AHMEDABAD: For Dr Kranti Vora, associate professor at the IIPH Gandhinagar, the lingering memories of Afghanistan are vast plains in the shadows of towering mountains, friendly locals and ‘delicious fruits.’
As she made several friends during her short trips to the country as a public health expert in 2017 and 2018, the first thing she did after getting to know about the takeover of the country by Taliban was to check on them. “Thankfully most of them responded, and said that they were safe. While women have still not started work, the male health workers had resumed duties. I wanted them to know that they were not alone in prayers for normalcy,” she said.
Her work took her to various provinces of Afghanistan such as Kandahar and Bamyan for capacity-building projects. The participants were primarily doctors and healthcare workers who earlier came to India for short-term course in public health – primarily focusing on reproductive and child health and data analysis.
“We travelled in armoured vehicles and got a few opportunities – like one in Bamyan – to visit the markets. But the people were very friendly, children so beautiful and landscape breathtaking. People had great respect for India,” said Dr Vora.
The shadow of Taliban was still present in some of the provinces, and thus the team motivated the locals to devise their own strategies suitable for specific areas. The engagement was fruitful, she said.
