Cholera is an infectious disease often caused by bacteria that can be found in salty and warm waters. Throughout history, there have been several cholera outbreaks, many of them originating in India. It is estimated that between 1864 and 1947, at least 23 million people died of the disease in India. Between 1817 and 1923 there were a total of five major cholera epidemics.

Cholera especially affected the poor in India, many of whom lived in crowded quarters with stagnant water and didn’t have awareness of sanitation and hygiene. Many of Sen’s patients were of lower social class, so as a hospital assistant, she would have seen many cholera patients. This is likely a contributing factor for how Sen, herself, contracted the disease.

Sources:

Editors, History com. “Cholera.” HISTORY. Accessed February 23, 2021. https://www.history.com/topics/inventions/history-of-cholera.

Arnold, David. “Cholera and Colonialism in British India.” Past & Present, no. 113 (1986): 118–51.

Sen, Haimabati. Because I am a Woman. Edited by Geraldine Forbes and Tapan Raychauduri. New Delhi, 2011.