In the country side the villagers go to a medical practioner and say, "Doctor ek Teeka laade (give me an injection)." Such doctors are often matriculates or even less. I was once told about a doctor who would give a Teeka on the butt first and then enquire about the ailment. Some among them crush tablets and give to the patients in the form of purriahs (paper packets). Also there are those who are known for providing a Hatholla service (some kind of hand magic done upon the body).
In sharp contrast we have a very highly qualified surgeon in our town. He owns the Kulwant Clinic named after his father. His name is Dr Balraj Singh Gill. He performs skin grafting and cosmetic surgeries in the town in a highly skilled and professional manner. He does his work with passion and does not care much about the fees. Sometimes he charges only one fourth of the fee that any other surgeon could have charged for a similar operation. At times he even pays from his own pocket and does the treatment.
First time I met him at his clinic a couple of months ago. One of my friends requested me to show the Doctor how internet banking is done. Very few people of his age (born in around 1940) use internet in Punjab. I had gone to help him donate money to the Aam Admi Party. He had a bunch of ATM cards with pin numbers written on them. The transaction could not take place due to some reason but I advised him not to take 'panga' (risk) with ATMs anymore as cards with pin numbers written on them become insecure. Some other person may take away the details of the cards while working on his computer and misuse them. Doctor Sahib agreed readily. Since then we have remained connected with each other via WhatsApp.
I saw him for the second time at the Antim Ardas of my mother when she expired in July this year. He came just for a while, paid obeisance to the Guru Granth Sahib and left.
Yesterday I asked him on WhatsApp if he knew chess and if we could play a match on some Sunday. He informed politely that he played only hockey in his life and thought that he is too old to learn Chess now. May he live a long and meaningful life.
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