When I obtained admission in Government Medical College Amritsar the classes of our batch were already on. My name was on the waiting list and I joined the classes almost two weeks later. I remember when I entered Anatomy lecture theatre for the first time, I could not find a single familiar face. As I went up the steps of lecture theatre some one called my name, “Hello Dinesh, bravo, you made it to the medical college”. I looked up towards the direction of voice. It was Aditya Gupta, smilingly he gestured me to come and sit with him. It was a big relief to find at least one recognizable face, he was also from DAV College Amritsar. The ‘fear of unknown’ had dwindled to some extent.
Adiya was an academic scholar and studies were his first priority. My bonding with him remained peripheral but he was very sincere and he always responded to my SOS calls. The initial seeds of friendship were sown in the dissection hall. You will recall our roll numbers were arranged alphabetically so that all of us whose name began with same letter were grouped together. My partner in dissection hall was Dharam Pal Singh Chaudhary. He was a Jat from Haryana and his family name was Dhaka. His father was in Indian Air Force and he had got admission under defense services quota. He was a suave and cooperative boy and we soon became friends. It was through him I met his hosteller friends like Ravinder Pradeep Sharma aka Rosy, Vipan Kohli, Raghubir Singh Grewal aka Kaka, and Rajiv Sood (if my memory is not failing me). Our friendship lasted throughout our stay in the college then we lost contact. It was during silver jubilee meet I met him after 23 years. It is regrettable that he died in very unfortunate circumstances.
The next person with whom I developed bonds of friendship very fast is Dhanraj Aggarwal. By befriending Dhanraj, I had hit a jackpot. He is the best friend one could ask for. He had studied in Hanumangarh and had his roots in Patran in Punjab. He has all the makings of true friend. When I became class representative, he stood by me through thick and thin. I used to call him charge d’ affairs. I have a long list of memories with him. On the day of our boycott of final professional examination when you all were away to Attari border myself and Dhanraj remained in city. We dressed up as milkmen and maintained a vigil on college campus on his scooter. Throughout the day we patrolled Circular and Majitha roads. The main gate of the college had been locked and police men were posted there. Dr. C Philips was monitoring the situation minute-by-minute from her office. We came to know that a dozen or more remanded students were taking the exam but no one from our batch was there. When our class returned to the college around 5 pm and rushed towards the old library where exams were held Dr. Philips panicked. She also came there and those who were taking the exam were bundled out and taken to the adjoining room. Our class barged into the examination hall followed by Dr. Philips. When she came in the hall Dhanraj was standing on a table and trying to pacify the classmates who were raising slogans. She noticed him and remembered his looks because he used to wear a cap. When during the O&G practical examination he entered her office for the viva, she immediately recognized him and said, “O You! See you next time”. My friendship with him has stood the test of time. He was a very generous host when I visited him in UK in the year 2000. But one thing continues to baffle me. He has named his son Dinesh. Nagi believes that the boy has been named Dinesh after him while I claim the honors too. Who is the lucky one only Dhanraj knows. He has not spilled the beans so far.
More friendship tales in coming blogs.
Dinesh Kumar Sharma
