Police honour man for saving 600 lives on highway

LUCKNOW - When most people look the other way and walk on when someone is involved in a road accident, but Israr, “the saviour on the Lucknow-Delhi highway” remains a rare phenomenon. He has helped save a staggering 600 lives over the last six years, police say.

The Uttar Pradesh traffic directorate Saturday honoured 40-year-old Israr, popularly known as “Bhura” in the Jyotiba Phulke Nagar area of Amroha district, at a traffic management seminar held here .

“Even the local police first informs Bhura, who makes it a point to reach the site of the accident and rush the injured to the nearest hospital. According to official records, he was responsible for saving at least 600 lives in six years,” state traffic director S.K. Shukla said.

Praising Bhura for his services, he said: “Today he is the most sought after man in Jyotiba Phule Nagar in case of a road accident.

Talking to mediapersons Sunday, Bhura recalled how he was led into taking up the cause of accident victims.

What moved me for the first time was the sight of an unattended accident victim bleeding to death near Gajraula in the summer of 2005. That day I took a resolve to do my bit to save such victims, Bhura said.

Bhura is a daily wager and has to toil to make both ends meet. But that does not stop him from going out of his way to ensure that any accident victim within his reach does not remain unattended.

I would seek help of my neighbours and other people to at least help him rush the victim to a nearby hospital,” he said.

Bhura is all praise for a local doctor in Amroha, who provided him with an ambulance whenever needed to take accident victims to hospitals.

What followed was a chain reaction and over the years, Bhura’s support base has grown by leaps and bounds.

Today, I have a network of at least 100 people stationed at different places along the national highway in UP, who are always ready to offer their services for the injured, Bhura pointed out.

Significantly, most of these are the relatives of those whom Bhura had saved at some point of time.

Bhura also helps local police to perform the last rites of unclaimed bodies.