He has no limbs, but being crippled could not stop Zabbar Hawladar.
The village doctor has been writing prescriptions with a pen tied to his elbow for over a decade, providing free treatment to the poor.
Fifty-six-year-old Zabbar from Faridpur’s Bhanga upazila owns a pharmacy at the local market and his fight with life began as a teenager.
At the age of 16, he lost one of his toes to an infection, which later was diagnosed as Gangrene. Then a leg, a hand. Twenty three surgeries later, he was left with no limbs.
Helena Begum, his life partner, is also the sole helper in carrying out his day to day activities.
From moving and feeding him, giving him baths, running the household activities, to handling the pharmacy business– she has turned into the hands he’s missing.
Zabbar and Helena have four children– three daughters and a son. They currently live with their son and a daughter, marrying off two daughters.
Journey as a rural physician
Due to fighting obstacles since his early life, Zabbar couldn’t continue his studies further after clearing the SSC exams in 1985.
While receiving treatment at the Mitford hospital in Dhaka for seven months, he completed a Local Medical Assistant and Family-planning (LMAF) course and later, a VDRMF (Rural Physician course).
Returning to his village, he started training to be a rural physician while working at a local pharmacy belonging to one Rokon Uddin.
At one point, he bought Rokon’s drug license and opened his own business. His profession as a rural physician started from there.
“I don’t want to live at anyone’s mercy. This is how God has intended me to be, and I don’t have any regrets about it,” says Zabbar, although he has some complaints.
He receives only one disability allowance, which he was deprived of for more than a year once. Other than that, he does not receive any kind of facilities from the government or any private organization.
His wife, Helena, complains that the drug license he bought belonged to another person, it would be better to have a license solely under Zabbar’s name.
Civil Surgeon Dr Siddiqur Rahman of Faridpur upazila, in this regard, has asked them to contact his office if Zabbar needs any help regarding his drug license.
Social welfare officer Abul Kalam Azad said that Zabbar has been receiving his disability allowance from the government fund regularly, there is nothing more that can be done on their part.
The upazila administration chief (UNO) Azim Uddin said that he was unaware of Zabbar’s difficulties and he would pay him a visit. He assured him to help and look into the facilities he requires
