Daijiworld Media Network – Puttur

Puttur, Nov 4: In a tragic accident that shook the city, an auto rickshaw was crushed in a collision with a car, leaving six people seriously injured. One child died on the spot, while another succumbed to injuries in the hospital. Amid the chaos and heartbreak, one woman’s selfless act of compassion has moved hearts across the region.

It was a horrific scene — the mangled remains of an auto rickshaw, wailing relatives, and a severely injured three-month-old infant bleeding from the nose after suffering a head injury. The baby’s mother lay unconscious and grievously hurt. In that heart-wrenching moment, a woman rushed forward, embraced the helpless infant, and took charge of getting medical attention — embodying the true spirit of motherhood beyond religion.

For nearly three hours, she cared for the infant as if it were her own — rushing from one hospital to another for a CT scan, feeding the child milk, comforting it in her arms, and ensuring it received the best care possible. While the child’s mother lay unconscious, the infant found warmth and safety in this woman’s loving arms.

This act of compassion by Chandraprabha Gowda of Salmara, also, the vice-president of Puttur Block Congress Women’s Wing, who set aside religious and communal boundaries to uphold humanity, has earned her widespread praise. Her gesture stands as a powerful reminder that coastal Karnataka is not only a land of communal tensions, as often portrayed, but also of humanity and kindness that transcends faith.

The tragic collision occurred on Friday, October 31, around 4:30 pm near Parpunja on the outskirts of Puttur, when a car rammed into an auto rickshaw. In the accident, four-and-a-half-year-old Shajwa Fatima died on the spot. Her father, Hanif Bannur (the auto driver), her mother, grandmother, another child, and Nadini with her three-month-old baby sustained serious injuries. Fatima’s grandmother, Julaika, succumbed to her injuries later that night at a hospital in Mangaluru.

While two victims were shifted to Mangaluru, others were admitted to Sampya Hospital. Chandraprabha Gowda, a resident of Salmara, was preparing to leave for Kateel Temple with her family when she heard about the accident. She immediately cancelled her trip and rushed to the hospital, where she was moved by the sight of the crying infant. Learning that a CT scan was urgently required and that the baby’s mother was in the ICU, Chandraprabha took swift action to ensure the child received the necessary medical care — becoming, for that moment, the child’s guardian angel.