Far away in the heart of violent Naxalite Gadchiroli district in Maharashtra, sits the densely forested village of Hemalkasa. Cut off from the rest of the world with no roads or electricity, Hemalkasa has long been home to one of the most primitive tribal community of Madia-Gond, living in utter poverty. 45 years ago, these people lived in the forest as if they were still in the stone-age . There were no roads, electricity, schools, or health care services. The people knew no techniques of agriculture and were totally dependent on the hunting animals for their food including monkeys.
Cerebral malaria and tuberculosis were some of the common illnesses among the tribals. Because the tribals lived in the forest, snake bites and black bear attacks were also very common. They suffered from malnutrition. In short, the people were far away from medical services and did not even know the word…
