concentrating on the economy and education, also concerned about the health status of the citizens in general. A leader was recently heard stating that while ‘the world eats what is healthy, Nagas like to eat what is tasty’. More often than not this is not too healthy for the body. We are therefore, fortunate that even the government hospitals are vastly improved with the latest technology so that the public can avail the facilities with minimum cost. In fact, fewer people need to now go to Vellore or Gleneagles in Kolkata or any other medical facilities outside the State for treatment.
For minor health matters, we also have primary health centres in practically all the subdivisions in the State with sufficient medicines to ease the ailments. And then there are the much improved government-run hospitals although some of them still require more updating.
As such, policemen and doctors will always be around as necessary institutions and they can stem the tide to some extent. However, it is always better to stay physically fit by working hard, eat well in time and keep the faith.
