Science, Stories and Sevagram: A Physician-Teacher's Reflections
August 8, 1968. A date like many others in the national calendar—almost forgotten. But in a modest meeting room in Delhi, something quietly historic stirred. Three minds met. The agenda: to build a medical college in Sevagram Morarji Desai, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, was from Delhi—famoulsy frugal. Beside him sat Vasantrao Naik, Chief … Read more
This evening I was walking past the old Kasturba Hospital building—the one that now houses the Department of Community Medicine. I had walked past it hundreds of times, but today, something made me stop. There it was: a small, weather-beaten board that read “𝗗𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗥𝗼𝗼𝗺.” It hung askew on the aging wall, its rusted edges … Read more
𝘎𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘯, Pendsey. 𝘞𝘪𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘩𝘵 𝘦𝘴 𝘐𝘩𝘯𝘦𝘯? 𝘜𝘯𝘥 Happy Birthday! It’s the 18th of May. Like always, I wake up thinking of you, 𝗗𝗿. 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗱 𝗣𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗲𝘆. For years, I’d call and surprise you with my rusty German. You’d laugh, loudly. “𝘝𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘯 𝘋𝘢𝘯𝘬,” you’d say. Your accent was better. Your joy, louder. That laugh still echoes. … Read more
I must admit that I, too, was—and still am—a medical teacher who guided—or is misguided the more appropriate word?—over three dozen postgraduates in writing their MD theses. I do not wish to stand on a pedestal or adopt a “holier than thou” posture. I have erred, misjudged, behaved badly, mishandled situations, and at times, been … Read more
“So, what’s up?” I asked the young postgraduate from a neighbouring medical college. He had just run into me on the road. “I’ve finished my thesis, sir,” he said, sounding both relieved and battle-weary. “Now preparing for the MD exams—just two months to go.” “That’s done?” I raised my eyebrows. “Already?” “Yes, sir,” he nodded. … Read more
Another DNB thesis lands in my inbox—joining its MD cousins. My task is to evaluate it. A formality, really. The postgraduate has written it, the professor has supervised it—or so the paperwork claims. I enter the username, type the password, and open the file—without hope. An immaculate PDF appears. Crisp formatting. Polished grammar. Elegant English. … Read more
This Sunday, Dr. Sudhakar Joshi passed away. An alumnus of the GMC Nagpur class of 1969, he was four years senior to me. Between 1979 and 1982, during our postgraduate years in Medicine at Government Medical College, Nagpur, we found ourselves gravitating more toward the residents and lecturers than the professors. They were closer to … Read more
This morning, my friend Ramesh Mundle called to inform me that Dr. H.C. Attal, former Professor of Medicine at GMC Nagpur, passed away yesterday at the age of 86. He taught us medicine during our residency at Government Medical College, Nagpur, in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He led one of the six medicine … Read more
Exactly a week ago, I landed in Indore to visit my elder sister. But my heart tugged in another direction—toward someone I had to see. Dr. Karunakar Trivedi. That morning, I dialed his number. His voice, gentle and warm, hadn’t changed with time. He welcomed me without pause. By noon, I was standing before Trivedi … Read more
“Yesterday, I took three drops of Sarpagandha—morning and evening. Walked and talked. Still, my blood pressure was 196/ 112. But there’s no cause for worry.” “I took three drops of Sarpagandha—morning and evening. Walked. Talked. Still, my blood pressure is 196 over 112. But there’s no cause for worry.” A letter. Dated October 28, 1941. … Read more