Meet Jamuna, The Forest-walking Nurse Who Received National Honour For Her Service

We often hear several inspiring stories about health officials who walk for miles to reach their offices. We will talk about one such person in this article. Jamuna, a Nurse at the Aravenu Health Center, Kotagiri hails from Nanjanad village, Tamil Nadu. Following her marriage, she pursued nursing and started working. Before joining this hospital, she worked in multiple villages across the area.

Presently, she plays a very important role in the Aravenu Health Center. Due to her work, she has to visit several Irula tribal villages. She reportedly visits these villages by walking through dense forest trails due to the lack of bus facilities. Honouring her, the villagers call Jamuna by the name Namma Narasamma.

Jamuna shared in an interview with Local 18 that she was honoured after she received an invitation to visit the capital city of the Country. She was reportedly flown to Delhi and was given a place to stay in Red Fort. Explaining her feelings she said, “It was a dream come true moment for me. I enjoyed it a lot there. This was an experience that you cannot buy with money.” The Asha worker was reportedly honoured at the Independence Day event that took place in Red Fort.

In an interview, She mentioned that she has to visit the Pudur tribal village once every 15 days to provide medical services. The village is located around 4 km from the national highway and she has to walk through several tea estates and dense forests to reach the village.

She explained that while travelling she faces numerous challenges. She said, “As I have to travel by forest road I have to face several challenges. The village is filled with animals like elephants, bears, wild bison, leopards, and wild boars. I travel to the village without any hesitation as providing medical services to the people of the area is a priority to me.”

While talking about her challenges at work, she mentioned that the most important thing is to win the trust of the villagers. After she has completed more than a year now, the villagers now easily share their problems with her. I always try to take special care of pregnant women. She said, “I always advise to bring pregnant women with complications to the hospital. Earlier home deliveries were common in these areas, but now I have managed to convince them to bring such women to the hospital.”

Jamuna shared that despite the ups and downs in life, she views this award as a recognition of her dedication to her work. She tearfully dedicates the award to her late husband and vows to continue fulfilling her duties diligently in the future.