Karimul Haque’s home in Jalpaiguri’s Dhalabari town was a flurry of activity when two men came looking for him one bright June morning. Haque was hectic supervising breakfast preparations for some 200 people– a new regular for his household during the pandemic.
The 2 bros said their mother, Gyaneshwari Rai, an asthma client, had passed away in their sister’s home some 15 km away, and they were unable to get her body back for the last rites. Everybody had actually turned their backs on the family, fearing the septuagenarian had actually passed away of COVID-19 Without any transportation, not even an ambulance, their only hope was Haque, the ‘Bike Ambulance Dada’.
Within hours, Haque had sped off on his bike ambulance with its specialised medical facility cot attached as a side-car, and had brought the body to the Rais’ home for the final rites and cremation. “We were not with her when she passed away,” said Bhim, one of the deceased lady’s sons. “The least we could do was send her off with dignity, with complete Hindu rites as she would have wanted. Thanks to Karim- da, we might perform our final task towards our mother.”
Lifelong pursuit
Transporting people to and from the hospital on his motorbike has actually been Haque’s pursuit for several years now. His ailing pillion riders live in distant locations, tea gardens and towns in forests that are often not linked to roadways; marginalised people who would have remained without access to health care if not for Haque’s free transportation. One phone call and he triggers on his TVS 110 cc. In the past 20 years, he