Kathmandu, August 14

Shivakala Bhandara, 54, who spent almost one year in congested cabin No 315 at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Maharajgunj, could not hold back her tears after she heard a voice she desperately longed for. Her 21-year-old son Arjun Bhandara called her ‘mummy’ in a faint voice after nearly a year.

Arjun was injured in police firing during a protest outside Kanchanpur District Administration Office, following rape and murder of Nirmala Panta, on August 23 last year.

He was shot at in his right leg during the firing. He was rushed to the nearby hospital and was sent to Kathmandu for further treatment on the same day.

In the course of treatment, doctors found that his injured leg was infected and they had to cut it off to prevent the infection from spreading to other parts of the body.

Taking to THT, Shivakala, a single woman, recalled the days before the incident. She told that her son was bright at studies. All members in her family, including her elder son, were working hard to provide quality education for Arjun. “Things were going well and I was beginning to think that my good days had started. Unfortunately, my younger son got injured in police firing.”

“Arjun regained consciousness after four months, but he could not move his body, and his sensory organs were not receptive,” a doctor involved in his treatment told THT.

“I prayed every single day for his good health, and suddenly I heard him calling me mummy in a faint voice yesterday morning,” said an elated Shivakala.

Though Arjun is yet to fully recover his consciousness, he was making efforts to speak to anyone who comes to see him.

Mental condition of Arjun was not stable, and he did not remember much about his life prior to the accident. He could read basic texts but could not write.

He has been given catheterisation, a process which allows a patient’s urine to drain freely from the bladder into a collection bag. One of the female doctors involved in Arjun’s treatment said, “We only hoped that he would regain consciousness. But, his young brain seems to be recovering fast and if he recovers at the same speed, he will be able to live a normal life soon.”

Quoting the doctors involved in Arjun’s treatment, Director of TUTH Prem Kumar Khadka said Arjun could now be discharged. “He is physically fit and is regaining his memory. He does not need any medication now. So, we will have to discharge him,” he added. On August 1, the Cabinet had decided to provide Rs 25,000 per month to the family of Arjun to cover his monthly expenses.