One Boy’s Life Inspired a Movement

By Durga Sankar Patra

January 1, 2030 — Just the other morning, my sweet daughter offered a hot tea and Sambad, and the Odia Daily Newspaper for me. The front page catches my attention with the headline, “High Court Directs Government Doctors to Prescribe Generic Medicine.” Reading those headlines brought me much joy, as I am still able to clearly remember the struggle for this cause in the early days of the Pragati Foundation.

Suddenly, as if transported back in time, my heart begins to race and my mind wanders­–I recall the forgotten pain of the tragic incident of poor Dalit child, Sambhu, in the Nidhipanda community.

Years ago, I worked with Shambhu and his family. The family, were solely dependent on his mother’s daily wages, life was hard for the family, but they always persevered. They used every piece of their property to cultivate vegetables for their own consumption and to sell at for a small profit. They were poor, but they were happy and getting by.

However, one fateful Friday afternoon, when Shambhu returned home from school, he went to backyard, for an afternoon snack, and plucked a cucumber from their kitchen garden. His mother returned home 30 minutes later to find her son unresponsive on the kitchen floor.

Shambhu was promptly rushed to the hospital. Without understanding what had happened, the doctors prescribed a host of medicines to help Shambhu. Sadly, his mother was only able to purchase a few of the prescribed drugs. Shambhu died shortly there after.

Until today, this Shambhu’s story weighed heavily on my heart.

But today we have a new story. Today, prescription drugs are available and affordable to every Indian. In 2017, I registered a trust called “Pragati Foundation” to work for people like Shambhu. In his memory, we have spent the last 13 years advocating for affordable healthcare and responsible consumption. We have fought and struggled to achieve the Sustainable Development goals, particularly goals 3 and 12, because for us, it has been a matter of life or death. Today, on January 1st, 2030, we have chosen life. We have chosen to save our planet.

(There are more than 700 million young people in Asia and the Pacific. Every single young person has a dream and a vision for 2030. What’s yours? Send us a message with your future perfect!)