Sr. Nirmala's “smiling” service at the Kodbir dispensary

A Missionary of the Immaculate Conception originally from Tamil Nadu, aged 46, she assists non-Christians from the Santal indigenous community in northern Bangladesh. Thirty patients a day with skin diseases and pregnancy complications: ‘Serving them is my life's purpose’. Among the difficulties are the relationship with medicines and the use of shamans: ‘They come back to us, thanks to word of mouth.’

Dhaka (AsiaNews) - Sr. Nirmala Therese Manickam, of the Missionaries of the Immaculate, bears witness to Jesus Christ through her kind and compassionate service among non-Christians in the indigenous Santal community in northern Bangladesh.

She works at the Nirmala dispensary in the parish of Kodbir, Diocese of Dinajpur, where she has been working for about a year. People travel 30 to 40 kilometres to reach it. ‘Thanks to word of mouth, patients learn about our service,’ she says.

Sr. Nirmala has been in Bangladesh since 15 March 2011. Prior to her current assignment, she worked in dispensaries in the parishes of Boldipukur, Dhanjuri and Khalisha, all belonging to the same diocese. Originally from St. Anthony's Church, Diocese of Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, South India, the 46-year-old nun says, ‘We receive about 30 patients every day. Most of them come to us with skin diseases, fever, colds and pregnancy-related complications. We take care of them sincerely. We only ask for the cost of the medicines.’

Despite all the good she has done, Sr. Nirmala faces several challenges. ‘Nowadays, many patients are quite restless, they have no patience. If a medicine does not work within two or three days, they change doctors and take different medicines. They do not understand that some medicines take time to work,’ she explains.

Sr. Nirmala points out a difference in medical practice between India and Bangladesh. ‘In Bangladesh, many doctors prescribe powerful antibiotics to patients. In India, however, our doctors never do this initially.

As a result, normal medicines work slowly here and sometimes do not work at all,’ she says. ‘If the medicines do not work quickly, many people turn to traditional healers, whose efforts do not help, and eventually they come back to us.’

Another challenge she faces is the expectation of receiving free medicine. ‘In the past, patients thought that we missionaries provided medicine for free. But we cannot do that. They received free medicine from some local NGOs operating in this area,’ continues the nun, who, in addition to providing medicine, also educates people about health and hygiene to help them avoid disease and stay in good physical shape.

In Muslim-majority Bangladesh, where Christians make up only 0.3% of the population, a minority that is often discriminated against, Sr. Nirmala has never received threats from Islamic groups. But she often has to answer curious questions.

‘People ask me how many children I have, what my husband does for a living. When Muslims find out that I am not married because I am a nun, they are surprised and ask me how it is possible to live without a family. I am often faced with questions like these. Patiently, I answer and tell them that serving them is my life's purpose,’ she says.

The Catholic parish of Kodbir in Dinajpur has over 1,200 faithful. In addition to her work at the dispensary, Sr. Nirmala visits the villages of the parish to strengthen the religious faith of the community.

‘The PIME fathers planted the seed of the Gospel in this parish,’ says the nun. "The faithful were baptised by them. Now local diocesan priests serve here. Being new Christians, their faith is not yet deep. Many do not attend Sunday Mass. We visit them and encourage them to come.‘

Sr. Nirmala bears witness to the Gospel through her dedication. ’I open the dispensary punctually, listen attentively to patients and carry out my duties sincerely. People realise that I work for them and recognise me as a Christian. But I never talk about Christianity unless they ask me,‘ she confides. ’Patients often come in the evening, even though we close the dispensary at 2 p.m. They ask us to open. Instead of getting irritated, we serve them with a smile."