Performing the role of Good Samaritans, local fishermen from Odisha’s Jharsuguda district managed to save a mentally unstable fettered woman from the clutches of death after finding her floating in the flooded Mahanadi River.
The woman, who got a new lease of life by the humanitarian act, has been identified as Sarojini Ranvir, a native of Purath village under the jurisdiction of Pushor police station in Chhattisgarh.
Both of her legs were shackled with thin iron chains. The survivor reportedly swam a distance of 17 kilometres before the fishermen, who were on a country boat for inland fishing, sighted the distressed woman.
It was a providential escape as the rescuers spotted her just in time. Initially, they presumed her to be a human body washed ashore. Everybody in Palsada village, from where she was rescued, is astonished at how the shackled woman could have survived. It was truly a miracle.
After rescuing her, the fishermen used localised methods to revive her, which restored her senses. Local authorities later extended local aid. Once it was confirmed that her life was no longer in danger, the police were informed.
Sarojini, despite being afflicted with mental illness, managed to provide the police with her local address. The local police sought the assistance of their counterparts in Chhattisgarh. The family members of the survivors later arrived and police handed her over to them.
“The woman, who was married five years ago, knew how to swim despite her unstable state of mind. Her family members used to chain her as she would flee outdoors aimlessly. Her swimming skill and the timely intervention of the local fishermen helped her survive,” said Durga Abhimanyu, inspector of Rengali Police Station in Jharsuguda district.