Playback singer S.P. Balasubramaniam regaled a large number of music lovers at Swaranabhuthi 2020, a fund-raising musical evening organised by Swami Vivekenanda Youth Movement (SVYM) for its palliative care programme.
Apart from Mr. Balasubramaniam and his team of singers and musicians, singer Divya Raghavan also performed at the event at KSOU Convocation Hall in Mysuru on Sunday. Swaranabhuthi 2020 was a ‘musical evening with a difference’ as it aimed to make a difference to those suffering from terminal illnesses.
In his introductory address, Praveen Kumar, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, SVYM, shed light on those in end-of-life situations. “When it comes to end-of-life situations, what matters most is that these patients are not only suffering from pain, but are also short on time. More than treatment and medicines, relief from pain, a social support system and dignity in death is needed,” he said. He hoped that Mysuru, known for its palaces and other tourist attractions, also becomes known as the go-to place for palliative care in Karnataka.
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Mr. Balasubramaniam called the palliative care programme a ‘service to God’. Midway, two patients, who had recovered from cancer, shared their journey with SVYM’s programme.
The programme has supported more than 2,000 terminally ill patients in Mysuru in the last eleven years. It began in 2009-10 and presently serves close to 400 patients of cancer, HIV/AIDS, stroke, spinal cord injury and cerebral palsy among others, in Mysuru.