Camp to Mandarmani

Camp to Mandarmani
Mandarmani, located in Midnapore district of West Bengal is a very popular trekking route for beginners. The coastline stretches from Purusottam Village on one side to Tajpur on the other.
A group of Bronze, Silver and Gold Awardees from La Martiniere for Girls, Kolkata accompanied by Dr.
Tapti Dasgupta, their Award Leader went for camp to Mandarmani. The camp began on 5th August, 2011.
The four days of camp included 48 km of trek along the coast, various sessions including rope knots,
tent pitching, survival strategies, map reading , first aid. Activities such as tri-lino traverse, ladder climbing added to the excitement of the camp.
The group members actively took part in all camp activities. Long stretches of walk were tiring and continuous rains added to their difficulties. But these Young People were ‘’Equipped for life’’. Every single Awardee completed the entire trek with great enthusiasm. Along the way, we enjoyed the beauty of nature- the roaring sea, the grey sky, the migratory birds, the hermit crabs. We were also fortunate enough to see a Nebula Hermit crab-commonly called the King Crab. It is an endangered species.
An occasional ice-cream lick, a sip of coconut milk or a bite on the crunchy ‘’papad’’ while taking a dip in the sea spiced up the camp.
Though fun and learning was always on the list, the primary focus of the camp was to conduct a medical camp. Mandarmani is surrounded by nearly 17 villages. Primary health care services are lacking. The team which was accompanied by a doctor, Dr. Dhiman Banerjee distributed basic medicines to the patients.
The medical camp got an overwhelming response with number of patients checked in two days was nearly 180.Most people in this region suffer from three types of problems-
1. gastrointestinal problem mostly due to contaminated drinking water
2. Gastritis and hyperacidity
3. Low back pain.
Counseling was given to patients regarding how to maintain hygiene, change in food habits to gastritis and acidity, physiotherapy exercise was demonstrated to avoid low back pain.
On attending the medical camp, the Awardees became aware of healthcare services in villages. They interacted very well with the villagers. They could very easily bridge the gap between them and the locals.
The camp was duly completed on 8th August, 2011 and was a very successful venture.

Anwesha Ghosh
Gold Award Holder, 2011
Assessor