The heavily forested district of Naryanpur in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh is one of the most sparsely populated in India — with about 140,000 inhabitants in an area of 4,650 square kilometers. Many villages, such as Kodoli, are at least 16 kilometers (9 miles) from passable roads. This poses major challenges for locals, especially when it comes to medical care.
For a long time, it was common practice to transport sick people or pregnant women on foot on a kind of sedan chair through impassable terrain and muddy rivers. Then, in 2014, motorcycle ambulances were deployed in Narayanpur. Today there are 13 in three districts of Chhattisgarh.
The ambulances primarily take mothers to and from the hospital, but are also called upon to transport victims of snakebites and other emergencies. Lata Netam works as a nurse. She often has to push the motorcycle ambulance up steep or muddy roads to reach pregnant women in Kodoli, for example.
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