by Nirmala Carvalho

Fr. Lino Fernandes presides at the funeral of two young men, belonging to the same family, who died from "poverty". Conditions of the tribal community worsened by lack of access to medical facilities. The Indian president praises the work of the Church, but state institutions do not help the priests in their mission. Like Mother Teresa, serving "the poorest of the poor."

Delhi (AsiaNews) - The death from disease in only one week of two young Mundari tribal belonging to the same family has underlined the terrible living conditions of this Indian minority, present in the eastern state of Jharkhand. On the front line is supporting these people is Fr. Lino Fernandes SFX, a missionary of Pilar (Society of Missionaries of St. Francis Xavier, founded in Goa in 1887), which administers the parish of Blessed Mother Teresa of Siadih (Jharkhand).

The priest presided at the funerals of two young victims who, as he tells AsiaNews, died from "poverty" and "malnutrition," combined with the "lack of a proper health service". And these days, added the priest, there is a third child who is ill and the father Noas Kandir has had to travel "more than 10 km" to reach the nearest clinic.

These are the terrible living conditions of the Mundari tribals of the parish of Blessed Mother Teresa of Siadih, which counts 45 families scattered among 25 villages, 10 of which are 15-20 km distant from the church. Most people live in thatched huts without running water, electricity and roads. The poverty is crushing, they are landless daily wage farm labourers, so to get medical attention, means loosing a day's wages. Malaria is emerging as the major public health problem because of the rapid spread of the Plasmodium falciparum parasite.

The Indian President Pranab Mukherjee, during a recent speech in the diocese of Krishnagar (West Bengal), praised the efforts of the Catholic Church in an attempt to contribute to the socio-economic and cultural development of the tribals. He laments the fact that the tribals - 8.6% of the more than 1.2 billion people - are at the top of the list in infant mortality, lack of education and inability to cultivate their lands.

At the same time, the head of state has praised the work of the missionaries, both in the field of education, healthcare and social work becoming over time a source of inspiration for those working in the sector.

However, living conditions remain difficult and priests often feel abandoned by the local authorities in their mission. The closest government medical center, said Fr. Lino, is "18 km away" and there are no means of public transport to it. Besides, even "the cost of medicines is prohibitive." This is why the Mission station's most urgent need is to build an equipped medical facility. "With the compassionate heart of Christ - he says - we are trying to help these people and as soon as we become aware of an emergency or serious situation, we rush to provide transport to the hospital or clinics."

The mission, concludes Fr. Lino, is dedicated to Mother Teresa because "we are at the service of the poorest of the poor." In this work they are assisted by her Sisters, who travel to remote areas o teach tribal women how to reduce infant mortality and improve maternal healthcare.

 

 

• india
• pilar
• missionary
• poverty
• tribal
• malnutrition
• healthcare