...& 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....!!!!