By Jibon Pal

A young man in Srimangal upazila of Moulvibazar has devoted himself to treating and caring for sick animals. Riding a bicycle, he goes from place to place giving medicine and care to sick dogs. He is Debjyoti Chakraborty Dwip, who has made standing by these animals his duty and treats them on his own initiative.

Dwip works as a medical assistant at a private clinic in town, but his heart is with the animals. He spends a large part of his monthly salary on treating them, and a few friends and elder brothers sometimes lend a hand to encourage him. On his birthday, as a good deed, he treated 10 dogs in different areas, including 'Monty' of Srimangal Government College and 'Bittu' of Picher Mukh.

Dwip has been treating sick animals since 2018. Besides dogs, they include doves, mynas, sparrows, squirrels, cats and monkeys. Many people want to help his work financially, but Dwip carries on buying medicine and food with his own money rather than accepting help. Another example of his good work: when tourists who visit Srimangal on Friday leave the place dirty, Dwip cleans it up the next day so that his tourist town stays clean and tidy.

Dwip is known in town as a cyclist. While cycling, he goes to scenic spots and clears rubbish on his own initiative to make tourists aware. Students on study tours from various institutions visit Srimangal's tourist spots and leave food plates, packets, water bottles and other litter everywhere. Cleaning it up to raise awareness is one of Dwip's main activities, and it has had a positive effect on the public. The young man is now well known for his good work.

Sometimes through town neighbourhoods, sometimes along village paths, sometimes through the lines of tea gardens, he arrives by bicycle to rescue an animal in trouble or fallen ill, and to treat and care for it. Not long ago word came that an injured crow was lying on a road. Dwip rushed off on his bicycle, gave it first aid and handed it to a Forest Department worker so that it could recover safely. The forest worker will then release it into the open sky.

The animals have taken Dwip as their own, running to him as soon as they see him and playing as if with someone close. His work does not stop there. A few years ago he began planting one tree every week during the planting season on his own initiative. He also made an awareness video on how useful a friend a tree is. In it he says: "The sapling you plant today will become a shade tree in fifteen years. It will help shelter and protect your next generation."

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.