The Garo Hills of Meghalaya are an important biodiversity hotspot and the Garo Hills Conservation Area (GHCA) is also in the queue for getting the status of ‘World Heritage Site’. However, due to heavy rainfall and the rugged terrain, a lot of areas in the region are difficult to reach or entirely inaccessible. In such a situation, for people living in remote villages in the Garo hills, accessing basic amenities like healthcare becomes challenging. In response to this situation, Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) in conjunction with its supporting partners – the HCL Foundation, World Land Trust (WLT), Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) and the Forest Department have been working to ensure that the local communities have access to basic healthcare by organising health check-up and health camps in the region.

WTI recently conducted two free health camps in the south Garo Hills. On 30^th August 2023, a health camp was organised in Jetra village by WTI with the support of its partners – WLT, GHADC, Forest Department and the Chokpot Community Health Centre. The health check-up was conducted in the government school building for the residents of Jetra as well as for people residing in the neighbouring villages. Dr. Zimrichi Marak, Medical & Health Officer, Chokpot Community Health Centre imparted valuable information and expertise to the people on antenatal care of mothers, the MHIS (Megha Health Insurance Scheme), problems faced by adolescents, as well as various communicable and non-communicable diseases. Dr. Marak and his team provided health consultations and dispensed required medications to those in need.

People of all age groups underwent a basic health check-up to diagnose any underlying health conditions | Photo by WTI

Over 250 people from the villages of Jetra, Darengre, Songsangre and Rongasigre availed the services of the free health camp. Besides providing general health care services, this initiative also helped in building rapport with the community members and gaining their support for setting aside land as Village Reserve Forests (VRF) and securing corridors for the right of passage for animals in the region – a vision that WTI hopes to achieve through the Garo Green Spine Project that it has been running in the region for almost two decades now with the support of its partners.

Distribution of medicines in the Jetra health check-up camp | Photo by WTI

The second health camp was held on 9^th September 2023 in Nengsra village. The camp was organised by WTI , HCL Foundation, GHADC, Forest
Department along with the Medical Department from Rongara Block of south Garo Hills. The health camp catered to people from all age groups – children as young as 8 months old to elderly people in their 70s.  Nearly 140 people from Nengsra and the neighbouring village of Kasarisora attended the camp and were made aware of the importance of a balanced diet, healthy lifestyle, food choices and the maintenance of personal hygiene. Of the 140 attendees, 64 underwent health check-ups and were given medicines as per their needs and diagnoses. Hypertension, skin diseases, vitamin and iron deficiencies were the most prevailing health issues reported during the camp.

Villagers being given general health knowledge in Nengsra village | Photo by WTI

By organising these health camps and check-ups, we hope to reach remote locations and provide the community – the key stakeholders of the Garo Green Spine Conservation project – with the benefits of conservation. This was a small gesture by WTI towards the local communities that have been protecting the landscape for biodiversity and connectivity conservation. The Nokma (village headman) of Nengsra, Mr. Samuel K Sangma, expressed his gratitude to WTI, HCL Foundation and the Medical Department for facilitating the health camp. He said, “Due to bad road conditions and lack of transportation, the villagers find it challenging to visit hospitals. Reaching out to us in our village is a big opportunity for all the residents to undergo health check-ups ”.

Click here to learn more about the Garo Green Spine Project.