: The lives of many people who have lived with smiles are now filled with sorrow and have to live a life of hardship. Many who lived with smiles are now seeing the turning of fate. It is believed that this is the making of the Creator, and there is no other recourse but to accept what fate brings.
Sarangthem Hemchand Meitei, 35, son of Sarangthem Shyamkumar from Ukhongsang Mayai Leikai in Thoubal district, along with his wife Sarangthem Ongbi Bembem and their two children, a son and a daughter, lived happily, making ends meet. Hemchand, a Tata driver by profession, used to earn a modest living through his daily hard work, managing the family’s expenses with great care. The joys of their two children were a source of happiness and hope for them.
However, who can say what fate has in store for us? On a day in June 2024, Hemchand was going to load a stone boulder onto his vehicle, as usual, to earn a living for his family. While the boulders were being loaded into the vehicle he was driving, he was caught electrocuted by an electric high-tension line. The ill-fated incident brought him falling from the vehicle and severely injured his waist down. After a prolonged period of treatment, he was discharged. Although he was unable to work and as the family’s many needs grew, he started working again despite not fully recovering.
The saying that misfortunes never come singly proved true for Hemchand. After recovering from the electric shock, in June 2025, Hemchand was admitted to the hospital due to his deteriorating health. Doctors confirmed that he had been diagnosed with a serious illness called acute myelomonocytic leukemia.
As his condition worsened, he was admitted to Babina Hospital’s ICU for 7 days. However, due to a lack of expenses and his inability to afford the treatment, his family sold all their belongings to cover the expenses. As he was still not recovering, he was referred to JNIMS for further treatment.
He is currently undergoing chemotherapy treatment in his battle against blood cancer. In his efforts to recover, he was forced to sell all the portion of his ancestral land. As a result, he lost his ancestral home and is now living in the backyard of a relative’s house.
Despite all his efforts to recover, Hemchand’s life has been filled with hardship. Due to the escalating cost of treatment, he is unable to continue chemotherapy. Even at a government hospital where the treatment costs are subsidized, he is unable to afford the treatment and is currently at home.
In this desperate situation, Sarangthem Ongbi Bembem Devi, Hemchand’s wife, appealed to the public for help for her husband’s life. She wonders if she should fight for her two children’s stomachs, their education, or her husband’s treatment. Bembem is so distraught that she has lost all hope. She is pleading with the public to contribute whatever little they can to help her family overcome their difficulties and secure the future of her two children.
