The two brothers, Karimul and Khalilur, took very good care of their mother, tending to her needs and adjusting their daily schedule according to her requirements. However, Jafarunnesa was getting worse with each passing day. The situation came to a head on a cold December day in 1995. Uncomfortable and restless throughout the day, the critically ill Jafarunnesa lost consciousness at night. Karimul realized they needed to take her to Jalpaiguri Sadar Hospital immediately.
In those pre-telecom revolution days, only a privileged few had landline phones; the common man using a mobile phone was a distant dream, and it was rare for poor families to have a landline. That’s why a frantic Karimul had to rush to Kranti Bazaar, about three kilometres from his home, on that wintry night, to find even a car to take his mother to the hospital. He knew getting hold of an ambulance would be impossible. Karimul sought help from a businessman who had an Ambassador car and was willing…