.....The Himalayan Misery........!!!!........The Himalayan Blunder...!!!!

....amidst Homes piling up like falling cards, the Himalayas nd the Earth underneath twists nd turns as if waking up aft a long slumber,.....1934,..... 1988,......& 2015 ,never ending saga of the Earth turning & twisting, as if to shake away the deadly load of Civilization aft. civilizations over the yrs.....With the destruction of the Ecology....with modern day self inflicted warfare....with Guns & Ammos...nd Howitzers blazing in the Himalayas in not so distant a memory....a far too long memory of Hiroshima & Nagasaki, ....of relentless urbanization....decapitation of the Ecosystem...avaricious nd capricious quarrying nd Tunneling thru the earth for our day to day run for existence nd subsistence....choking the rivers ,harnessing thm beyond capacity...changing the course of Civilization in breakneck speed......it al has its own share of guilt for the Current misery.....well, the Plates will Collide ,its inevitable....the Earth will shake....but wht of us repeatedly shaking it....round the Globe warfare, round the Globe Tampering of the Ecosystem...nd Scant regard....taking Mother Earth for granted.....the day some Lunatic created the Bomb of Mass scale destruction ....we had our fate sealed frnds.....as Chlorine is being used as Warfare, in one of the fronts.....nd we as mute spectators....Gud Mother Earth unleashes her Fury......probably a thatched hut is safer ,thn the fallen pack of cards which r Death traps of a Modern day home.....we r witnessing ,this fury ,with increasing frequency,with the Uttarakhand Deluge & Horror still fresh in memory........!!!

...100yrs &....the road to destruction....

...it is 100yrs now....the mass destruction of WW I 1914...the Mother of all wars & battles hitherto fought in the planet's history....nothing much hv changed since thn, I thought....the poignant picture of a Yemeni Mother pleading for cessation of the Air Raid, with her hand covering her  child's head,both with a placard,as if trying to shield her child frm this raid....thank God ,the raid is over, a temporary reprieve...as the country is up for grabs.....today is Earth day, with Little Arnav donning a green outfit nd painting & writing for Saving the Earth....this is the Earth we r handing over to our progeny.....it is time now to curb & curtail drastically arms production by all member states of the UN on the lines of Nuclear Disarmament....this might sound unfashionable but a strong opinion hv to be garnered for a blanket ban on further production.....til the Air raids r off , the Child & his Mother will re organize, re collect their tattered thread of Life....!!!!....nd wait patiently for the World body to react....

...& quietly flowed Ganges....

....thr were lot of opportunities to the river frnt,which quietly flowed,kissing the v base of the wel laid campus of PMCH....I wondered ,it wud be a gud idea to sift thru the archives to note the layout....how the picturesque setting of a campus & a hosp.came abt....personally, I was more enamoured by the Cottages, overlooking the river, nd the vip history associated with it....at one time there was a state of the art base kitchen which provided just the rt fud as prescribed by the Dietician & doctors...the Cottage admission was a privilege nd the attendants of the pts. were more thn happy to partake the fud tht was supplied which was in plenty....this , status is much before our times,whn the Doyens used to rule the campus & Hospital....still the very look & disposition of the Cottages bespoke of its halcyon days...the small field beside the library staircase, was one real pvt grassy field whr we opted for photography & the like, relaxing before attempting the Library staircase which was one steep climb....these locations were the places whr we wud be 'abducted 'by a group of seniors for our daily dose of being courtmartialled, during the ragging period...I observed keenly tht the most virulent of thm( with due respect,as I mean no disrespect , discussing history) were those who had innocuous looks, short in stature ,lean & thin, akin to a SS Gestapo, al embalmed in notoriety....I soon found myself chasing a Ma'am to seek her blessings in the form of touching her feet, as commanded,...she was kind & I relieved whn she falsely gestured my tormentors tht really I had touched her feet....incidentally later I learnt she was "AS",tall, gracious,smart, dusky...only to be replaced by another "AS"...swan necked & a duck tail swish...a permanent distraction....who pulled the rug underneath my feet,the moment I saw her...!!!(pardon me ,if I exceed my brief,...but I guess its time to Declassify...lest we lose this one time opportunity of sharing),incidentally, the initials "AS" never left me as, finally aft 4yrs I met my match & waterloo in Archana Singh, my beloved wife....thr were more pranks & the nadir was at the common room below the Library one fine day, whr many a todays, successful Neuros, Cardios,Orthos,Internist,GPs were forced to don their B'Day suits, with anthropometric parameters wel researched & awarded & conferred with titles which is again beyond the realms of this edition....surprisingly til date I remember these Honorary titles & burst into laughter, til my flanks hurt....the ultimate was tht of the oath which I guess was carried over frm yesteryrs nd had withstood the ravages of time....wish , we cud,know the antecedants of these oaths & titles & awards...surely the finest brains over the yrs were its progenitor....!!!!...no doubt after this particular episode ,the freshers were emboldened nd whtever hesitation or scare tht was remnant ,disappeared into thin air....!!!!

.....the Memoir of a Fresher....!!!!

....Can't keep frnds waiting, for they r the ultimate VIPs ,sharing common history, necessitating this spl edition...never in the history of "Rojnamcha" back to back did I publish the same day....unprecedented as it is, as the feeling of well being & infectious warmth generated by the peers egged me to catapult a spl episode....Dr Sampadanand Swain was a revered Anatomist & PCP was much feared.....the Anatomy Deptt. looked like an old Museum &  the Lecture theatres steeped in history : of alumni after alumni ,donning its mantle, Gray's Anatomy the Holy Book ....I felt  was the yardstick of future success & the prognosis of success in the yrs to come, depended on how u mastered its volume of  information of  data of tht of a modern day Supercomputer...so as to brace up for further assaults in near future....the ultimate test of Rote' memory....B D Chaurasia was dull, no where near to Gray's, with diagrams which looked more like a Mechanical Engineering book.... but handy & immensely popular with the students....the Physio & Biochem block was the same whr we pithed quite a number of frogs, quite a gory way for a set of Experiments ,upstairs ,:...the steady supply of Rana Tigrina frm an adjacent in campus pond was amazing....a batch photography also held in the Biochem Deptt....also lurking around were immediate seniors.....a section on the prowl to scare the hell out of u in the first few mnths of admission....ur dress was an uniform & the red & green ribbons for the girls hair do was a sharp contrast....must salute thm for their forbearance of such a strict regime imposed by seniors....our dress code was tht of the sailor white shirt & pant....here in Male' ,upon arrival of INS ships & the cadets in Male' streets ,their uniforms evoke the 1st yr feel, whnever perchance I meet thm....notwithstanding, our Professors went abt delivering lectures routinely nd we in rapt attention....there were few infamous seniors who were dreaded nd their diktats r beyond the scope of this publication......I remember them vividly nd no matter whtever time has elapsed ,a FB frnd request if at all will be subject to circumspect......such was the reign of terror on few bad days of the first 6 mnths.....No doubt it was al part of growing & shud I say Baptism by Fire......!!!!!....al ending up in the Fresher's Nite nd I rendering a number:..."...Chhooo kar Mere man ko ,Kiya toone Kya Ishaara...." despite the bombardment of the stage of Rajendra Surgical Block Auditorium(RSB) with eggs & tomatoes...thereafter ensued an unprecedented camaraderie with seniors, who had to often shell out for Tea ,coffee nd samosas.....!!!!( to be concluded)

.....the Fresher, on the move....!!!

......the part exams in Anatomy, under the tutelage of Dr Naresh Jha....was a grim reminder of things to unfold in the following yrs ,now tht the brief honeymooning of counseling for seat & subsequent admission to the premier institute of the region Estd 1925, The Prince Of Wales Medical College, now re christened Patna Medical College, was over.....the applied aspect of Anatomy with Dissection of Cadavers amidst the pungent smell of Formalin, & subsequent wash of the hands with Lifebuoy soap, was far more engrossing thn ,assimilating the relations of the allotted part by rote' memory...I was the proud owner of the old 12th edition of Cunningham,  procured frm Cal. previous owner being one Debrata Biswas of R G Kar Med.Coll. Cal....the old edition was popular because of the plates....the newer ones which most of us had was more of an ELBS look of Spartan format....being a connosieur of finer details, it had become a habit of procuring the best always.....in tht the Rs 150 a box of a dead man's bones was finest nd the long bones were really stout & long....the Anatomy Deptt. attendants, were eerie looking ,Pan chewing, with occasional red vermillion marks on their forehead ,impeccably clean in their uniform & expert at their jobs....the location of the Medical College, beside the mighty river Ganga, ensured a steady flow of cadavers & bones, quintessential items for the Deptt.....Initially though ,I was scared, but it soon disappeared as I found one day Baba, snoring away to glory with the half cut cranium on his chest....further I was astounded to see some of the seniors utilize an old skull for an ash tray....folklore in the campus always had a spl. mention of a long bone called the Femur ,which was often used to wage a warfare, whnever situations arose....it was not long before I found myself at peace with the bones & often used a sketch pen to delineate the attachments....the brand new box of Bones was meticulously packed, powdered nd vouched for its Newness & freshness whn I recd frm one of the attendants...Rs 150/- was not a mean amt ,at tht time.....carrying the box home,during vacation, was no big deal either, with the Medical College Id at hand, for train travel....my allotted room at home was real private & Ma wud ensure one agarbatti (incense stick),beside the box every evening during Puja time.....!!!!!(....to be concluded...) 

...."...THE PROLOGUE..":......studying Medicine was no mean effort.......rather Herculean....in tht u had to be a Sage nd control the bearings of ur ever uncontrollable faculties, which was in consonance with the admission age of 17 to 20, roughly....for such a tender age already harassed by a tough Entrance system of cut throat competition...look at the amt of input one had to put in in the first two decades of life.....firstly u had to be a Gud Boy(...I believe Girls were always presumptively Gud...)with a routine approach at school level....always living upto the expectation of ur Guardians, teachers. nd frnds....the frnds circle was the ultimate benchmark of ur success....if u r succesful in the Eyes of ur peers, browbeating thm every now & thn at every nook & corner & opportunity...u were the champion of the future.....or if  U r Vanquished repetitively, still, tht honed up ur existing skill for the Future sparring act of Real Life of the Imminent Future....in tht way.....the environs were competitive & it was survival of the Fittest.....to Grope  an entry to this bedazzled spectre of Competitive Learning was not fraught with risk.....u cud be a casualty for Life if u didn't knew whr ur Heart lay.....!!!!......thn thr wud hv been a long grapple with Jargons to fall in line with the gushing stream of Learning....the youthful decade of life proved a perfect foil to rise upto at least some semblance of a mark.....had it been now in the 5th decade I wud thrown in the towel with  disdain & disregard, perched up on a boat ,sailed along the tide ,fishing merrily with the Starry Fay above....but Alas, the youthful spirit was indomitable nd was ever ready for a one on one spar with books, exams, examiners & ridicule....!!!!.....Robert Bruce & 'Failures r pillars of success' was the ever perennial thought pervading the atmosphere....tht some day we shall overcome.....!!!!....Overcome we really did....nd the training thus gained pitchforked us to Life's many a battle with Elan....!!!!...it is better to be ridiculed, mauled & tattered to smithereens by Examiners after examiners to make a mighty personality of a Caring Service Provider....tht of the Doctor....!!!.....now after such a haloed training in Life the askance rate frm the Real wrk field is wel met nd cake walk shud I say for most of us......!!!!...this the time to thank ur peers, environs, Institutions,Teachers nd for the unstinted support of  ur parents......for without their Competitive edge...one wud hv come a Cropper.....(...to be Concluded...)

....SHUBHO NABOBORSHO ...Poila Boisakh 1422

.....Bengal to me will always be the Undivided Bengal,comprising West Bengal & Bangladesh.....the Poet formulated it tht way, the great rivers, the lush green fields,the mangroves, orchards, hills ,beaches...the people of all faith, the rich tradition of customs & Culinary art...the innumerable festivity...the common haloed history....the backdrop to a great Civilization...gud ,the Poet passed away before Independence....or he wud hv been dealt a more fatal blow to his ever perennial thoughts of Celebration ....as 1422 dawns for Bengal ...being celebrated with equal fervor on both sides of the divide...Banglar Mati, Banglar Gaan & Banglar Pran is the refrain....as I cal Ma & other siblings today....we reunite to share our commonality nd Pranams to the elders & luv to the kids of the clan.....flooded today I am with msgs. frm the trusted clientele here on the occasion of "POILA BOISAKH"...with the two Bengals united here....the feeling is upbeat with people here frm my erstwhile native place of Faridpur & Barisal, not to spk of the Hilsa fish & Date palm jaggery al frm there at ur doorstep....!!!!....Frm Maldives Isles ,Wishing al frnds & fmly SHUBHO NABO BORSHO 1422.....!!!!!

.....the Exodus....

.....relentlessly opposing the Nuclear arms was a gud option over the yrs ,but proliferation of the conventional armory was not,....as most Govts. of the world....after the devastation of the two WWs ,the lessons not learnt nd  whr, thr  shud hv been severe cuts, on arms production & its proliferation....but for sheer greed the arms factories proliferated nd now uncontrolled access is granted to all sundry.....thts the reason now for the "Exodus": of fmlys devastated by wars.....the children r worst affected.....their basic rt to education is denied as they r homeless in refugee camps through out the war zones....living in squalor & abject poverty.....this is not the world the United Nations envisages.....this a sad story of how poor the world leadership is,& how Helpless we hv been....The conventional arms industry had to be reined in, after the Great Wars & Holocaust.....an anti Nuclear stance & Conventional weaponry moratorium ,applicable to all countries shud hv been effected side by side....whereas, the Anti Nuclear stance is reasonably successful...the conventional weaponry out of control nd to devastating levels now.....whereas, this sheer wastage of resources, for satiating the greed of few hv made us poorer in terms of the Quality human life index,in this beautiful Planet of our's.....an urgent adhoc corrective measure be for the refugee camps, salvaging the children ,providing Proper Nutrition,Education
& Safety....& Blanket ban of further production of conventional weaponry of mass destruction, discouraging its proliferation.....the UN have to have a bigger role now, as it checks Nuclear Non Proliferation....it has to keep a tab on Conventional weaponry......to make the World safer.....in our school days, we were witness to wars but never to such perennial levels of our kids times....."Doctors without Borders" r doing a yeomen service to mankind in these difficult times.....its time for all to unite nd not to turn a blind eye....