Whatever thy hands findeth to do, do it with thy might
This became the inspiration of Bidhan’s life as long as he lived. His life was exceptional in many ways. Despite being a practising physician, he was an educationist, philanthropist, a freedom figher, a politician and a few other things, all rolled into one. He was the personal physician of Mahatma Gandhi and also among the team of doctors who looked after Rabindranath Tagore till his very end. In fact, his patients included the who’s who of his days. But still he found time to run a dispensary with nominal fees and visit patients in slums, while being immensely busy with his duties as the second Chief Minister of West Bengal, after independence.
He did try to do everything with all his might. He applied thirty times in 1909, expressing his intention to enroll at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, when the Dean refused to admit an Asian student. But after this continuous deluge of applications, eventually the Dean was forced to admit Bidhan. He completed his studies in a record time of two years and three months and in May 1911, became a member of the Royal College of Physicians and also a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons. Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy thus became the first to complete both MRCP in Medicine and FRCS in Surgery at St. Bartholomew’s. He returned to India in 1911.
When Dr. Roy returned home, India was a hotbed of nationalist movements. He joined politics, albeit continuing in his medical profession. In 1925, Roy contested for elections from the Barrackpore constituency as an independent candidate for the Bengal Legislative Council and quite unexpectedly defeated Surendranath Banerjee, known as the ‘Grand Old Man of Bengal’. Later, in 1928, he was elected to the All India Congress Committee and he also joined Mahatma Gandhi’s Civil Disobedience Movement in 1929. Motilal Nehru nominated him as a member of the Congress Working Committee in 1930. He succeeded Subhas Chandra Bose as the Mayor of Calcutta in 1931. Being a member of the Brahmo Samaj, he strove for various social causes and pushed for laws, especially considering the condition of women in society.
Though Dr. Roy originally did not wish to, he had to heed to Gandhiji’s advice and thus became the second Chief Minister of West Bengal at a critical juncture after independence, when Bengal was reeling under the impact of Partition. It was indeed a mammoth task in the aftermath, considering the communal violence, food shortage, unemployment, continuous influx of refugees. But, to his great credit, within a period of three years, he was able to bring the situation largely under control. As a New York Times report of 1962 states, Roy ‘commanded the respect of all Congress party leaders including Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. He was Mr. Nehru’s trusted consultant on politics and health.’
Quite like Swami Vivekananda, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy was an advocate of a sound body and mind. He was of the conviction that ‘Swaraj’ would remain but only a dream unless people attained a sound body and mind. There’s quite a famous incident concerning Gandhiji, when he was undertaking one of his numerous fasts in Parnakutivin, Poona, in 1933. Gandhiji refused to take any medicine which was not made in India. Dr. Roy was obviously called, but the old man refused to budge.
Gandhi asked Bidhan, “Why should I take your treatment? Do you treat four hundred million of my countrymen free?”
Dr. Roy replied, “No Gandhiji. I could not treat all patients free. But I came…not to treat Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, but to treat ‘him’ who to me represents the four hundred million people of my country.”
Needless to say, Gandhiji had to relent.
As the Chief Minister of West Bengal from 1948, till his death in 1962, besides ably managing the post-independence scenario, he set about establishing industrial hubs outside Kolkata. He founded the industrial towns of Durgapur, Kalyani, Bidhannagar, Ashoknagar, Habra and Salt Lake City in Kolkata, trying to generate employment and thus giving a boost to the economy of the state. He has aptly been recognized as the Architect of Modern Bengal, who gave shape and form to a totally new state facing an uncertain future post-independence.
Bidhan Chandra never forgot his responsibilities as a doctor, all the while deeply embroiled in political matters. He taught at the Calcutta Medical College, the Campbell Medical College (presently NRS Medical College) and Carmichael Medical College (presently R.G. Kar Medical College). He established the Indian Medical Association in 1928 and the Medical Council of India, serving as its first President. Roy served as the first President of the Cardiological Society of India from 1948-1950. He was the main driving force behind the establishment of the Jadavpur TB Hospital, Chittaranjan Seva Sadan, Kamala Nehru Memorial Hospital, Victoria Institution (college), the Chittaranjan Cancer Hospital. For his contribution to the development of the country in every regard, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy was awarded the highest civilian honour in India, the Bharat Ratna, in 1961.
On 1st July, 1962, Bidhan Chandra turned eighty-one. Though he was attending to his official duties, he was largely confined to his bed because he had had a mild stroke a few days before. But, he never forgot to acknowledge all those who wished him on his birthday and had brought bouquets for him in the morning. He wrote a note in Bengali for all those who had come to wish him, which was put up outside his residence. ‘As advised by doctors, I am unable to accept personally the birthday felicitations. I wish well to all those who have come to felicitate me’. This was to be the last note written by him. Later in the morning, he suddenly collapsed and passed away at 12.03 p.m., after a second heart attack in ten days. All those who had gifted bouquets to him, came back grieving to lay wreaths on his body. His house was transformed into a nursing home after his death, named after his mother Aghorkamini Devi. The National Doctor’s Day is celebrated in India every year on 1st July to honour the memory of this great doctor. It also serves to honour all the doctors who risk their own lives to save the lives of countless men.
The B.C. Roy National Award was instituted in Dr. Roy’s memory in 1962 and has been awarded since 1973. It is awarded by the President of India every year on 1st July at New Delhi, on the National Doctor’s Day, the highest honour which can be received by any doctor in India. The award recognizes remarkable contributions not only in the field of medicine, but science, philosophy, politics, literature and arts. The immortal legacy of the great man thus continues to live and be honoured by his countrymen and will hopefully be continued to be done so in the years to come.