“Doctors say I am lucky to have survived. That too, with help from people I do not even know,” she says, still recuperating at the Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH).

Reena, originally from Bihar, had recently come to the city to visit her mother, who works as a domestic help in Salem Tabri. Her husband earns a meagre Rs 1,400 per month in Bihar.

In the city, however, she fell prey to the virus when she was due for delivery. Not only did her family require money but also blood in plenty to ensure her survival, with her platelet slipping to just 5,000.

Said Dr Alka Satija, associate professor at the department of Gynaecology at the DMCH: “All thanks to the adequate amount of blood supply from the Transfusion Department and financial help from the public that she has survived the ordeal. When she was admitted to the hospital, she had a large number of complications. Not only was her platelet count low, she could not even have had a normal delivery, so we conducted a caesarean.”

Today, Reena is on the road to recovery. Her is state much better than when she was to be operated upon for a caesarean on October 31, along with dengue complications.

Says Nikhil Aggarwal, the good Samaritan who initiated the process of helping Reena along with other members of the NGO Salaam Zindagi Foundation, working to supply blood to needy patients: “I heard about this case from my family members as they knew her mother. Reena had already been admitted to the DMCH but her family was financially helpless. We can just say we helped in whatever way we could, but she and her baby boy, who was born with a very low platelet count, are better today due to God’s grace,” he adds modestly.

The 23-year-old medical representative, working with Win Medicare, was given a standing ovation among the 600-odd gathering at the recently held election of the Punjab Medical Representatives  Association (PMRA), for his efforts.

“He informed me about the case and also showed unparalleled interest in saving the patient, apart from making arrangements for meeting the high expenses required for her treatment. We immediately pressed our members into helping the patient, who was given four SDPs (Single Donor Platelets) and nearly 10 RDPs (Random Donor Platelets). Today, her platelet count is 97,000,” said Manjit Saini, president of the Salaam Zindagi Foundation.