Don’t brush past her - Clean your teeth, Karma has free paste

Gangtok, April 5: It would be fair to tell a child in Sikkim, “brush your teeth or Karma auntie will come, with her brush and paste”. Karma Chaden Bhutia, a medical officer and physician at Tokal Bermoik primary health centre in South Sikkim, has started distributing toothbrushes and toothpaste among students of remote government schools across the state to create awareness about oral hygiene, something she thinks kids in her state lack. The initiative, which began last year, has become popular and now around 400 students of 10 schools brush everyday on the school premises before their morning assembly. “This is a personal initiative with help from my staff and friends to provide free brush and toothpaste to students who never brush or who share one brush in the family,” said 37-year-old Bhutia. The medical officer has set up a booth at the health exhibition that began in Paljor Stadium in Gangtok today. During the five day exhibition, Bhutia would request local people to donate a toothbrush and tubes of paste. “The idea is to provide students with free supply of brush and paste for a year or two so that they inculcate the habit of brushing everyday,” Bhutia said. The first time she came across children who had never brushed their teeth was during a camp at Thang Sing Government Junior High school in South Sikkim last year. The programme was under the chief minister’s annual health check-up programme. “I was shocked to see that children were never taught about brushing their teeth by parents who themselves are ignorant about oral diseases. The students had bad oral hygiene. Most of them had tooth decay. I found it necessary to spread awareness about oral hygiene and bought toothpaste and brush for Rs 1,000 and distributed them among children,” Bhutia said. She added that her friends helped her distribute more than hundred toothpaste tubes and toothbrushes in Thang Sing Government Junior High school. Bhutia also encouraged teachers and parents to make students brush everyday. “I held a meeting with the parents and the teachers who promised to support my venture. Later, the programme reached other schools,” she added. Bhutia has also formed a group on a social networking site to garner support for her initiative. “I started a group in Facebook called Brush and Toothpaste,” she added. The group has 256 members. Bhutia said in February, a toothpaste and toothbrush company sent 1,000 toothbrushes and toothpaste tubes to her for distribution among children.“It is not a government-sponsored program. But her effort is being well appreciated,” chief medical officer Bimal Rai said.