THREE POLICE CONSTABLES TURN GUARDIAN ANGELS

Going beyond their call of duty, three Delhi Police constables are looking after Alka, 8, and Jyoti, 3.5 years, who were abandoned by their parents at their Samaypur Badli home. The two sisters were rescued last week and are recovering at the Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital in Rohini. The girls had maggot infestation in their scalp and hair and were malnourished. Constables Ashok Kumar, Ajay and Manju are looking after the sisters round-the-clock at the hospital. “I am caring for them for the past nine days. It is so satisfying to help these abandoned children,” said constable Kumar. “These girls have no one, except us. We can’t leave them alone,” said Manju. Apart from giving them medicines, the three policemen bring food from their homes for the kids. They gave clothes and toys to the girls.“One of us is always there with the girls,” said Ajay, who stays with them in the ward in the morning shift. Doctors at the hospital said the kids were recovering well. “When they were brought here, their hair was full of maggots that had started eating the subcutaneous tissues or the innermost layer of the scalp. This caused wounds on their head,” said Dr Puneeta Mahajan, medical superintendent, Baba Saheb Ambedkar hospital. A maggot is the larva of a house fly and can start reproducing on a human host by feeding on live tissues. Maggots are attracted to open wounds and urine or faeces. When the girls were brought to the hospital on August 19, they were severely malnourished. “They had not eaten for nearly four days, but thankfully malnourishment did not lead to any health-related complication. They are eating normally now,” said Dr Mahajan. Doctors are planning to discharge the girls in the next two or three days. After treatment, the children will be sent to rehabilitation homes, Dr Mahajan said.