A FEW GOOD MEN

Sarbjit Dhaliwal in Chandigarh

In her end lies a bold beginning

In the battle between life and death, life is always the ultimate winner. Shikha, 14, did not say it; she proved it. The teenager succumbed to cancer one-and-a-half years back at PGI Chandiagrh. She lives on for Inderpreet Singh Chadha, who has set up Humble Charities and Endowments, and scores of children of patients staying in a gurdwara accommodation near PGIMS.

When Shikha came along with he parents from Karnal, the gurdwara management was discussing school or study facilities for children already staying in the compound. “She started the school. She was our first teacher. The frail girl had amazing will power,” recalls Inderpreet Singh with moist eyes. “She was wheelchair bound, but, supported by her mother, she would take classes come what may,” he said.

“A day before she died, she told us she wanted to visit the Golden Temple. We made special arrangement to take her to Amritsar. She went around the complex in a wheel chair,” says Chadha. After her passing, a retired alumnus of an IIT, Surinder Singh Sabharwal, volunteered to take classes. When he fell ill, one retired education officer, NS. Brar stepped in to get these kids admitted to the Government School in Sector 15 and other places. In Sector-15 school, vice principal Baljit Kaur extended all help: the kids got Aadhar cards, books and other material. 

Today, three professional teachers -- Ramesh Thakur, Anjali Singh and Rubi Thakur – have volunteered to hold classes in the evening on Saturday and Sunday. Two senior students -- Krishma and Bittoo – have also pitched in. “Now, we have about 40 boys and girls, who go to various government schools on a regular basis. We spend about Rs 50,000 per month on them on their requirements. We also take them out on vacations or weekends,” says Chadha. His family is joined by some of his friends and a few private companies. “Shikha remains our inspiration.”

The spirit of genuine service has led many others to step forward with help. “Manjinder Singh Sodhi provides free books and notebooks. Ravinder Singh of Omkar Cosmetics offers toiletries,” says Chadha. “After Shikha, I am convinced that there is no dearth of good people.” 

His philanthropic works also include arranging financial help to some patients. “Many NRIs have come forward. The local Rotary Club has also helped,” says Chadha.

PGI Chandigarh has many poor patients coming from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Nepal. They stay at the gurdwara compound for months, and some, for years. Many such patients come along with their families, including children.

“About 2,500-3,000 persons including patients and their family members take food at the gurdwara community kitchen daily,” says Baba Tarsem Singh, who is in charge of the Langar. “It is served around the clock,” he says. The motivator for all this is immensely respected Baba Labh Singh, who has appointed Sukhdev Singh as president and Narinder Singh as general secretary to look after the patients, their attendants and kids at the gurdwara. “We don’t discriminate; we don’t even ask anyone which state they belong to,” says Tarsem Singh. In the gurdwara accommodation, all are free to perform their religious rituals. 

“Every month, we offer medicines worth over Rs 3 lakh with an upper limit of Rs 1,000 per patient per month,” says Chadha. There are 300 patients, who are given medicine on a daily basis. 

Several police and civil officers such as SSP Sukhchain Singh, ADGP RK Tiwari, DC Moga, Kuldeep Singh, Health Secretary Vikas Garg and senior IAS officer DK Tiwari have joined in. And so have doctors and students. Chadha’s charity has also given a modest financial help of Rs 1,000 per month to some widows of deceased patients. “There is a small number of women who have no source of income. They belong to other states but are staying here,” says he.

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A fakir showed him the way

Jalandhar: A fakir’s call in 1982 prodded Suresh Malhotra (63) to distribute free ‘dalia’ (porridge) for five days to the poor in the city. Then, he decided to distribute food to patients at the civil hospital for all his life. He has kept his word for over 30 years. 

Malhotra set up the Hospital Sewa Samiti in Jalandhar in 1982 to feed poor patients. The hospital recognized his NGO and eventually provided him his own office at the hospital. Every morning the Samiti offers milk or dalia along with bread, biscuits, buns or fruits to poor patients in the hospital. 

“On a fakir’s call I went around slums and temples for five days feeding the poor with dalia. On the last day, when I visited the civil hospital, an elderly patient asked me if I would feed him the next day as well. I didn’t go there the next day. But his question left a mark on my mind. In a few days, I visited the hospital to feed the poor, but didn’t find the elderly patient again. That’s how I started.”

Malhotra had to struggle to get a small space in the hospital, where he would sit each day with his eatables. The hospital authorities relented after his repeated requests and offered him a storeroom. He started alone; today he has a list of about 300 donors for his NGO. He has gradually earned posts in various hospital committees: he is a member of the Rogi Kalyan Samiti, Purchase Committee, Health Advisory Committee, MTP (Medical Termination of Pregnancy) Committee, and the De-addiction Committee.

Malhotra’s Samiti also cremates bodies left unclaimed at the civil hospital, or other areas of the city. The organization has helped in cremating 588 bodies so far. He visits Haridwar thrice a year to hold ‘gati’ (salvation) yagya for those cremated. The NGO offers free medicines to the needy patients. Impressed by his work, city organizations have made him a facilitator for arranging disability pension and railway passes for the differently abled.  — Aparna Banerji

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Trust him for help

Patiala: In 2001 SD Verma (75) set up an enquiry counter at Government Rajindra Hospital. The desk helps patients with information about various doctors and in locating wards and testing laboratories. Verma also provides free medicines and monetary help to the needy patients. 

And true to Punjabi spirit, he provides free langar to the patients’ families twice a day in association with the Shiv Shakti Sewa Dal. After he retired from the erstwhile Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) as a superintendent 15 years back, Verma served water to the needy at the Patiala railway station for two years. One incident that changed his life happened in 2001 when he saw a woman at Rajindra Hospital rushing around the hospital rooms trying to get emergency surgical help for her husband.

“She was trying to locate doctors and hospital labs for urgent tests. She was so disturbed that she didn’t know where she should go to get a simple admission slip. I realized that it was actually the hospital that needed help first since it didn’t have as elementary service as a help desk. That’s when I decided that I’d dedicate the remaining years of my life to that service,” says Verma. 

He met the medical superintendent seeking permission to set up an enquiry counter. Over the years, Verma expanded his work: he bought a few water tanks, wheel chairs and stretchers. He volunteers to shift the needy patients from ward to ward, floor to floor. 

In 2005 he persuaded a local NGO, Shiv Shakti Sewa Dal, to start the langar service as many family members of patients didn’t have enough money to spend on food at dhabas. “Most patients at Rajindra Hospital are very poor. We prepare meals for about 200 persons everyday. The satisfaction I get is beyond words,” says Verma.

His wife Shakuntala is equally happy even though Verma remains busy with his work for over 10 hours each day. “His happiness is contagious. Everyone in the family is supportive of his work,” she says. — Gagan K. Teja

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With nothing, and everything

Chandigarh: Jagdish Lal Ahuja (82) sold most of his properties worth crores and put his relations with his family at stake in order to serve the needy. Ahuja has been serving langar to the needy outside GMCH-32 and PGI for over 16 years. Popularly known as ‘Baba’s langar’, the food is served to poor every afternoon outside GMCH-32 and every evening outside PGI.

Assisted by two youngsters, Ahuja serves the langar with his own hands. The recipients are patients’ attendants. “It was in the year 2000 that I saw a man serving rice to the poor outside the PGI boundary wall. I simply emulated him,” says the former wholesale fruit vendor. His philanthropic act has cost him dear as his family, including his children, are “angry” with him for “giving away” all his fortunes. “In the satisfaction of the recipients I feel my true happiness,” says Ahuja. — Charu Chhibber

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Food the greatest gift

Fatehgarh Sahib: A team of volunteers from Gurdwara Bouli Sahib has been serving langar every Thursday outside PGI for the over one year. Ranjit Singh, a member of the team, says, “It is purely voluntary. Village residents help cook the food, and philanthropists donate money, wheat, rice, dal, and other food items.”

Singh, along with Santosh Singh, former village sarpanch Harinder Singh and other sewadars from the gurdwara serve the langar to nearly 2,000 people every Thursday. Along with food, the team serves lassi and water to the attendants of patients admitted to the PGI. “A lot of people reported to us about the poor camping outside the PGI, sometimes for days, weeks and even months, without food and clean drinking water. They would request us to help such people. So, last year, we decided to start a langar at PGI,” said Ranjit.— Charu Chhibber

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When age is no bar

Amritsar: It’s five minutes to 11 am; time for 90-year old Munni Lal to open the lock of room number 107 at the emergency block of Guru Nanak Dev Hospital associated with Government Medical College in the city. The queue of people outside his room is getting longer. Lal’s work begins: provide free medicines to the needy.

This has been Lal’s routine for over a decade, ever since the hospital allotted this room to Sewa Bharti, a philanthropic society helping poor patients with free medicines for over 30 years. The society started with arranging blood and medicines for the victims of blasts and terrorist attacks during Punjab’s black days. Says society president Joginder Pal Mahajan. “We all have some unused, unexpired medicines in our homes. In most cases we throw them when they are of no use. But it will be better if the medicines reach the people who cannot afford them,” says Mahajan. 

— Manmeet Singh Gill