Lucknow:
It was a somber day for parents of Anuj Behl with no reason to celebrate. On Friday, Anuj turned 15 lying on a hospital bed in Lucknow. Since birth he has been a patient of aplastic anaemia - a rare blood disorder in which the body does not produce new blood cells.
For the last year, though, his condition has been getting worse every day. His mother spent the day cleaning up his blood which just wouldn't stop.
And his father is desperately trying to collect the 25 lakh rupees needed to give his son a chance to live.
"On his birthday I just prayed that no mother in the world is born with a child who has this horrible disease," Anuj' mother Sangeeta Behl said.
Anuj's family members are bracing themselves for a long wait.
The last three days have been spent in a government hospital in Lucknow but he needs to be urgently taken to Vellorein Tamil Nadu for a bone marrow transplant which can cost upto Rs 25 lakh.
So far, the government is taking care of his expenses only within the state's borders. But the family which lives in Kanpur is very poor.
After selling every valuable in the house, Anuj's sisters have been forced to beg on the streets and polish shoes. And the desperate parents have appealed to the state to allow them to sell their kidneys so they can save their son.
"In a state with a woman Chief Minister, a mother is losing her child. I appeal to the government and the junta to please help save my son," said Sangeeta.
While some money has trickled in, they have a long way to go to collect the amount they need.
How You Can HelpShould you want to donate to this family, you can send a cheque in the name of:
Manish BehlVijaya Bank, Nehru Nagar, Kanpur
A/c : 713901011000415
For more information, contact Manish Behl at 092358-31083