......The departure ......

 ...Possibly 102/120marks in Medical Dental Admission Test of 1984,   Gautam was tied with me holding a rank of 36 & I the 38th,  this was enough in 1984 for a smooth sail  into  the  Coveted haloed Patna Medical College & thus  began our long journey of friendship .He was the  first  batch of Bihar Inter Council of 1983 & I the last Isc. batch of Patna university of 1982; one year junior to me in Science College Patna , he drew level at the entrance , with a deft rightfooter  ,  the striker that  he was in  football...he was good at  it , represented  our Class & a sprightly , active , much in contrast  to  his Chubby persona ....fondly  'Baba' to us as he donned  the fmly title of Pandey ...Rd no.13 D , Rajendra nagar, Patna and subsequently 40 F Saidpur medical hostel were our  common  address at least  for a  couple  of  years where a quartet of frnds that of Anindya, Pankaj , Gautam and myself shared a tiny accomodation ...we studied on our respective beds as there was shortage of  space , as proper hostel allotment was still not obtained...as we grappled  with Gray's  Anatomy , Baba would discuss animatedly and  at  the opportune  moment could  be seen napping behind a heap of books and  Cadaver bones which were strewn over  our  beds for academics , a half cut skull serving as the ash tray ....we all used  to  huff  and  puff  our  way  to  the college  a  full  3  km  away ....We had our bicycles ....these bicycles  took  us  to  movie  theatres of Patna , with host many  class mates  of  difft  floors  in  the  sprawling  Medical hostel, we wud  return at midnite post a nite  show on  these " Shaan ki Sawari ", Baba  was  ever  enthusistic for  such  a  trip ....in  as  much  we  made  it  to  Rajgir, on these,  102  km  frm  Patna on a blood  donation  awareness  campaign  of  the  Mountaineering  &  Allied activities  society  Of  PMCH ....thus  generating  a bond, for  the gruelling  years of  studentship & training   to  come .

That  Baba had a loving  family  , we experienced  first  hand  on  a trip  to  Dhanbad  his  hometown  where  he  took  us as invitees  to  his  Sister's marriage ...His father  was a Sr. Permanent way engineer in E . Rly ,& his Mamajees were very  well to  do, as Contractors in  the Coal  belt with varied business interest,and he  being the " Ankhon ka Tara Bhanja " , pampered  to the  tee.. in that  we  were  accorded a lavish  accomodation for  our  stay  there , participating in the marriage   and  getting  acquainted  to  his  fmly...It was a memorable event as GORA (his pet name)pulled all stops  to  ensure  that  we  had  maximum  fun ....!!!!...Cherished  is  that  Memory ...!!!

...thus  began a long  association  of  camaraderie  in  many  acts  of  Omissions  &  Commissions , in  that we  organised surreptitiously an exclusive  trip  to  Kakolat Waterfalls with a section of our female class mates...& with a far  reaching  consequences of an upheaval  later  on  in  the  125  strong  class, when  it  was discovered...that is another story ...Baba was a part and parcel of  what  I did and  a  few  of our illustrious partners , all hand  in Glove ....whom I  so  fondly  remember  now  ....Anindya Gupta , Pankaj Jha , Soubhik Roy , Kunal Hazari , Sanjay Kumar ,Nawneet Sinha , Anupam lal, Nirmal sultania , Anand Makharia our Guru , and a host many of  us....

Baba parted  company  for a  Boys Old hostel seat in the campus only  to  reunite  later in The newly Built hostel for  final  prof stds & later on  to Doctor's hostel 7  &  2 all in  the campus  where  we  relocated .

Umpteenth  time  we  wud  visit the  Chaiwali at our hostel  doorsteps sipping  tea ...

Always  presenting  a  bored  expression of a Non Existing Fatigue,  followed  by  peels of  laughter whn  we  struck  the  right  cord , never  in  want  was  our  company ...

As He  finally  bid adieu last week , I remembered  having  chatted  with  him  recently  on my Madhupur trips , wherein  he  wud  express  a  desire  to  meet  ,  even  a  programme  by  rd  frm  Dhanbad  was on  the  anvil only  to  be  scuttled for the  heat  wave thn prevailing ....That Madhupur  trip  never  materialised , and that  will never  now  ,  now  that  he  is  not  around  ...The CMS of Loyabad , BCCL , my close associate is  no  more...a Void Unfathomable, a Loss Irreparable ...!!!!...Rest in peace, Baba , my dear friend Gautam ...