Quacks in Saiwan village of Dahanu in the district are using the 'burn therapy' for all ailments leading to serious skin and other health problems.
DAHANU (Thane): Toddlers in a village here have been subjected to 'burn therapy' by quacks to cure their ailments, resulting in worsening of their condition, a team of private doctors and an NGO, who conducted a camp in the area, have claimed.
Quacks in Saiwan village of Dahanu in the district are using the 'burn therapy' for all ailments leading to serious skin and other health problems, a health official here said.
The camp organised during the weekend by a team of private doctors in association with a private club and an NGO found that many of the children coming for treatment already had their illnesses worsened.
One of the doctors in the camp, Atul Dongre, said a nine-month old girl was brought by her parents to him who was reportedly burnt in her abdomen allegedly by one, Bondu Baba, to stop her from crying bitterly.
The girl was now suffering from septicemia (blood poisoning caused by bacteria) and high fever.
He said the parents of the nine-month-old were happy since the child stopped crying after being burnt, but were now concerned since her fever was not going.
Two children suffering from serious heart problems had been taken to Bondu Baba by their parents for burn treatment, he claimed.
Moreover, the villagers, instead of paying in cash to the 'baba', offer him alcohol and delicacies.
"Ironically, none of these cases are reported out of the villages, which is a serious concern for society," Dongre said.
Another revelation was that even 10-15 days' old infants were being taken by their parents for treatment, further worsening their problems.
Dongre said of the 804 villagers in Saiwan and adjoining areas who attended the camp for check-up, 234 were children below 14 years of age, 290 men and 280 women.
Out of the total number of people visiting the camp, 290 had skin diseases, 368 suffered from cough and cold and 270 complained of fever. Besides, nine cases were of surgical nature.
Among children, four had heart diseases, two were unable to walk while one each had sepsis (presence of harmful bacteria in tissues through infection of a wound) and spleen infection.
Dongre claimed that polio was suspected in children who were unable to walk and needed further investigation.
Meanwhile, the team of doctors and club members at the camp expressed concern that these health malpractices, which were found in Jawehar and Sahapur regions here some 20 years back and were checked by state administration, were going unabated.
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