Srinagar, June 14: Two CRPF jawans went beyond their call of duty and broke their Ramzan fast to donate blood to a woman suffering from cancer as part of the forces' 'madadgaar' initiative for locals of the Kashmir valley. Officials said the CRPF 'madadgaar' helpline received a call a few days back from Kishtwar resident Anil Singh seeking help to obtain blood units for his sister Pooja Devi, who is suffering from leukaemia.

The requirement of the Singh family was six units and they informed that while they have arranged for two bottles of blood from their family members, they still are looking for four units, a senior official said. Four personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) posted in Srinagar, Sub-inspector Sanjay Paswan and Constables Ramnivas, Mudasir Rasool Bhat and Mohammed Aslam Mir volunteered for the blood donation. Bhat and Mir, who are observing Ramzan fast, broke their fast and donated blood, he said.

All the four personnel went to the Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) yesterday where the woman is admitted for treatment, he said. The CRPF, that is deployed for security duties in Jammu and Kashmir, had launched the 24×7 helpline–Madadgaar (14411)– in June last year to help any valley resident who is in distress. The helpline is manned by the CRPF personnel.

About two weeks ago, a similar call was made to the helpline from Ashiq Hussain of Doda whose hydrocephalus (a condition in which there is an accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain) suffering newborn baby required immediate surgery. The CRPF got the surgery conducted free of cost at a government hospital, the official said.