Posted on 12/19/2005 2:22:46 AM PST by CarrotAndStick
Kuldeep Singh, a bus driver who saved 60 lives when he detected a bomb on the day of the Delhi blasts, has now got a reason to smile.
The Delhi blasts hero, who lost partial eyesight, has now become a proud father.
On Friday evening, his wife Neelam gave birth to a healthy baby boy who she says looks like his father.
Ray of hope
Kuldeep desperately wanted to be with his wife but doctors still haven't given him permission to leave the hospital.
"Doctors and relatives were around when the delivery took place but I strongly felt Kuldeep's absence," said Neelam.
Kuldeep is now hoping that the doctors will find a cure for his lost vision so that he can see his son, Deepak.
"I want to make him a doctor or an engineer. I have named him Deepak because we met with the tragedy during the Diwali and now this baby will light up our life and bring happiness," says Kuldeep.
Neelam will be discharged from the hospital next Friday and says she will go straight to meet Kuldeep.
The last 50 days have been extremely challenging for Kuldeep's family, finally this baby have come as a ray of hope their lives.
Delhi bus bomb hero speaks
A Delhi bus driver who saved the lives of around 70 passengers when he took a bomb from his vehicle during last month's terror attacks has been speaking of his experience. More than 60 people were killed and hundreds were injured when three bombs exploded in busy shopping districts in the Indian capital on 29 October.
Among the wounded was Kuldeep Singh, who carried a bomb off his bus after it was found by one of the passengers.
Mindful of the fact that the bus was fuelled by highly-explosive compressed gas, he urged the 70 passengers to flee while he removed the bomb. However, the bomb exploded before he too had the chance to get to safety.
"A passenger shouted, 'there is a bomb on the bus' - I immediately asked him to calm down, and pulled the bus into a less crowded area," Mr Singh told BBC World Service's Outlook programme.
He's so brave - he makes us feel proud. He saved so many lives Delhi resident
"I went and pulled the small suitcase from under the seat. I could see three wires peeping out. I could also see an alarm clock.
"It was like a scene from a Bollywood film. I thought at once I should pull out the wires to defuse the bomb, the way they do it in the films, to defuse the bomb. But then I realised that if it was actually a bomb, and it exploded inside the bus - which had nine compressed natural gas cylinders in it - thousands of people could get killed.
"I ran out of the bus with the suitcase, while instructing the passengers to immediately vacate the bus."
Not scared
Mr Singh ran towards a tree in an open space. He put it down and was turning to run when it exploded.
Anyone else in my position would have done what I did Bus driver Kuldeep Singh
Espi Singh, the head nurse at the intensive care unit, described him as "grievously injured but out of danger."
She said the main problem is his hand, which is badly damaged. He has lost two fingers and the hand is not healing properly.
His hearing and vision have also been badly damaged, although doctors are hopeful that he will be able to see again in future.
He said had not been at all scared of handling the bomb.
"The only thought that came into my mind was that if I did not do this, many people would get killed - there were so many gas cylinders on my bus.
"Not even the thought of my wife, who is eight months pregnant, crossed my mind."
Mr Singh has now become a hero figure in Delhi.
"He's so brave - he makes us feel proud," one resident told Outlook.
"He saved so many lives. His misery will also be gone in due course. It's just a matter of time."
Another said simply, "what a man."
Wife proud
But Mr Singh insisted that he had done nothing special.
"I believe that there is no lack of selfless people in this world - anyone else in my position would have done what I did," he said.
"If I am faced with a similar situation again in my life, I will do the same. I feel happy about it."
Meanwhile Mr Singh's pregnant wife said that she was hopeful the couple's child would be like its father.
"I feel proud that my husband saved so many lives, though I feel sad to see him in this state," she said.
"I will teach the child to be like its father - really brave."
Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/south_asia/4439556.stm
Published: 2005/11/21 17:49:22 GMT
© BBC MMV
http://www.hindu.com/2005/12/06/stories/2005120611400100.htm
Delhi bomb blast hero on road to recovery
NEW DELHI: Much public support and sympathy aside, it's cutting edge medical technology that is coming to the aid of Kuldeep Singh, the Delhi Transport Corporation bus driver whose grit and courage helped save many lives during the serial blasts that rocked the Capital on October 29.
While guidelines regulating use of stem cell therapy are not yet in place, doctors treating Kuldeep at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here are seriously studying the feasibility of using cornea stem cell therapy to enhance chances of his being able to see again.
Kuldeep is scheduled to undergo a three-hour vitreo-retina surgery in his left eye, which has been found to have inflammation and blood retention at the back. Doctors, however, have not been able to pinpoint the extent of damage to the optical nerve of the eye yet.
And while it may be dark, it definitely is not a lonely world for Kuldeep, with prayers and monetary support flowing in from friends and well-wishers across the country. Doctors give Kuldeep's good right eye -- which suffered relatively less damage -- 75 per cent near perfect recovery chances.
"It is not just his eyes; Kuldeep is under much physical and mental agony. We are preparing him for the first of a series of operations that we hope will set him on the road to recovery. Kuldeep has no vision in his left eye and partial vision in the right,'' says Dr. Raj Pal, senior consultant at the Dr. Rajendra Prasad Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences at AIIMS.
"We are giving his left eye a 50 per cent chance of recovery and though we understand that it may not be totally achievable, we are working at getting as close to the figure as possible. His left eye still has inflammation which is delaying the series of operations scheduled for him,'' he adds.
Speaking about Kuldeep's condition, Dr. Raj Pal explains: "The cornea of the right eye has an uneven surface due to exposure and the lids are not closing properly, but we are very optimistic about his right eye. His left eye is worrying us. If surgeries scheduled for him don't work, we will use cutting edge stem cell therapy to ensure that we give him more than a fair chance to get better. Our aim is to ensure that he gets to see his newborn child expected around Christmas this year.''
And though physically Kuldeep isn't hundred per cent fit, his spirit more than makes up for any lose of enthusiasm and optimism. Surrounded by an army of friends and well-wishers, there are many prayers being said to help him see again.
Happy with the monetary help and promotion coming his way, Kuldeep says he is prepared for the long haul ahead. "I am prepared for the series of operations and stem cell therapy that the doctors are talking about. I am also grateful for all the help coming our way.''
Thanks for posting this.
You're welcome!
Rare courage. A truly admirable man.
Thank you for posting this, I will put a link on the Threat Matrix thread.
Thank you too.
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