Navy providing 5-day comprehensive medical care to residents of five key islands in Lakshadweep

New Delhi, Jan 14 (PTI) In line with government's priority to reach out to people living in far flung areas, the Indian Navy is conducting a five-day multi-speciality camp to provide comprehensive medical care to residents of five strategically-located islands in Lakshadweep.

Twenty-nine medical officers, two nursing officers and 42 paramedical personnel from the Navy, Army and the Air Force have been deployed to provide the medical services to people in Amini, Androth, Agatti, Kavaratti and Minicoy islands.

The medical team comprised specialists in cardiology, ophthalmology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, dermatology, ENT, and many more. A dedicated ophthalmology team has been deployed at Kavaratti to undertake cataract surgeries, according to the Navy.

The residents are also being extended surgical procedures that would have otherwise required multiple visits to different hospitals on the mainland, it said.

The initiative aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare for every citizen, including those residing in the most remote regions, the Navy said.

The medical camp was formally inaugurated by Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi on Tuesday.

"The Lakshadweep and Minicoy islands are India's southernmost sentinels in the Arabian Sea. They stand watch over some of the busiest sea lanes in the world -- routes through which a significant portion of global trade transits daily," he said.

The Navy chief said the strategic importance of Lakshadweep to India's national security cannot be overstated.

"But equally important as geography and sea lines, are the people of this strategic outpost -- who live in harmony with the seas. Your culture, traditions and way of life are intertwined with the ocean that surrounds us," he said.

Admiral Tripathi said the Indian Navy shares "this bond" with the seas.

"For us, these islands and the people are family. We are bound together by the oceans -- which the Indian Navy protects, and through which we remain connected. "This medical camp is an expression of that enduring relationship - the Navy reaching out to its extended family, ensuring that distance from the mainland does not translate into distance from good quality medical care," he said.

As far as the Indian Navy is concerned, our core role is war-fighting, he continued.

"Equally important is our benign role -- the role of the Navy as a force for good, a force for humanitarian service, and a force that engages with coastal communities," he noted.

The chief of naval staff said the medical camp represents a "truly joint endeavour" among all the three services - the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force as the doctors, specialists, nurses, and technicians from different services are bringing their expertise and experience to assist the people of these islands.

The range of medical specialities assembled here is unprecedented for a camp in these islands, he said.

The "static medical team", comprising six groups of specialists and surgeons, are distributed between Agatti, Minicoy and Kavaratti, according to the Navy.

It said mobile multispecialty team comprising more than nine groups of specialists and surgeons are travelling to five different islands, setting up medical camp at each location for a day. PTI MPB KVK KVK