Harshada Harishchandra Ghadi (38), who was transported on a handmade stretcher through the 10-km forest of Amgaon near Khanapur for treatment by villagers a few days ago, passed away in a Belgaum hospital on Thursday evening.
Government officials and various NGOs who met the woman’s family pledged assistance. The Anjalitai Trust of Khanapur, led by former MLA Anjali Nimbalkar, also committed financial support after the woman’s recent hospital admission.
She suffered from chest pain and a brain tumor. Despite efforts by doctors at Belgaum district hospital over the past few days, her condition worsened, leading to her death on Thursday evening at the hospital.
A detailed report on how villagers from Amgaon used a makeshift stretcher to carry her for 10 kilometers through dense forests to reach an ambulance near Khanapur. Approximately 25 villagers undertook this journey from Amgaon to Chikle Cross in Khanapur taluk to ensure she could be transported to Belgaum district hospital.
Amgaon villagers have long demanded a road connecting their village to Khanapur, which authorities have ignored. Villagers believe that if such a road existed, Harshada’s life could have been saved as an ambulance could have accessed the village, sparing them from carrying her through heavy rains for 10 kilometers.
