This 28-Year-Old Father’s Life Was Torn Apart By A Pothole - Machines Breathe For Him As His 7-Month-Old Waits To Call Him Papa

Babli still whispers into her husband’s ears every day - ‘Just open your eyes once, Loknath…your daughter is waiting for you. Every day I beg him, don’t leave us. Your daughter still hasn’t called you ‘Papa.’ I don’t want her to grow up without a father.”

But for the last month, the only reply she has received is the sound of the ventilator in the ICU, where Loknath lies with his body tethered to machines.

The crash shattered not just his bike but his entire body and brain

On the rain-soaked night of 24th August, 28-year-old Loknath was returning home after work. But he never made it back. His bike hit an uncovered pothole nearly 8 feet deep, throwing him face-first onto the hard road.

His face was disfigured beyond recognition - broken jaws, shattered teeth, cracked rib cage, and fractured neck in this RTA (Road Traffic Accident Head Injury).

But worst of all, his brain swelled so critically that doctors called the surgery “too risky” 

“I was never scared of anything because I had Dada beside me. Now, when I hold his hand in the ICU, it’s cold…and I don’t know if he can even hear me. They are trying to save him with medicines alone because a brain surgery could be fatal. All I want is my brother back. I’ll study, I’ll work, I’ll do anything - just let him live to see his family again.” - Chandan, his younger brother

Each day now costs the family more than Rs. 38,000 in medicines, because infection has set in. 

In just a month, the family has bills of over Rs 13-14 lakhs pending, with doctors saying another Rs 8 lakhs is needed for his survival and care. Babli, his wife, travels 150 km daily to the hospital with only the hope of carrying her through

“Every night I pray he will move his hands, say something…so I can tell him our daughter is waiting. She is only 7 months old. When I press her tiny hands against the ICU glass, I tell her - ‘That’s your Papa.’ But how do I explain why he doesn’t open his eyes? She doesn’t even know her father is fighting for his life.” - Babli, wife

Loknath, who worked as a driver, was the only earning member of a family of 6 - his parents, wife, baby girl, and younger brother. With him in a hospital bed, the family is shattered both emotionally and financially.

His neighbour, Pancham, who has been by the family’s side throughout, breaks down while speaking of him -“He was not just my neighbour, he was my younger brother. He always said he wanted to send his daughter to the best school, despite working as a driver. Now, every day I see Babli begging him to wake up, clutching her baby outside the ICU, my heart breaks. We villagers tried and somehow managed to collect Rs 3-4 lakhs, but what is that against a mountain of hospital bills? How long can we fight a battle that costs lakhs every week? It feels like we’re losing him to money, not fate.”

Inside the ICU, sometimes, Loknath’s eyes flicker open as if he’s silently asking, ‘Will I get another chance at life?

His body doesn’t move, but tears roll down his face. This isn’t just another accident. It’s the story of a young father who may never get to hold his daughter if help doesn’t arrive in time.

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