'Will my fingers grow again' asks Purni

by Deepal Warnakulasuriya

She does not know that human fingers do not grow like 'Ladies Fingers'. Fifteen-year-old Purni prays and believes that her fingers on her right would grow. Nature was cruel to this little girl, a bright student at Vihara Maha Devi Girls School, Kundasale.

Tragedy struck her on the morning of January 10 this year. On this ill-fated day, Purni de Silva was in her school van reading a book. The vehicle was caught up in traffic block. A bus at high speed hit it from behind. Purni was thrown inside. When she opened her eyes, she lay on a hospital bed. Her right hand was plastered.

Purni stretched her left hand as she felt there was something missing on her right. Yes... she was right. Her right wrist was missing. It had been amputated.

Tears rolled down her eyes. "How can I write beautiful letters and sketch," she asked herself. The fault was not hers. But an errant driver was responsible for the crime.

Purni was a student who topped the year five scholarship recording over 90 marks in all subjects. She was dreaming to sit for her GCE O/L to come out with flying colours for her school. Yet, without her right hand she is determined. You could see how she trains her left hand to do the writing in the picture published alongside this sad story.

Purni, being the only child of the De Silva family was their only hope. However, nature has not been unkind to her. Her parents are now trying to give her an artificial wrist. Good Samaritans at the Coimbatore Gango Hospital, in Tamil Nadu have agreed to provide an artificial wrist to Purni. Her family is faced with financial constraints.

Her father who works in a private firm and her mother who is a teacher seek the help of kind hearted Sri Lankans to proceed to that hospital.

She is now preparing for her O/L examination. One day after the accident she had written with her left hand in her diary, "Sometimes I think my fingers will grow again." Join in this humanitarian cause to give her at least an artificial limb.

Details could be obtained from the Colombo General Hospital, Plastic Surgeon Dammika Dissanayake. ([email protected]) or telephone on 0714-817427. They have not opened new accounts but Purni's 'Sisu Udana' account at Kandy People's Bank (0032-00131-507125) will gladly welcome donations for this worthy cause.