Patient carried on makeshift bamboo stretcher to hospital in Keralam’s Edamalakkudy; fourth incident in a month

In Keralam's Edamalakkudy, a tribal panchayat near Munnar, a 40-year-old woman named Sumathi was carried over seven kilometers on a bamboo stretcher to receive medical treatment on Monday, August 31, 2026. This marks the fourth such incident in the panchayat within a month.

Edamalakkudy panchayat president Binu M. explained that Sumathi, who suffered from a severe fever, had no alternative route due to the lack of roads connecting Parappayarkudy and Vellavarakkudy. The woman was initially transported to Keppakkad near Pettimudy before being moved by vehicle to Munnar Tata Hospital.

Binu M. highlighted the urgent need for proper road connectivity, emphasizing that the recurring incidents underscore the dire conditions faced by the Muthuvan tribal community. Over the past month, four patients have been transported on makeshift bamboo stretchers across rugged forest terrain to access emergency medical care.

Recent cases include Rajathi, a 33-year-old resident of Keezhvalayamparakudy, who was carried over five kilometers with severe fever and chest pain, and Malayappan, 75, from Koodallarkudy, who endured a nearly 10-kilometer trek to reach Mankulam before being transferred to Adimaly Taluk Hospital. Additionally, in 2025, a five-year-old boy, Karthik, and his grandmother, Rajakanni, also had to be carried on bamboo stretchers through dense forests, with the boy tragically dying during the journey and his grandmother surviving the trek.