Omkarnath, a retired blood-bank technician from New Delhi, is a modern-day medical Robin Hood. For the past three years, the 79-year-old has been collecting unused prescription drugs from the wealthy and distributing them among the less fortunate. His efforts have earned him the nickname ‘Medicine Baba’.Scoop has more:
‘Baba’ is a term used in India to describe a wise, elderly man. New Delhi’s very own Medicine Baba walks over seven kilometers each day, combing the city and stopping at almost every door, asking for unused medicines. He’s also set up dozens of collection boxes in private clinics around the city, where people can make donations. According to Omkarnath, “Every bungalow in Delhi has extra medicines, but they are throwing them in their dustbins.” But the best neighborhoods, he insists, are the middle-class and lower middle-class ones. “One morning, I got a strip of anti-cancer medication worth 35,000 rupees ($545),” he recalled.
Omkarnath was inspired to start his unique mission after he witnessed a few construction workers getting badly injured. He accompanied the men to government hospitals, but they were refused treatment and asked to find other sources for the necessary medication. That’s when he got the idea to take from the rich and distribute to the poor. Although he’s not a trained pharmacist, he does not supply a drug unless he sees a doctor’s prescription. But he doesn’t charge a penny for his service. He estimates that he gives out medication worth about $9,000 per month!
