Mahanta da
Thanks for your interest and contribution so far. Hope you will take some
initiative to fill the gap on biographies front too. Others will surely follow.
I am not sure who the owner of the list is as my earlier post elicited no
response. Are you one of the custodians? If so ,please let us know how we can
all go about filling this gap. May be we can have a time frame and all of us
can volunteer few biographies of personalities we feel we are familiar with.
Regards
Chittaranjan
By the way Mahanta da-these biographies are not about educating Indians.
These will be useful for every one and most useful for the Assamese (including
us and hopefully/wishfully our children). You also know it Mahanta da-is not
it? The educating Indians bit was just out of old habit. You said that Indians
are not interested about others, their culture, their history, their language
and by and large, Indians are perfectly happy to suck-up to those who they deem
are superior and are ever ready to push down on whom they deem inferior.
Alright-what you are saying may be true for some Indians, but is equally true
for most of the Assamese. How many Nolboriya Assamese know about Samson Sing
Ingty or Kalicharan Brahma. Bokul Bonor Kavi does not ring a bell in Bijni
nowadays nor does Kamala Kanta in Karbi Anglong. And now the situation is such
that a Roy boy of Goalpara will idolize as Jatiya Bir Chilarai only leaving
Lachit Borphukan to his Upper Assam friends. I feel such a list with life
sketches with luminaries of Assam will be a learning, relearning exercise for
all of us and to some extent make us all broadminded enough again to feel proud
of all these luminaries from Assam forgetting the ethnic divides.
Now tell me, should we not all feel proud this octogenarian Assamese doctor
who is still on his mission at the ripe old age of 97. I have been fortunate
enough to drink the pink concoction administered by this Good Samaritan
during those childhood fever bouts. Here is the life sketch of Dr. Nalini
Sarma published in this Saturdays Sentinel magazine.
Atifa Deshamukhya in an interview with the venerated doctor.
He is 97 years old and still practising as a doctor, bringing succour to
patients from far and wide. It is interesting to note that is these days of
advanced medical tests and treatment people still flock to him for clinical
diagnoses based on the senses, and in some cases samples of body fluids tested
by himself over a microscope. A stethescope and a BP machine are the only
adjuncts that distinguish him as a doctor. Therein lies his uniqueness.
He puts his hand at the pulse point and diagnoses the disease, said a loyal
patient who has been consulting him for over 50 years now. She also recounted a
mysterious case about a lady of Uzanbazar who had been diagnosed with cancer by
a leading hospital in the city. Just before leaving for Apollo Hospital,
Chennai, she visited Dr Nalini Sarma at the behest of some relative. The doctor
told her he could cure her in a day. And cure he did. A clinical diagnosis by
the gifted doctor established that a purgative would heal her. She had the pill
and as if by magic, she was cured instantly.
When asked to comment on scores of such incidents reported to me, Dr Sarma put
it down to originality of approach. In fact the late Dr Bani Kanta Kakati had
once defended his system of diagnosis by saying that Nalini has originality
during the early part of Sarma's career. It acted as a spur egging him on to
develop this god-gifted trait. Now, at ripe old age he justifies his approach
saying that stalwarts in every field are divinely gifted. If I have been able
to do something significant it is also a gift of god, says he.
Not only education and professional experience, but a host of co-curricular
activities and a childhood spent in the close proximity of nature have helped
to shape the man as he is today. He learnt French and Korean, took lessons on
the piano, learnt martial arts and was actively involved in games and sports.
Perhaps thats why he is healthy in body and mind till date. No specks, no
artificial teeth, and still very much on his feet.
Dr Sarma is effusive in his insistence that the very medicines that heal can
also kill. It is necessary to exercise utmost caution that medicine itself does
not become posion.
Douse the flame, dont hit against the smoke is a precept followed by Dr
Sarma. He is saddened that most doctors treat the symptoms of the disease,
rather than address the root problem. He cited many examples to corroborate
this. In most cases, it appeared that some primary cause as gas or
malfunctioning of the liver was giving rise to complications in people which
the front-ranking doctors and hospitals could not handle satisfactorily. But
when Dr Sarma targetted the source of the disease, people recovered all too
soon. And this is how his fame spread.
He is happy to be practising at this ripe old age. Its a learning experience
listening to the accounts of the many experiences he has had. Grimacing at one
moment, heartily laughing at the other speaking animatedly in a smattering of
Bengali and English intertwined with chaste Assamese, he made me wonder at
this vitality and zest of a nonagenarian.
Born to Harikanta Sarma and Dharmeswar Debi, he suffered various ailments and
accidents in the early part of his life. He was sent to the medical college of
Bengal, Calcutta to pursue medicine as a career. It was a premier medical
college in those days, drawing patients from eastern Asia, middle-east
countries as well as Europe. While a student, he used to frequent the Tropical
school of medicine at Calcutta where he acquainted himself with the research
work being conducted on various tropical diseases. The neigbouring pathological
museum was also a treasure - trove for the young, inquisitive Dr Sarma who
engrossed himself in multi-pronged studies to equip himself for a fritful
career. He was a bright student and the professors would often single him out
to assist in operations being performed by them. This practical grounding has
been so succussful that at this date, when he has long forgotten the theory
inscribed in voluminous tomes, he recalls crystal clear the
hands-on experience which has, as it were, formed an intuitive basis for his
diagnosis till today. In those days, a course in medicine know as Bachelor of
Medicine included Medical Surgery, Midwifery, Gynaecology, Ear, Nose & Throat,
Eye, Skin and Teeth also. It was quite a comprehensive course, which is why Dr
Sarmas patients can consult him on anything and get results. At present he
does not practise surgery, which is one of the fall-outs of advancing age.
The masters under whom he received training were also men of considerable
stature. Lt col Green Armytase, professor of midwifery and gynaecology was
later made honorary gynaecologist to Her Majesty the Queen of Great Britain.
Another illustrious professor was Sunil Bose, elder brother of Subhash Chandra
Bose, who was the most well-known cardiologist in East India at that time. And
Nalini remembers how the former would humbly admit to knowing nothing much
about the heart! A precept learnt of Lt col Vere Hodge, profesor of medicine,
has remained the buzzword for Dr Sarma patient is the best book. Thus, he
has kept up the learning process over the decades, learning from his patients
even as he tried to help them with his stock of acquired knowledge.
Dr Nalini Sarma first set up practice at Barpeta. Those were days of
conflicting claims of local doctors, homeopaths, Kabiraj, spiritual and
indigenous healers. It took time to carve out a niche for himself. But in time
he did so incorporating the best aspects of compettitive fields of medicine,
while weeding out peoples superstitious dependance on quack healers of all
kinds.
Next followed a stint as in-charge, Assam Civil Hospital. He because known as a
strict administrator who would give the British Sahibs a run for their worth.
Besides attending to patients and endless post mortems, the load of the World
War-II which was then raging he managed to usher in qualitative changes in
the isolation ward of the hospital, lying hitherto neglected.
He helped set up the Indian Medical Association, and involved himself in relief
activities and disaster management. He strictly imposed hygiene habits among
the abors and was known to resort to spanking of people and patients to get
them to behave!
He was also associated as in-charge of the Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi TB
Hospital and visiting professor at Ayurvedic College.
Owing to some conflict with the powers that be, he resigned from his government
job and set up private practice. Patients queue up in unending lines to this
day.
He advises a good diet concentrating on milk, butter, fruits, egg and fish,
followed by free hand exercises and long walks as the secret of a healthy life.
He says that sleeping more than eight hours a day can make the body a hotbed of
disease. One should eat in moderation, have regular habits and be occupied
with constructive activity to be of sound health and spirit.
Going by the nonagenarians good health, his advice is surely worth taking. He
miraculously survived inspite of drowning in the Brahmaputra at one pont of his
career. Here's hoping that he remains with us for many many years more in good
health and spirits.
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