| If there were no Virjanand, there would have been no Dayanand and salis Dayanand, the Hindu society would have been deprived of its greatest saviour since the Adi Shankaracharya. His knowledge of the Vedas, Upanishadas, Meemansa, Vyakaran, Ayurveda and Yoga was remarkably prodigious. He had no peer in the country and the great scholars and savants of Haridwar, Mathura and Kashi were just pygmies before Dandiji. A man of versatile genius, he was a wizard of chess I and a master player of veena. His discourses (sltastrarth) with the I famous Krishana Shastri of Mathura in 1859 and later with foreign Sanskrit scholars and associates of Max Mueller (the translator of Rig I Veda) who accompanied the Duke of Edinburugh (second son of Queen I Victoria) during his first visit to India in 1867, were classics of luci-I dity and erudition. Brij Lal (his childhood name) was bom in a Bharadvaj (Datt) family of village Gangapur (founded by his great grandfather Ganga Ram), near Kartarpur in District Jalandhar, in 1778. His childhood was a dreary world without any patch of sunshine. He was hardly six when a devastating bout of smallpox extinguished the vision in his both eyes. Then followed, in quick succession, the deaths of his mother and father (named Narain Datt), leaving him at the mercy of his elder brother Dharam Chand and his wife whose atrocities drove him from the ancestral home and made him a tramp of the road. The 13 year old boy wandered about like a dust ball, in search of a guru and spiritual enlightenment, burning his body and soul in the crucible of penance, till after 3 years of weary roving he reached Haridwar, the Mecca of all Punjabi Hindus. He stayed there for nearly 3 years, met his mentor, the 117 years old Swami Poornanand (hailing from Haryana), who initiated him into the holy order of monks at Kankhal and rechristened him as Virjanand. In 1799, at the age of 21, Virjanand decided to perform on foot the Parikarma of the Holy Ganges by going as far as Ganga Sagar, beyond Calcutta. After one year of strenuous walk he reached Kashi in 1800. From Kashi he proceeded to Gaya and then onward to Calcutta, the then capital of the country. He stayed in Calcutta for 8 years, from 1815 to 1823. From Calcutta he returned to Haridwar to live again with guru Poornanand. By that time he had become a phenomenal scholar, all his conversation was in chaste Sanskrit, his sun had reached its acme. Later on, he shifted to Soron, on the bank of Ganges and the birth place of Gosain Tulsi Das, and lived there for 10 years till 1832. .
The rulers of Alwar, Bharatpur and Jaipur were his ardent followers. Raja Vinay Singh of Alwar was specially very devoted to him and invited him to reside in Alwar and be his tutor to which Swamiji agreed but on the condition that if on any day Vinay Singh missed his lesson, he will leave his state. He stayed there for 3Y2 years and one day when Vinay Singh did not turn-up for his daily lesson, Virjanand, true to his warning, abruptly left Alwar and marched to Mathura. At Mathura, he established a big Pathshala largely with the help of the above mentioned princely states and the place known as Sarilloll Ka Ghar. still exists although in a dilapidated condition, near the Holi Gate. Virjanand lived there for 22 years till his death at the age of 90, on 14 September, 1868. It was to this place that fate drove Swami Dayamind (born with name Mool Shankar on 12 February, 1824, in a Tiwari family of village Tankara in the Morvi State) in a dusky hour, on 14 November, 1860. He knocked on the door and was ushered-in before the presence of the divine eminence. It was a meeting between the two planetary bodies and each was pulled by the magnetism of the other. Dayanand earnestly implored the blind master to grant him 'deeksha'. Virjanand accepted him as his disciple and decreed him to dislodge all previous knowledge cluttering his mind and to throwaway his old religious books in the current of river Jamuna flowing past his ashram and to start afresh on a clean slate. Dayanand stayed in his ashram for 2Y2 years and during this period Virjanand transformed him into a colossus which was to set the country ablaze with his revolutionary spiritual fervour in the years to come. After completing his studies when the day came to take leave of the guru, Dayanand offered him a few cloves by way of 'gurudakshilla' which Virjanand declined to accept, saying: Go and dispel the darkness of ignorance, eradicate the deep rooted dogmas of superstitions from the Hindu society, spread enlightenment; and that is how you will repay my 'guru-dakshilla'. Swami Dayanand more than fulfilled this solemn pledge by laying the foundation of the Arya Samaj which became the blooming symbol of a histOllC renaissance. Virjanand had correctly predicated his death by colic two years in advance and when Dayanand received the news of his passing away he remarked: The sun of Vyakarall has set! On that day he did not -take even a drop of water. Virjanand was author of three books of which the one titled 'Shabad Dash' was specially written for Raja Vinay Singh whose manuscript is believed to be available in the Museum at Alwar. Only one photo of the blind saint which was taken at the time of his death is in possession of the family of Mr. Mam Raj of Village Khatauli in District Muzaffarnagar (V.P.). A trust for Rs. 50,000 was founded by his devotees at Kartarpur in 1960. In so far as the Mohyal community is concerned, he has remained a forgotten and unsung entity. It was only in 1976 that a function to pay homage to his memory was organised at his death place, on the initiative of late Bhai Shri Ram Chhibber of Jheel Kuranja, Delhi. The Vaishnav saint Goswami Lalji (original name Tulsi Dass), the idol of Sindhis whose shrine is found in all places where there is a concentration of the Sindhis, was born in 1551 in village Sewan of district Larkana in Sind. The family is known for its line of holy men as his father Ajuji and grandson Gosain Kewal Ram (born 1617) both had a large following and were known for performing miracles. In later years, in their quest for spiritual emancipation both father and son (Ajuji and Lalji), moved to Mathura where they came into contact with Shrimad \ Vithal Das son of the great philosopher saint, Guru Vallabhatharya, and became his ardent devotees. Their ancestral home was at Takhat Lalri and they were offsprings of the Bali clan. The famous Bawa Lalji Temple at Datarpur in district Jallandhar commemorates his memory. Yogiraj Satguru Bhai Dharam Datt led a renum;iated life engrossed in meditation in a secluded room for 50 long years in Poonch (J&K). He died at the ripe age of 80 years in May, 1980. His funeral was accompanied by military band and a contingent of the police. All government offices and the local market remained closed on that day. He was a descendant of saint Baba Beram Shah. The gaddi established by him in Poonch is now occupied by Bhai Krishan Lal. Pandit Kaka Ram Shastri was a contemporary of Swami Virjananda and a highly learned and revered person. There is a shrine to his memory in Kashi where he had a large followiIlg. He was a Datt belonging to village Bhimber in district Poonch of J&K. His family members still live at Markandya Ghat and amongst his devotees were the lamas of Tibet and Bhutan. Mai Bhag (Datt) Kali Kamli Wali: Her Sanyasin name was Srimahant Brahmagiri; died on 17 Dec. 1985 at the age of 98. Last 30 years of her life she lived on milk and fruits only. Besides a spacious temple at Bhimgoda (Haridwar), her devotees are running a temple-cum-hospital (with 100 beds) at Rajouri Garden, New Delhi, in Block No. V/51. A Primary School is already functioning in the same locality. Mahant Sevanand Giri (original nameChet Ram Vaid) was born at Vdhampur in 1911. Before joining the order of 'sallyasills', he was an active member of the RSS and the Congress. After renouncing the worldly ties, he adopted a life of -celibacy, donning the bhagwa. He is the head of the Atal Akhara Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh and president of the Sanatan Dharam Vishnu College Bhatoli Distt. Una and Sanskrit Mahavidyala Santosh Garh. He is prelate of the Gauri Shankar Temple, Vibhor Sahib (Naya Nangal) and holds many other ecclesiastical positions. He is also running a charitable dispensary. A man of many parts; he is temporal head of religious institutions, a pulpit preacher and a prodigious donor to charities. He is deeply interestedin the welfare of the Mohyal community, is Patron of the General Mohyal Sabha and has an unsurpassed record of donations to GMS, the Mohyal Sabha Chandigarh and to umpteen other Mohyal causes. He graces with his presence all important functions and celebrations of the Mohyal community and bestows blessing and benedictions on the gathering. Swamiji was held in Tihar Jail during Sri Durga Mandir Gau Raksha agitation. He adopted four children from Amritsar whose parents were killed by the Sikh terrorists. He took part in the Kar Seva at Ayodhya on the red letter day of 25 Oct. 1992 for Ram Janam Bhoomi. 3.FREEDOM FIGHTERS Bhai Pannanand who was given the honorific of DeVla Swaroop (Godlike) by the people was born on 4 November, 1876 in Karyala and his father's name was Bhai Tara Chand. To prepare himself for the work of a missionary, the young Parmanand joined the 'ashtadhyayi' class started by the DA V College Lahore. Later, he graduated as a private student from the Punjab University and joined Arya School at Abbotabad as its head master. He got his MA degree in history from the Calcutta University in 1903 and joined DA V College Lahore as life-member, on a pittance of Rs. 75 p.m., and taught history and political science for 20 years. He was the first Mohyal to join the cadre of life-members of the DA V College and was later followed by three more veterans, namely, Bk. Ram Rilttan Chhibber, Dr. G.L. Datt and Prof. AN. Bali. At one time the Punjab University requested him to act as the Examiner but Bhaiji refused the offer saying that being a life-member, he could not add to his income. At the instance of Mahatma Hans Raj, the Principal of DA V College Lahore, Bhaiji undertook missionary work in East Africa and lived in Mombasa, Nairobi, Johannesburg and Durban, preaching on broad humanisitic lines. He established several institutions like the Tamil School, Young Men's Hindu Association and Yuvak Samaj, which are flourishing till today. On account of his catholic outlook, Gandhiji, then living in South Africa, was attracted towards Bhaiji and invited him to live with him at Phoenix (Natal) for more than a month. The story goes that on arrival at Phoenix, Gandhiji himself carried Bhaiji's luggage to his home. It is interesting to observe that Gandhiji first learnt about Henry David Thoreau's celebrated essay on Civil Disobedience through Bhaiji. Bhaiji went to England in 1907 for higher studies and studied there original records of the East India Company in the British Museum. He was an ardent votary of the Ayurvedic system and started an Ayurvedic College at Lahore which after partition was shifted to Jalandhar. During his stay in London. Bhaiji came in contact with great revolutionaries like Savarkar, Shyamji Krishan Varma and Lala Har Dayal. Fired with patriotism, he left his studies at the BaIliol College (Oxford) and refused the scholarship offered to him by the government and returned to India to stir up a movement for the liberation of the motherland. India was in great ferment at that time, the Swadeshi and Boycott movements following the partition of Bengal decreed by Curzon had stirred the whole country. Lala Lajpat Rai and Sardar Ajit Singh (uncle of Bhagat Singh) were deported to Mandalay in. 1907 and Bhaiji led a popular ,campaign against the alTest and deportation of the Indian leaders. He was shadowed by the police, his theses on history was stolen and during search of his Lahore house, a typed copy of a bomb manual was found amongst other things. He was hauled-up under Section I IO of the CPC and later released on a bail of Rs. 15,000 and bound over for 3 years. It was during this period that he wrote his famous History of India in Urdu. To further pursue his pet subject of Pharmacy, Bhaiji decided to visit USA. He had no money even to buy a pair of shoes and with a deck ticket for Marseilles, a paltry sum of Rs. 64 in his pocket and a copy of the Bhagvad Gita in hand, he left for France. From there he took a boat for New York. As admission to Pharmacy institute was already over, he went to British Guiana. From there he proceeded to California and joined the Pharmaceutical class in San Francisco and to defray his expenses, he took to picking fruits and gathering flowers in orchards and gardens. After finishing his course in May, 1913, he studied psychology and secured a doctorate in that subject. On return to Lahore, he set-up his pharmaceutical works there. He again plunged himself into the stormy politics of the cataclysmic period and was implicated in the famous Lahore Conspiracy Case and arrested in February, 1915. A special bench was set-up and on the ridiculously flimsy charge that he instigated the Punjabis returning from America in changing dollars into rupees, he was sentenced to death. However, on an appeal to the Governor General,' the sentence was commuted to transportation for life in Andamans. Recalling his reincarceration in the Andaman Cellular Jail, the Indian Bastille, the notorious jailer David Barry was known for his cruelty and torture to the plisoners and the only people who paid him back in the same coin were Bhai Parmanand and the revolutionary Ashutosh Lahiri. One day they just lifted Barry physically and flung him on the ground, lucky for him that no bones were broken. He spent 5 years in the cellular jail at Port Blair, fell seriously ill during incarceration and on the intercession of Mr. CF. Andrews. released on 20 April, 1920 and returned to Lahore. When the non-cooperation movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi was in full swing and students gave up their studies in response to his call, it was decided to start a national college called 'Qallmi Vidyapeeth' in Lahore. At the request of Gandhiji and Lala Lajpat Rai, Bhaiji was appointed its vice chancellor and he served in that position without drawing any honorarium. In late life Bhaiji was disillusioned with the Congress and drifted away from it due to difference over the communal issues. He was opposed to its appeasement policy and unreasonable concessions to the Muslims. He became the front leader of Hindu Maha Sabha and presided over its session held at Ajmer in 1933. He was elected to the Central Legislative Assembly in 1931 and 1934. He was a liberal minded Hindu and in 1922 had founded an organisation called Jat Pat Torak Mandai. devoted to eradication of the caste barriers amongst the Hindus. He wa_ author of books in Hindi and Urdu, launched a Hindi Weekly 'Akashvani' from Lahore and the Hindu Weekly from Delhi. When partition came in 1947, Bhaiji could not bear the shock and breathed his last on 8 December, 1947 at Jalandhar. Bhaiji's sacrifice and selflessness remained unparalleled. He was tortured with hard labour during incarceration in Andaman. His wife and two daughters died of tuberculosis due to abject poverty. Even the Arya Samaj to which he had dedicated his life disowned him and one of its leaders withdrew his bail bond for Bhaiji. A commemorative stamp in his honour was released by the Posts & Telegraphs Department, Government of India, on 24 February, 1979. In all 30 lakh stamps of the denomination of 25 Paisa were released. To commemorate the services and sacrifices of Bhaiji, an educational institution named Bhai Parmanand Vidya Mandir, built on a plot of 4.2 acres procured from the DDA, largely due to the initiative and efforts of his son, Dr. Bhai Mahavir, is functioning since 1991 and marching ahead. Bhai Balmukand Chhibber (born 7-9-1889, Shivratri Day), the Doyen of Martyrs: Bhai Balmukand son of Bhai Mathura Dass Chhibber was born in Karyala District Jhelum. After graduation from DA V College Lahore and passing of BT examination in 1910 in third position, he joined as a teacher in Albert Victor Anglo Sanskrit High School Abbotabad. He was deeply moved by the miseries and humiliations faced by his country men during the foreign rule and believed that the Britishers will not leave unless they were forced to do so by violence. He joined the revolutionary band of Lala Har Dayal, Ras Bihari Bose, Lala Amir Chand and Basant Biswas (alias Bishan). He was selected to take charge of the party's work in northern India, with headquarters at Lahore. He was youngest of 5 brothers named Shiv Ram, Kirpa Ram, Ram Bhaj and Jairam Dass. ,He had one sister named Daropdi who was widowed in an early age and lived with her parents. His eldest brother Bhai Jairam Dass, to divert his attention from the turbulent politics, arranged his marriage with Sm!. Ram Rakhi the daughter of Mehta Dewan Chand Datt of Bhaun. However, Bhai Balmukand stuck to his party work and along with Avadh Bihari was trained for dissemination of seditious literature and in throwing. of bombs. A plan was hatched to throw a bomb on 23-12-1912 when the Viceroy Lord Hardinge was to visit Delhi for the inauguration of the new imperial capital of India. On that day when the procession, with Viceroy riding on an elephant, reached Chandni Chwok near Clock Tower, Bhai Balmukand and Basant Biswas wearing veils mixed-up with the crowd of lady spectators and hurled a bomb on the Viceroy (according to some his accomplice in the act was Ras Bihari Bose and not Basant Biswas). However. the bomb missed its real target, killed the mahout of the elephant. while Bhai Balmukand and Basant Biswas escaped undetected. To fulfil his mission, Bhai Balmukand later visited Jodhpur, to secure a pass for entrance to the Viceregal enclosur6, leaving his wife at Lahore with Bhai Parmanand. The police was on hot chase after them and arrested Avadh Bihari Bose on 19 February, 1914 and Basant Biswas on 26 February, 1914, in Calcutta. Lala Amir Chand was also arrested. They were arrested due to the betrayal of a colleague named Dina Nath. However, Ras Bihari Bose, one of the principal accused and who had actually thrown the bomb, could not be traced and a reward of Rs. 5,000 was announced for his arrest. In Jodhpur, while masquerading as tutor to the children of His Highness, Bhai Balmukand was detected and arrested on 10 March, 1914. It was through the good offices of Mahatma Hans Raj that he got the job of tutor to Sumer Singh, the minor heir apparent of Jodhpur, and his two younger brothers. The Governor General's agent personally took Bhai Balmukand's arrest warrants to Sir Partap Singh who was managing the affairs of the state. The session trial opened on 21-5-1914 and by judgement delivered on 5-10-1914, Bhai Balmukand, Lala Amir Chand and Avadh Bihari Bose were condemned to death. An appeal. made to. the Privy Council was rejected on 1-5-1915. The heroes were guillotined on 8 May, 1915, in the old central jail of Delhi where Maulana Azad Medical College is located at present, and even their dead bodies were not delivered to their families. Basant Kumar Biswas was hanged in Ambala Central Jail on 10 May, 1915. Bhai Balmukand made the supreme sacrifice within years of his marriage. He left no issue. During the trial of her husband, Smt. Ram Rakhi visited him il) Delhi and saw )lis life as a condemned prisoner. When she returned to Karyala, she imposed same type of hardships on herself: she slept on hard ground, ate cllapatis made of from mixed with sand and wore clothes sti.tched from jute cloth. Ori hearing the news of execution of her beloved husband, she woke up early in the morning, took bath, wore new garments, tied her husband's handkerchief to her dupatta, and in a yogic samadhi, bade farewell to her life. A play on the martyrdom of Bhai Balmukand, written by Hari Mehta, was presented in the Vividh Bharati programme of All India Radio Bombay, on 9-7-78. Delhi Administration have installed a marble plaque on the place of his martyrdom. Pandit Amir Chand Bhimwal: As a revolutionary, he strode like a colossus over the scene of the freedom struggle. As a journalist. he was dauntless and amongst the pioneer newspaper men who used their pen for the liberation of the country. He rubbed shoulders with great revolutionaries like Raja Mahinder Pratap, Sufi Amba Prasad, Sardar Ajit Singh, Pandit Sunder Lal and Lala Lajpat Rai. He was the founder secretary of the Indian National Congress in the NWFP. The first political hartal witnessed in Peshawar on 6 April 1919, in response to the call given by Mahatma Gandhi against Rowlett Act, and the unprecedented public meeting attended by thousands of citizens, was all due to Bhimwal's all pervading influence and dynamic personality. He was a revolutionary journalist and edited the epoch making Urdu Weekly Swarajya, published from Allahabad, while remaining underground. He I was served with transportation to Andamans for his seditious writings but was saved due to closure of the Weekly. He established the Frontier Advocate in 1905 which became mouthpiece of the freedom movement in the Frontier. Subsequently. he launched the Khudai Khidmatgar and the Frontier Mail, the latter is stilI being published in its 62nd year, by his talented son-in-law, Mr. Y.W. Datt. from Dehra Dun. It was in the Frontier Mail that Pandit Bhimwal referred 10 Khan Abdul Ghaffar
Khan as the Frontier Gandhi. in 1923. and within a year that appellation caught on and Gandhiji himself greeted him by same name. He adopted, Dehra Dun as his home after the country's partition and was a familiar figure straddling its streets. immaculately dressed in pure white khadi and with a ready smile on his lips. He died on 10 February. 1972.I 4. CRUSADERS AND MISSIONARIES Pandit Lekh Ram Bhimwal Arya Musafir was born in village Saidpur near Chakwal in 1857. He joined the police force in Peshawar but left the job to become a wholetime worker of the Arya Samaj on a petty Iallowance of Rs. 30 p.m., under the spell of Swami Dayanand. He saved many Hindus and Sikhs from being converted to Islam and once daringly forced his way into Masjid Mohabat Khan at Peshawar to rescue the Hindus who were on the point of being converted. He was the author of more than 30 books on the ideology of the Arya Samaj and was editor of the Arya Gazette published from Ferozepur for many years. As he .was constantly on .the move. on his mission.ary beat. He was reverentially nicknamed as Arya Musafir. An associate of Swami Sharddha Nand and Mahatma Hans Raj, he was a passionate votary of shuddhi work and imparted a new dimension to the movement. He was treacherously stabbed in broad daylight by a fanatic Qadiani muslim in Lahore and fell martyr to his dastardly attack. Mehta Ram Chander Datt Shastri (1875-1970) was born in village Mandey Mari District Jhelum in an affluent zamindar family. His interest in learning scriptures was kindled at a very early age. He passed his Master's degree and Shastri Exam from Benaras. winning gold medals. He established the first National School in Peshawar and used to personally escort the children from their homes, to allay the fear of being kidnapped enroute, by the tribals. On the persuation of Lala Lajpat Rai and Bhai Parmanand, he shifted from Peshawar to Lahore. to serve the DA V College and the Arya Samaj. Mehtaji was present with Lala Lajpat Rai and Bhai Balmukand when they were taken prisoners in Jodhpur. An ardent scholar of the Vedas, Upanishads and Gita. He devoted his life in preaching their tenets. He was appointed Maha Updeshak by Mahatma Hans Raj and deputed to spread the gospel of the Arya Samaj throughout the country and beyond viz.. Nepal. Burma. Ceylon. East and South Africa. His fiery oratory embellished with quotations from the scriptures would leave the audience spellbound. His punditry of religious books was so profound that when the: Shankaracharya visited Lahore. he was selected to translate his thoughts in public and private discourses. He was the author of half a dozen books including Vedic Sukti. Bane of Untouchability and Uplift of Women. He spent the last 15 years of his life as a recluse. in the true vedic tradition. and died peacefully on 31 July. 1970 at Bikaner. with his son Mr. N.c. Datt. I.G. Police. Swami Soma Nand (original name Mehta Sawan Mal Datt) of Eminabad was a staunch Arya Samajist and a preacher all his life. He did commendable work in the field of shuddhi and brought many families back to Hindu fold. When he died. he bequeathed his large ashram to the Arya Samaj. He was son-in-law of the daughter of the renowned Vedic scholar Pandit Brij Lal Chhibber. Mehta Khairati Ram Mohan Shastri (born 1892). an erudite scholar of Sanskrit and the scriptures. was awarded the degree of Vidya Vachaspati by the Kurukshetra Sanskrit MandaI in 1952. He quit government service on the call of Mahatma Gandhi in 1921. The Tribune published the news report of Smt. Gauran Devi Datt. U house-hold name in Simla. for winning the 1984 (7th) Jamna Lal Bajaj A ward, for outstanding service to backward sections of Himachal Pradesh for more than 30 years. under the caption 'Lighting A Lamp'. The Award carried cash prize of Rupees one lakh. a medal and a citation and was presented at an impressive ceremony in New Delhi on 30 Oct. 1984 by Mr. James Callaghan. the former Prime Minister of England. Sm!. Gauran Devi was inspired by the example of her husband. Capt. (Dr.) Laiq Chand Datt IMS. who belonged to an eminent Dewan family of Guliana District Rawalpindi and settled _own in Simla after the partition as a medical practitioner. He expired in 1984 and during his lifetime was a patron and president of the Mohyal Sabha Simla. Smt. Gauran Devi was born in an Arya Samaj family of Rawalpindi in 1897 and was orphaned at very early age. She studied at Kanya Mahavidyalaya Jalandhar upto middle standard. She was drawn into the freedom movement and attended the famous Haripur Congress in 1937 where she was introduced to Mahatma Gandhi. In 1942 she was made a representative of the Kasturba Gandhi Trust for Sialkot district. After partition she shifted to Delhi and worked in Bal Niketan. set-up for the training and rehabilitation of widows and destitute women displaced from Pakistan. In 1950 she started Sarvodaya Bal Ashram at Simla. where needy children mostly from areas bordering Tibet. Are brought up. In 1953, she set up a training school qn the Wardha pattern at Durgapur near Naldehra for training 'desh-sevikas'. The school was visited by the then President Dr. Rajendra Prasad in 1960. She was president of the Himachal Sarvodaya MandaI for several years and was also the president of the Himachal Khadi Ashram. She donated the award money of Rs. one lakh to the institutions to which she had devoted her life. Smt. Gauran Devi, widely known as the Mother Teresa
of the community, died in January, 1989 at the ripe age of 91. Mr. Raja Ram Datt (born at Campbellpur in 1902) was a devout Sanatanist. When an abattoir was opened at the Holy Katas Raj, he led an agitation for its closure, courted imprisonment for 2 years and ultimately succeeded in having the slaughter-house closed. He established a Shiva Temple on Ajmal Khan Road in Delhi after the partition. He took active part in the Mohyal Sabha activities. Smt. Parmeshwari Devi Mohan, a descendant of Bhai Mati Dass, who expired in October 1980, though born in the cradle of luxury, developed spiritual tendencies from childhood. She was the founder of the Advait Ashram, popularly known as Krishan Dwara, in Jammu. She was mother-in-law of Lt. Gen. Z.c. Bakshi. Goswami Tara Chand Vaid had undertaken the compilation of biographie of 28 wellknown Mohyal saints of yore including Swami Virjanand and Sidh Shyam Lau but he died in Haridwar in 1978 without fulfilling his mission. An album containing the photographs of 28 saints was entrusted to Shri Basant Ram Datt of village Khad in District Una who also passed away during 1984. Giani Pratap Singh, a saintly grandfather figure, occupied the highest seat of the Sikh religion for 17 years, as Jathedar of Anandpur Sahib and chief priest of Akal Takht at Amritsar. He was brutally murdered by fanatic co-religionist youth at his residence in Amritsar on 10 May, 1984, when the Akali movement was at its shrill pitch. Born. at village Nara Brahminan District Rawalpindi in 1904, he was Segan by caste, a fraternity close to Mohyals in the past. His two daughters were married in Mohyal families of Bali and Chhibber castes. He had migrated to Amritsar in 1934 in pursuit of religious and literary ambitions. He was a journalist of great repute and was the editor and publisher of a religious periodical called Gian Amrit. He was honoured with the title of Shiromani Patrakar for his outstanding contributions as a journalist. He was a nationalist to the core and recipient of Tamra Patra from Government of India and a gold medal from the Punjab government, for his part in the freedom movement. He made the supreme sacrifice with calm courage and did not compromise with the extremist elements, who wanted to use the holy precincts of Harmandir Sahib as criminal hideout and for storing ammunition. Mehta Jagan Nath Datt Alawalpuri who died at the age of 87 in December, 1984 was a pillar of the Arya Samaj and president of All India Dayanand Salvation Mission for several years. A tireless evangelist in the religious field, he was equally articulate in his crusade for constructive reforms in the Mohyal community. He was secretary of the Congress committee at Jhelum and was imprisoned for taking part in the freedom struggle. He was awarded Tamra Patra by the late prime minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi on 15 August, 1972. Rz. Thakar Datt Bali (born in 1896 in district Hoshiarpur) who demised during 1985 was a staunch Arya Samajist and a noted scholar of the Vedas. He founded two Arya Samaj temples in Jodhpur. He fought for 10 long years a court battle to recover the Arya Samaj temple at Ratananda which had been sold to unscrupulous persons. He was head master of a big High School in Jodhpur and for some time of Ramjas High School Darya Ganj, Delhi and left an indelible mark on the minds of his students by his simple living and high thinking. He had strong leanings towards the Congress and for that reason was frowned upon by the bureaucrats of the British regime. Once he set test paper for school exam in which he asked pertinent questions about the Indian National Congress. On another occasion, in a joint meeting of two Girls Schools, he auctioned Gandhi Caps to raise funds. The Punjab government offered him a monthly grant of Rs. 150 in recognition of his services. He was one of the founders of the Mohyal Sabha Jodhpur. Raizada Mela Ram Vaid, one of the founders of the Mohyal Sabha Simla, was also the founder of Raja Padam Chander Sanatan Dharam College in same place. He was a patron of the famous Birla Mandir of New Delhi. His grand father, Raizada Moti Ram Vaid, was Treasurer of Darbar Sahib, Amritsar.
Dr. Paras Ram Chhibber who passed away in September, 1984 was a freedom fighter, historian and a lifelong devotee of Bhai Mati Dass. He boldly faced many cudgels from municipal and government quarters and roughneck Sikh fundamentalists but did not swerve from his mission of getting the spot where Bhai Mati Dass was executed in Chandni Chowk Delhi, rechristened as Bhai Mati Dass Chowk. Following in his footsteps Bhai Mangal Sain of Meerut is now arranging functions with religious regularity, every year on 8th May and 9th November, to commemorate the martyrdom days of Bhai Balmukand and Bhai Mati Dass, both lofty souls hailed from his ancestral village of Karyala. 5.MEN OF LETTERS DAV College Lahore was a unique institution. Not only it was a temple of learning but also the flaming symbol of a renaissance. It was a minthouse from whose precincts rolled out glorious men of rare character who blazed trails as patriots, social evangelists and spiritual leaders. While stalwarl Mohyals like Bk. Ram Dass Chhibber. Bk. Gokul Chand
Chhibber of Abbotabad and Pandit Lakhpal Rai Datt of Hissar helped in raising the largesse for ils noble edifice: scholarly men like Bhai Parmanand. Bk. Ram Rattan Chhibber. Dr. G.L. Datt and Prof. A. N. Bali joined the exalted order of Life Members and pledged Iheir lives to Ihe instilution on a paltry salary of Rs. 150 p.m.
Bhai Parmanand had only a brief stint as Professor of History and Political Science and later moved 10 the national arena 10 play the big role for which he was fated. Howcver. he maintained an emotional link with the Mohyal community and presided over the Mohyal Conference held al Delhi in 1942. During earlier days of active involvement he was also the editor of the Mohyal Mitter.
Bk. Ram Rattan was a pillar of the DAV movement and easily one of the ablest Head Masters (served for over 30 years) that the united Punjab produced. When he was appointed as Principal of the DAV College Lahore. there was a Huller amid the staff. They voiced strong protest on his appointment because Bakshiji was only a BA BT while other members of the staff had post-graduate qualifications. But the management paid no heed to their chorus because for them dedication to Ihe sacred cause was more important than a mere scroll of paper.
Bk. Ram Rattan served his full term and earned plaudits for his able stewardship. He died on 2 November. 1943. A commemorativc medal called Bakshi Ram Rallan Chhibber Medal was instituted to be given to the Mohyal student who scored highest marks in the matricutttion examination of the Punjab University. Bakshiji also served for brief spells as secretary and president of the GMS.
Dr. G.L. Dall (1896-1987) was an cminent Physicist of the national fame, Like a character out of Charles Dickens notebook. he was curious blend of the gurukul acharya of yore and a modern time academy pontiff imbued with the ethos of science. He had a distinguished track record both as student as well us leacher. He was sponsored along with Prof. A.N. Bali, for prosecuting higher studies in the Presidency College of Calcutta, by Mahatma Hans Raj. the doyen of the DA V movement. He went to Germany and got his Ph.D. in Physics from the Gottingen University in 1926. During 1938-39. when at the call of the Arya Samaj more than 20,000 people from Lahore courted arrest in Hyderabad. to demonstrate against the anti-Hindi policy of the Nizam. it was decided to start a DA V College at Sholapur (on the border of Maharashtra and Andhra-then Hyderabad). to spread the gospel of the Arya Samaj and to propagate Hindi. Dr. Dall was appointed as its founder Principal. He built the institution brick by brick and made it a roaring success. After the partition. he brought into being the Hans Raj College in Delhi and was its first Principal. He also served as Vice Chancellor of the Vikram University. Ujjan. After retiring from there he served as Chairman of the DA V College Managing Committee which controls and bandrolls the working of a score of degree colleges and High Schools. He was the author of the famous' Intermediate Physics' which was the best textbook on the subject for many years and was read by thousands of students all over the country. Dr. Datt was a popular leader of the Mohyal community. president of GMS in 1932. and had the distinction of presiding over the Conference held at Lahore in 1934.
Prof. A.N. Bali was born in Bannu in the wild Kurram valley. He secured first class first in MA and won a gold medal. He came under the influence of Mahatma Hans Raj and became a Life Member of the DA V College Lahore and served there as Professor of Economics from 1919 to 1943. He did commendable shuddhi work in Buland Shahar in concert with Swami Shraddhanand. He joined the Punjab National Bank as Economic Advisor and held that position for 11 years. He was honorary member of the Debt Conciliation Board. Tis Hazari (Delhi) from 1957 to 1973. He was a man of subtle humour and catholic tastes. He wrote t1awless English prose and was author of half a dozen books including: Glimpses of Punjab History. Laughs at Life and Now it can be Told. He published a revised edition of Russell Stracey's History of the Mohyals under the aegis of the General Mohyal Sabha and contributed a valuable chapter by way of Preface to the same. He held the honorary rank of a Captain in the University Training Corps during his college professorship. He died on 7 Decemher. 1976. His elder son. Jogi Bali, is settled in Yorkshire (U.K.) and is a staunch Arya Samajist even in that far off place. He is also a leading light of the Conservative Party. Amongst campus luminaries of the present time. with the DA V benchmark, may be mentioned Dr. Bhai Mahavir the illustrious son of Bhai Parmanand and Mr. T.R. Vaid, ex Principal of DA V College Ambala City. Principal Vaid was a member of the Kurukshetra University Court and general secretary of Haryana Principals Association of Non Government Colleges. He has the enviable record of serving his college which is the re-incarnation of the famous DA V College of Lahore, for over 30 years and is author of about 25 hooks on Economics and French. He has been offered a Saropa and sword of honour. on two occasions, in recognition of hiss comprehensive study of the Sikh Gurus and their teachings. He was a Major in the NCC Wing. In recognition of his services 10 the DA V College for over four decades. on his retirement in June. 1987. he was made Regional Director of the DA V institutions with office at Yamuna Nagar. In April, 1990. he went on a lecture tour of New York. Chicago. Virginia and California, on Indian culture and heritage, sponsored by the DA V College Managing Committee. Principal Vaid was nominated to the high power committee for the implementation of Twenty Point Programme of the Haryana State. He was President of Rotary Club during 1991-92 and is currently a member of the GMS Managing Committee besides holding other offices of distinction and the Shohh" Yarra continues. Bk. Ram Krishan Chhibber of Lahore was Registrar of Middle Schools in the Punjab and author of school text-books. His son Bk. Hari Dass M.A. was Director of Public Instructions during the twenties and thirties. He was the maternal grandfather of Justice P.C. Pandit of Chandigarh.
Prof. S.C. Datt M.A., LT. (Edinburgh) joined the prestigious Chiefs College at Lahore. He spent most of his service career with the Mayo College, Ajmer. After retirement he served as Principal of Training College, Bhutan. He was known for his books on English Grammar. His sister, Dr. Sarla Bakhshi M.A. Ph.D., a selfmade lady, did her entire education after she became a widow at very early age. She is now the head of an educational institution in Benaras enterprise now defunct etc. After partition, he served as Principal of the Vaish College Bhiwani for 4 years and the A.S. College Khanna for 15 years (1951-1966). During his tenure at Bhiwani, he was nominated as Fellow of the East Punjab University and as a municipal commissioner. He passed away in March 1991.
Bk. Sansar Chand Chhibber of Sialkot. father of Lt. Governor S .K. Chhibber, was a prominent educationalist and Physical Training teacher in the undivided Punjab and retired as Addl. Divisional Inspector of Schools.
Bhai Bishen Dass, the noted Head Master of Anglo Vedic High School Abbotabad, belonged to the celebrated Chhibber family of Bhai Mati Dass and Bhai Balmukand of Bhalla Karyala. Amongst his pupils were the stalwarts of that period like Sir Gokul Chand Narang, minister and doyen of the Arya Samaj; Lala Bhim Sain Sachar who rose to become the Chief Minister of Punjab and the revolutionary Mohyal Pandit Amir Chand Bhimwal. Bhai Bishen Dass was known for his strong political convictions and for that was made to quit the Frontier Province under orders of the D.C. of Peshawar. He was so profoundly respected a figure that the great Arya Samaj leader Mahatma Hans Raj sought his help for the matrimonial alliance of his two daughters named Rattan Devi and Dharam Devi. He arranged their marriages with his former students viz., Dewan Radha Krishan, the prime minister of Baroda, and Dr. Vidya Bhushan, deputy commissioner of health, Jalandhar.
Miss Dev Shobha Bali daughter of PI. Dina Nath Bali, famous photographer of Rawalpindi and Murree, was the first Indian girl to qualify in B.T. from the Central Training College, Lahore. After serving in various schools she went to London, to do her LT. in teaching, in 1920. On return with foreign qualifications, she joined the Benaras Hindu University in 1924 where she taught till her retirement. Miss Bali married at very late age one Kaviraj Pratap Sinha of Benaras. Ch. Pran Nath Datt PES of Kunjah Distt. Gujrat was well-known educationist in the pre-partition days. After retirement he served as Principal of a couple of colleges.
Mr. Harish Chander Bali PES, who retired as. Principal of Sir Chhotu Ram College Sonepat, was an eminent educationist of his time- A hoary figure, he was reverentially addressed as Acharya. A student prodigy during his school and college days, he stood first in the matriculation and scored top positions in other university examinations. Ch. Dina Nath Datt of Veeram (born January 1908) epitomises the textbook model of a School Master. He was the architect of New Delhi's Salwan Higher Secondary School ahd its founder Principal. Before partition, he had long innings as Head Master of the National High School Peshawar and of High Schools in Mardan and Abbotabad. His services as educational advisor were acquired by the Government of Sudan. He was pro tern editor of two Mohyal journals viz., Mohyal Sevak and Mohyal Mittel' and during his tenures, propagated ideology rather than rhetoric. Mehta Sri Ram Bhimwal got Master's degree in Philosophy in 1927, standing first in the University. He served on the staff of the Edwards Mission College Peshawar for 19 years, from 1928 to 1947, and rose to be the head of the Department of English. He raised funds for the establishment of Science Faculty in college and in appreciation of this he was offered two years leave, on full salary, for study at Balliol College (Oxford) which he could not avail because of the partition. During his long residency of Peshawar, he was closely associated with a number of academic, cultural and social activities as controller of college examinations and patron of sports, non-official advisor to the All India Radio from where he broadcast talks on an average of two per month, managing director of the Raksha Provident Fund, a Mohyal Late Dr. Miss Krishana Mohan M.A. Ph.D. (1925-1984) was an eminent educationist of Jammu & Kashmir and one of the pioneers of womens education in the State. She started her career as Lecturer of History in the Government College for Women Srinagar. In 1955, she was sent for higher studies in the School of Oriental and African Studies London from where she got her Ph.D. on Early Medieval History of Kashmir under the reputed scholar and Indologist, Prof. Basham. She was appointed Principal of the Government College for Women Jammu in 1961 and was the youngest Principal in'the State. She served in that position for 20 years. She retired in 1980 and was nominated as member of the University Syndicate and her membership of same was extended for a second term. She was an active member of the Red Cross and member Jammu Advisory Committee of the All India Radio. She was sister-in-law of Lt. Gen. Z.c. Bakshi.
Dr. V.P. Dati is a man of versatile scholarship and a brilliant conversationalist. A former pro vice chancellor of Delhi University and Smt. Kamla Bakshi retired as District Education Officer of Jammu. She is the first lady to be elected as senior vice president of the Jammu Mohyal Sabha. University scholarships besides Silver and Gold medals and a Purse. In 1961 he did Ph.D. in History from the Punjab University, Chandigarh. The famous historian, late Dr. A.L. Basham of London University, wrote a Foreword to his book 'North West India of Second Century Be' and considered it one of the finest thesis and accolades on the book were
also showered by Dr. F.R. Allchin of the Cambridge University. Dr. Mohan also authored the book titled 'Indo Greek Coins' considered a pioneering work. A large number of his research papers on historical and religion-philosophical subjects have been published in the reputed journals. Early in his professional career, Dr. Mohan had joined the Royal Indian Air Force at the fag end of the World War II. He finally found his right place in the academic world where he served with distinction as Lecturer and Principal of Colleges in Punjab University at its Hoshiarpur Campus where he headed post-graduate studies for 5 years. Dr. Mohan has been member of several learned bodies like All India Oriental Conference, Indian History Congress, Numismatic Society of India and Authors Guild. He was the founder president of the Bharatiya Vidya Mandir Trust & Society, Ludhiana. Dr. Mohan is now settled at 113, Mohyal Garh, Jharsa, Gurgaon.
Dr. Mrs. Lajja Devi Mohan, wife of Dr. V.D. Mohan, is an outstanding scholar like her husband. Interestingly, her voyage of learning and widening of intellectual horizon took place under the tutelage of her learned husband. She is M.A., Ph.D. in Hindi and to date has published one novel, twenty short stories and about ten travelogues in Hindi journals. Her research papers were presented in the All Indian Oriental Conference sessions. She is a Fellow of the Indian Council of Historical Research. Her articles on Hindu scriptures. Mohyal mythical ancestors and the Mohyal Gotras have appeared in a long series in the community journals. She is running a Charitable School for last 14 years. Mr. K.L. Datt retired as Professor in the Deptt. of Architecture in the University of Nigeria (Enugu Campus). He was actively associated with the designing and construction of the new building of the University. An alumnus of the famous Sir U. School of Art, Bombay, and recipient of Mayo Medal, he is settled in Dehra Dun and is president of the Mohyal Sabha. member of Rajya Sabha, he was president of All India National Teachers Forum and Chairman of the governing body of Dayal Singh College New Delhi and has covered himself with glory in these assignments. He is an active Congress man and was member of the Congress ,Executive Committee. In his book 'India's foreign Policy' Dr. Datt has convincingly discussed the most agonising issue faced by the country of nuclear option. Dr. Datt is a doyen in the field of foreign policy studies. His book 'India and the World' (1990) is an impressionistic review of India's foreign policy with a focus on the continuity in the framework evolved by Jawaharlal Nehru. He is a noted Sinologist and author of books such as: China's Foreign Policy, China and the World, China's Cultural Revolution and China after Mao, all published by Vikas. He is the son of late Ch. Klishan Gopal Datt, the renowned congress leader of Sialkot and Finance Minister in the first post-independence government of the Punjab.
Prof. D.D. Vaid of Ludhiana has to his credit a long teaching experience of nearly 40 years as Professor of English in well-known colleges of the Punjab. He started his career as lecturer in S.D. College Lahore in 1932. In 1943, he had brief stint as 'Editor News' in the All India Radio but resigned that job to plunge himself into the freedom struggle. He is author of several books, the latest being 'Radiant Horizons'an ensemble of poems inspired by phenomena of nature in the Wordsworthian tradition. Over the years, he has contributed many articles in the community journals advocating the preservation of Mohyal identity by restricting marriages strictly within the community fold. Bk. Mangal Sain Chhiber retired as Principal of a College from Kanpur.
Dr. Kirpa Ram Bhimwal M.A. Ph.D. joined government service in UP and served as Principal of Government Colleges at Nainital, Pithoragarh etc. After retirement, he joined as Principal of Jat College Rohtak and was also Incharge of the Punjab University Post-graduate Centre at that place. He is author of text-books on Political Science. Now settled in Ambala. Mr. O.P.Mohan served as Principal of the Doaba College and was member of the Punjab University Syndicate. Dr. Mehta Vasishtha Dev Mohan was educated in seemingly paradoxical institutions: Gurukul Kangri, a Muslim High School and the S.D. College, Lahore. He secured first position in Intermediate (1939), B.A. Hons. (1941) and M.A. in Sanskrit (1943) and consequently awarded. Ch. Jia Lal Datt, the founder secretary of Mohyal Sabha London, whose articles published in the Mohyal Patrika made him a house-hold name was born at Tarn Taran in 1924. He made his debut as teacher of mathematics in Khalsa High School Kairon when he was just a Matriculate. Later he got his MA and Teaching Training from Government College Jalandhar with distinction. He worked as Head Master of DA V Higher Secondary School Dhariwal and as Principal of
S.D. Higher Secondary-cum-Training School Fatehgarh Churian Dislt. Gurdaspur. He wrote several school books out of which Automatic Mathematics and Rakesh Matriculation Algebra were very popular. He went to England in 1965 on teaching permit and worked as Head of Math Deptt. till 1981 when he sought premature retirement due to ill health. He is a writer par excellence of both prose and poetry in English. Urdu. Hindi and Punjabi. Chaudhry Dr. Mahinder Datt (born in Kanjrur in 1928) got his MA from Delhi and Ph.D. in Economics from Duke University Canada in 1963. He has the distinction of being Fellow of Duke and Chicago Universities and served as Asstt. Associate Professor of _arleton University Ottawa.
He has earned accolades as Research Economist and author of books. At present he is working as Professor and Head of Deptt. of Political and Economic Science in the Royal Military College of Canada. Kingston (Ontario). His thesis on Population target for 2000 AD. Based on estimates of population projections for India since 1950 was published in the Economic and Political Weekly in Nov. 1986. He was given reward for his paper contributed to Journal of Indian School of Political Economy, the University of Pune. Mr. S.P. Bakshi holds the distinguished post of the Principal of Modern School, New Delhi. one of the nation's mints for producing leaders for the future. Prior to this he was Principal of the Army Public School New Delhi, from 1977 to 1982. He is MA in English and Sociology and has passed an academic course from Purdue University, Fort Wayne. Indiana (USA). He was recipient of Fulbright Scholarship from the Ford Foundation of India for teaching English in the United States of America in 1970-71. He is Director Rotary Club of Delhi (South) and Hony. Joint Secretary of the Indian Public Schools Conference. His son Sonam Bakshi (23) and Vageesh Bakshi (22) are champs of national fame in swimming and Basket Ball, respectively. Mr. Bakshi is the son of late Shri Chhattar Singh Bakshi, Retd. Dy. Supdt. of Police (Punjab) who was a very active member of the General Mohyal Sabha and it was from his house that the Mohyal Mitler was published when the GMS was camping in Amritsar in the critical period following the partition.
Dr. M.L. Mehta, M.Sc. Ph.D. (London), ARIC and FCS (London), Gold Medalist and visititlg Fellow to the Universities of London and Ontario (Canada). is widely travelled in India and abroad on educational work. He had a long tenure as Joint Secretary of the University Grants Commission. He is also the author of a few books. He is responsible for introducing academic ethos in the Mohyal youth movement. He is a pillar of the Mohyal Educational Society Regd. of which Co!. B.N. Bali is the architect. It was on his initiative that programmes like youth camps, literary seminars and workshops on career guidance were launched for the benefit of the Mohyal youth. Dr. Mehta was promoted as Additional Secretary of the UGC in 1989. His daughter, Neelam, was awarded Gold Medal by the Vice President of India for standing First in the M.Ed. exam of Delhi University in 1988 breaking all previous records. Mr. Vishwa Nath Datt, M.A. Ph.D. (Cantab), son of the illustrious Urdu and Persian poet. Padma Shri Braham Nath Datt 'Qaisr', was born at Amritsar on 20 March, 1926. He was educated at Government College Lahore and later at Cambridge University. He obtained 1st Class in MA History and was the first Indian to be awarded M.Litt. Degree in Modern Indian History at Cambridge University in 1953. On return to India he was appointed as Lecturer of History in Delhi University and then joined the Ministry of Education as Senior Research Officer in 1958. Later, he was promoted to position of Editor (Indian Gazetteers) with the status of a Deputy Secretary. But his love for learning made him to resign such an exalted post and to join the Kurukshetra University as Reader and Head of the Deptt. of History in 1961. He went to Soviet Union as a visiting professor to Moscow and Leningrad Universities in 196263 and to Lumumba University in 1976. He was nominated to the Executive Court of the Benaras Hindu University. He was the President
of Indian History Congress Session (Modern) in 1981 which is the highest honour accorded to historians in this country. He is the editor of Indian Historical Review published by the Indian Council of Historical Research, New Delhi. He has served as member of Sahitya Academy and Lalit Academy, New Delhi. The Times Literary Supplement (London) has commended his book of Jallianwala Bagh as the best work published so far on the tragedy of Amritsar. His opus, the book on Maulana Azad, published in 1990 (Price Rs. 200), is a sensitive evaluation of the most enigmatic Indian national minority representative of the freedom movement. Prof. Datt retired from Kurukshetra University in March, 1986 and was appointed Professor Emeritus of the same University. His daughter, Monica Datt, following in the footsteps of her illustrious father, was awarded the prestigious Cambridge Nehru scholarship for 1990 to study history at Cambridge for 3 years. Dr. V.M. Mohan who died prematurely in early 1984 was Additional Director of Public Instructions, Madhya Pradesh (Bhopal). He was deputed on study tour of Middle East and Europe. He was State Chief Commissioner for Bharat Scouts and Guides in 1978-79. He was the founder president of Mohyal Sabha Bhopal.
Dr. Mrs. Indu Bali is serving as Principal of the Government Women College, Mandi Gobindgarh. She has teaching experience of over 33 years and has served in the past as senior lecturer of Hindi in Government Colleges at Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Patiala. A woman of versatile talent, she has distinguished herself in the fields of literature and fine arts. She is author of 10 books and has published more than 200 short stories. She has won prizes in music and painting in several state level competitions. She is the recipient of Punjab Government Literary Award (1968) and Shiromani Hindi Sahityakar Award (1983). She was given cash award of Rs. 11,000/- for her story book 'Chubhan'. Her stories have been translated into Urdu, Punjabi.
Gujarati, Tamil and Bengali. She was recipient of Adeeb International Award and All India Peoples National Award, both in 1986. She was bestowed Pride of Community A ward by Mohyal Sabha Chandigarh on 4.9.1994. She is member of the Punjab Sahitya Academy, Punjab Arts Council, Punjab Children Book Trust and the Text Book Committee. She is the daughter of late Shri J.R. Agnihotri, Registrar Punjab University, and wife of Mr. Brahm Datt Bali, Chief Engineer (Retd.)
Dr. J.C. Bakshi (Chhibber), a Ph.D. with distinction from California University (1966), former Vice Chancellor, Rajendra Agricultural University, Pusa (Bihar), is an eminent world renowned Horticulture scientist. He is Adviser to the UP Government and Convener and Chairman of over a score organisations. Widely travelled, he is Adviser to FAO and Consultant to the World Bank and to governments of Iran, Arabia and Yemen. He was leader of the Indian Delegation to the USSR.
Dr. Tripta Vaid with doctorate in Philosophy is the head of the department in the Govt. College for Women, Jammu since 1967. She has held various important assignments like: Member of Senate and the Examination Committee, convener for Board of Studies in Philosophy, Jammu University and local secretary of the All India Philosophical Congress (1982).
Shri V.K. Mehta (Lau) is Principal of the Army Public School at picturesque Dagshai Cantt. (altitude 6,085 ft.), the only co-educational residential school of the army under the Western Command. There are over 400 boarders including a sprinkling of Mohyal pupils. Mrs. Mehta is also a teacher in the same School.
Dr. S.P. Bakshi has a brilliant track record. He was awarded scholarship by the J&K Government for Ph.D. Degree studies in London. He worked with the internationally renowned, Prof. E.E. Turner F.R.S., and contributed Research articles in the Journal of the Chemical Society, London. After retirement he served for 5 years with Maharaja Hari Singh Collegiate School, Nagbani (Jammu) and for 9 years in the Model Institute of Education & Research. He was presented a Memento on Teachers Day on 5.9.1992 and a Citation by the Lions Club. On the Republic Day of 1994, he was awarded Laudatory Certificate and a Cash Award. A star of the sports field and winner of many prizes, he led a batch of boys on cycle tour of the Lolab Valley in 1954 and then to Kargil (9,000 ft.) in 1960, thereby being the first to cross the Himalayas on the bicycle. Dr. Bakshi is the son-in-law of the famous Police luminary, late R.B. Ishwar Dass Mohan IPS.
Dr. Shiv Rattan Mehta, Prof. in Sociology in the Punjab University, has been promoted to the Chair of Baba Prithvi Singh Azad. Prior to joining of Punjab University Prof. Mehta was the Head of Evaluation of Rural Development in Mauritius, on a World Bank project. His Sociological Research work in Mauritius has been included in the World Bank Bibliography (1975-93). He is author of several books.
Col. Raj Kumar Mehta has specialised in Industrial Management and has held senior appointments such as Technical Adviser, Management Consultant and visiting Professor for reputed Management institutions and Multinational companies. He is widely travelled abroad and reputed for vocational guidance and expertise in areas of economics & finance. He has designed and conducted training modules on Entrepreneurship for the Fifth International Programme.
Prof. Yogesh Chhibber MA is teaching English in the M.S. CotJege, Saharanpur. An intensive scholar with wide ranging interest in literature, religion and metaphysics, he owns a large collection of books to satiate his appetite for more knowledge. He is the editor of a Hindi journal with the mystic name of 'Vistar' and has published an anthology of S.P. Bakshi (Chhibber), celebrated Mohyal leader of Jabalpur and president of the Mohyal Sabha, was born in 1913 in Jhelum (Pak). After passing his M.A. in English from the Forman Christian College, Lahore, in 1935, he jeined service as lecturer in J&K State and soon became Chief Education Officer. He wrote a series of textbooks and the book "The Hindustan Reader" published by Macmillan, was prescribed for teaching English in many schools, After partition, he served in various positions and retired from Government of Indian service with a distinguished track record in 1970. He made a debut in the literary circles by translating Vedic hymns into English verses and published a book titled 'Bouquet of Wisdom'. His classic work was 'The Quest' published in 1988, an anthology of inspiring lyrical vesrses composed in quartets. It is a rhapsody of his anguished heart, swayed by deep inner turmoil. The book has been dedicated to his elder son Raman who died a martyr in the Indo Pak War in 1965. Mr. Bakshi is also an eminent practicing Homoeopathic physician and the president of the Homoeopathic Medical Association, Jabalpur. He is also a wellknown exponent of Transcendental Meditation.
Dr. Hari Har Nath Bali is a talented doctor in control engineering based in the UK. An M.Sc. in System Science, he is a visiting Professor to Hungary, Romania and Kenya. He has also earned laurels as a Golf champion and won medals and trophies. His brother Shri Tarik Nath Bali is head of Hindi Department in the University of Delhi, a rare distinction for a Mohyal. It is a matter of great pride that the two premier educational institutions of Rajasthm) which in the past were a preserve of the princely families, namely, the Mayo College Ajmer and the Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls School, Jaipur are headed by distinguished Mohyals viz., Shri H.L. Datta and Ms. G.D. Bakshi, respectively his songs in Hindi with the quizzical title of 'Chidya Bomb Nahin Banayegi' .
Dr. (Mrs.) Adarsh Bali, daughter of Capt. D.L. Datta O.B.I. has the merits of a top bracket educationist. She is BT, M.A. in Hindi and Economics and Ph.D. She served as Head Mistress for nearly 10 years and then was promoted as Block Education Officer (Haryana). She was selected for National Teacher Award in 1992. Besides, she has commendable achievements in dramatics, sports and social work in the rural areas. Dr. Purshotam Datt (born Rawalpindi 1904, died at Noida-Ghaziabad 1993) was top class educationist of his time. After retirement he established a leading toughened glass business with his son in 1972 at Bangalore, catering to the automobile sector. When he expired, all toughened glass and plywood establishments in whole of Karnataka were closed as a mark of respect to his memory.
Mr. Ved Rattan Bakhshi M.A., B.Ed., Yoga teacher in Govt. School, Delhi, was awarded Yoga Championship Delhi, 1989 and 1990. He was selected for 5th Yoga Declamation contest hosted by lhe Gujarat Yoga Association in Oct. 1990 and given a souvenir certificate.
Ms. M.P. Asthana (nee Datta) is founder Principal of the BlueBells Schools and Blue Bells Inter College at Lucknow.
Dr. B.K. Bali was Director of State Council of Educational Research and Training at Solan (Himachal). His blooming career was cut short due to his death in an air crash at Bangkok on 9 Sept. 1988.
Munshi Amir Chand Bhimwal was a teacher of Persian in Mission School Lahore, the oldest school in the city. He compiled a Persianj UrdulEnglish Dictionary for which he was awarded agricultural land in Sargodha at the end of 19th century. Unfortunately, he died in an accident when on a visit to his land. He had 3 sons: The eldest Bk. Jagan Nath was a Double M.A. and teacher in the Chief's College, Lahore. He was also private tutor of Patiala state princes when they were studying in Chief's College. The second son Dr. Bk. Ram Lal retired as civil surgeon in 1940. The third Bk. Brij Lal was a Police Officer. The name of Miss Manjula Dutta is all too familiar to the readers of the Mohyal Mitter. She is contributing for last nearly three years, a series under the exotic caption of 'Rendezvous' on the tell-tale biographies of the eminent Mohyals. She is young but already a veteran, having been elected to the GMS Managing Committee with a record number of votes. She is MA, M.Ed., Diploma in Travel & Tourism and is teaching French in a Delhi College. Widely travelled abroad and lover of art, music and painting; she organised an exhibition of her paintings at the time of the GMS Centenary. A buzzing and self assured type, she is sure to reach soaring heights.
Smt. Neena Chhibber Ph.D. M.Ed. (Hindi & English), wife of Shri Satinder Chhibber, is working as senior Professor of English in a college at Jodhpur. A gifted writer and social activist, she is vice president of the local Mohyal Sabha. Mr. K.K. Bali, Deputy Registrar Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, was awarded Administrative Travelling Fellowship (1982) by the
. Association of Commonwealth Universities (London), for visiting leading universities of Aostralia, Malaysia and Singapore to study their management and evaluation procedures.'
Prof. S.S. Datta MA is an up and coming man on the academy firmament. He is head 'of deptt. of Political Science in the S.D. College Ambala and author of 2 textbooks on same subject. Bk. Joginder Vaid MA Ph.D. PES is head of Hindi Deptt. in the Mohindra College, Patiala, He is son of late Bk. Salig Ram Vaid who retired as Session Judge from Haryana and later became a Sanyasi. 6. DISTINGUISHED DOCTORS Dr. Lachman Dass Chhibber was the younger brother of the veteran Mohyal Bk. 'Ram Dass Chhibber of Bhera. He did not mind throwing away the lucrative job of Civil Surge_n of Ajmer to attend on Swami Dayanand when he was lying on the death bed. Like his illustrious brother, he was a great benefactor of the Mohyal community and helped its members in securing jobs in the army and the police. He was founder of the Rajputana Malwa Times, the first opposition paper which was suppressed by the government. He was an impassioned nationalist and attended the annual sessions of the Indian National Congress held in 1898 and 1899 and delivered fiery speeches. Dr. Duni Chand Bhimwal who hailed from district Jhelum served as Civil Surgeon of Ambala in the closing decades of the last century. His mother died in 1878 and a memorial slab bearing her name can still be seen in the city's Ram Bagh Park.
Dr. Bhai Devi Chand Chhibber was doyen of the medical profession in Mandalay (Burma) where he ran a big private hospital in which many foreign surgeons were on the staff. He helped many Mohyals in settling in lucrative vocations. Kaviraj Mehta Sita Ram Datt of Bhaun and Rawalpindi was a protagonist of Ayurvedic and nature-cure treatment in the prepartition Punjab. He was author of books on subjects of food, health and moral hygiene. He was one of those rare persons who also practice what they preach.
Rai Bahadur Dr. Jaswant Rai Vaid and Rai Sahib Dr. Attar Chand Vaid. both hailing from Shahpur, retired from coveted posts of civil surgeons.
Mehta Ram Narain Mohan of Rawalpindi made a name for his commendable work in the field of veterinary research and animal husbandry. Dr. Mohan was a Professor in the Veterinary College at Mathura and later served as Dean of Veterinary in the Agriculture University at Hissar. He also held the prestigious post of Commissioner Animal Husbandry in the Ministry of Agriculture. Govt. of India. He was the son of illustrious Dr. Prithmi Chand Mohan of Rawalpindi.
Mehta Balwant Singh Mohan of Dhidowal district Jhelum was one of the builders of the Kangra Valley Sanatorium. He even fiddled with the idea of giving the place the name of Mohan Valley Sanatorium.
Dr. Dewan Laiq Chand Datt of Guliana, Sialkot and Simla passed his MBBS in 1910-11. He was with the Indian Army in Mesopotamia in the First World War as member of Imperial Medical Service in the rank of a Captain. After the war, be settled in Sialkot and had a roaring practice till the partition. After independence. he shifted to Simla and continued to work in his clinic till the last day of his life. Bestowed with robust health, he had the looks of a lion. He passed away at the age of 95, A dedicated MohyaI. he was president of Mohyal Sabha Simla for many years. A reformist himself, he had an equally devoted wife in Smt. Gauran Devi who blazed a trail as sel1less social worker and true Gandhian and was confen'ed Jamna Lal Bajaj A ward in 1984.
Dr. Baldev Singh Vaid MBBS MRCP (London) Hony, Brigadier and Padma Bhushan laureate, grandson of the illustrious Sardar Bahadur
Captain Ganda Singh Datt. was bom in April, 1904. A multi splendoured genius and man of phenomenal achievements. his prodigious scroll of honours reads as follows: specialised in EEG and Clinical Neurology and carried out research on Epilepsy at Neuro-psychiatry Institute. Illinois University, Chicago (USA) 1950-51: worked as Associate Professor in Neurology in Christian Medical College and Hospital, Vellore 1951-54; worked as Neurologist in Tirath Ram Shah Charitable Hospital, Delhi 1955; served as part time lecturer in Neurology at Lady Hardinge College, as Hony. Consultant Neurologist to Irwin Hospital and Prof. of Neurology at AIIMS, New Delhi 1965-68: Eamed: Sir Neel Rattan Sircar Oration (1960), Amir Chand Basanti Devi Award (1961), Indian Academy of Medical Sciences Oration (1965). Padma Bhushan (1972), Hony. Brigadier (1976), General S.L. Bhatia Oration (1976) and General Amir Chand Oration (1980); served as Chairman of Neurology Expert Group ICMR for 5 years, member Scientific Advisory Board ICMR (1965): Fellow Indian Academy of Medical Sciences, member International Brain Research Organisation, Emeritus Professor AIIMS and ICMR, Hony. Consultant to Armed Forces, Hony. Member American Neurological Asscn. and elected president of 3rd. Asian and Oceanian Congress of Neurology held in Bombay in 1971. He has published over 275 papers on neurological problems and allied subjects. His only son Dr. Birinder Singh MD, who was serving as Head of Depll. of Radiology and as Cancer Expert in the Medical College Amritsar, died at the young age of 44 in August 1982. His elder daughter was married to late Col. V.R. Mohan of Mohan Meakins while the youger to Air Vice Marshal K.K. Bakshi.
Dr. Maldev Chaudhary, the eminent Congress leader and Arya Samajist of Ambala, could recite Gita in Sanskrit from heart. He was chairman of the DA V College and allied DA V institutions at Ambala till he shifted to Chandigarh in 1980. His devoted wife, Smt. Sushila Chaudhary, served the Charitable Banarsi Dass Hospital at Ambala for 50 years. They both rendered yeo man social work at Chandigarh where they had their own bungalow. Dr. Maldev expired in July 1993, he was a scion of Ch. Ram Bhaj Datt.
Dr. Sohan Lal Bali (1898-1983), editor of Mohyal Miller for many years, was one of the founding members of the All India Dental Association and also served as vice president of its Delhi chapter. His formulation Bali Gum Paint was a household name. He headed a family of dentists: his son Dr. R.K. Bali is a foreign qualified dentist and as past president of the Indian Dental Asscn. enjoys International reputation. He is Hony. Dental Surgeon to the President of India. He treated over 30,000 poor people through Mobile Dental Clinic. He is president, Dental Council of India and Indian Association of Public Health Dentistry; president elect, International College of Dentists; Chairman, Academy of Dentistry International and member, American Dental Association; past president, Indian Dental Association, ex Hony. Advisor, GOYt. of India, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and ex chairman, Public Dental Health Committee-Asian Pacific Dental Federation. He was decorated with Padma Shri title by the President of India. on the Republic Day of 1991. His wife, Dr. Abha Bali, is equally renowned Dental Surgeon. She is Fellow of Intemational College of Dentistry, the Academy of Dentistry International and Pierre Fauchard Academy USA and member, Indian Dental Association. The second son of Dr. S.L. Bali, Dr. Rajinder Bali and his wife Veena Bali, are also Docs. Capt. N.D. Mehta IMS PCMS (1890-1949) served as civil surgeon at Campbellpur and Jalandhar.
Col. R.R. Bakhshi was a precursor amongst the Mohyals to join the coveted IMS cadre before partition. He opted for service in Pakistan and stayed there till 70s and then migrated to India after a sad and Sour experience of that country.
Lt. General J.C. Vaid retired from the exalted post of the Director General of Medical Services, Defence Forces; the only Mohyal so far to have that distinction. her move but in revenge got Dr. Bali transferred back to her parent state. Miss Bali had no regrets because she had saved the Womens College from being converted into a co-educational one. Dr. Miss D.P. Bali served in various positions in UP till her retirement in 1963. She never married.
Dr. Damyanti Bali. famous social worker and Congress leader of Lahore, was wife of Mr. J.N. Bali (Photographer). She passed her course in Gynaecology from Vienna and practised at Lahore. She was medical consultant to Maharaja of Poonch. After partition, she had the honour of being the family physician of Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the First President of India. She expired in June, 1994.
Capt. Dr. P.R. Bali of Rawalpindi was perhaps the only non-combatant officer to have won the second highest British Award of MC in World War II, in the battle of Siddi Barani, in the Western Desert. Dr. Bakshi Ram Lal Bhimwal father of Maj. General Ranbir Bakshi MC retired as civil surgeon of Hissar in 1940. He married Smt. Leila Devi, the only daughter of Ch. Ram Bhaj Datt of Kanjrur, leading Arya Samajist and practising lawyer of Lahore.
Lt. Col. Dr. H.A. Bali B.Sc. MBBS B.D.Sc. FRCS (Edinburgh), son of Shri Balmukand Bali-a life-member of Dev Samaj who kicked off a government job to serve as teacher in the Dev Samaj Girls High School Ferozepur for over 35 years-passed out from K.E. Medical College, Lahore, in 1932. He did his B.D.Sc. in 1934 and opened a private clinic. In 1935, he went to England to do FRCS. On return, he first joined PCMS and later in 1941 the Army Medical Corps in the rank of a Lt. Colonel. After leaving army service, he worked as Asstt. Professor in the Medical College Amritsar. In 1950, he opted to join PCMS and served as civil surgeon at Jalandhar, Kamal and Chandigarh. On retirement, he had a stint of service as Professor of Anatomy in the Dayanand Medical College, Ludhiana.
Dr. Savitri Bali wife of Lt. Col. Dr. H.A. Bali did her Diploma in Gynaecology from Vienna and had a roaring practise at Lahore. Her son Dr. I.M. Bali was Prof. of Anaesthesia at the PGl Chandigarh for over 20 years; at present he is working as Consultant Anaesthetist at Belfast (Ireland). Her two daughters, Uma and Kiron, are also MBBS. Dr. J.C. Bali VSM of Kalkaji, New Delhi was recipient of the Red Cross Gold Medal. He expired in July 1989.
Dr. S.L. Mohan, president of Mohyal Sabha London, practised in London. His son Dr. Jagdev Mohan is a neuro surgeon at Plymouth. His sister Smt. Sita Devi is also a doctor in Hoshiarpur. Dr. Mohan collapsed at Pal am Airport on 2 March 1986 when on flight back to London. He was the son of the noted poet Mehta Amar Nath Mohan B.A. LLB who served as Asstt. Supdt. to the Commissioner of Lahore.
Dr. M.M. Datta previously SMO and Incharge Civil Hospital Ambala Cantt., gave up his job to establish his own M.K. Datta Hospital in conjunction with his wife Dr. Kamlesh Bakshi in 1980, as a public welfare undertaking. Dr. Kamlesh is also an MBBS and Gold Medalist, Gynaecologist. The M.K. Datta Hospital is provided with Surgical & Maternity Centre, Casualty Service, Blood Bank and Ultra Soupd Scan facility. Dr. M.M. Datta is MBBS, MS, and a Patron of the GMS, MES and the local Mohyal Sabha. Dr. Datta belongs to a distinguished family of doctors. His father, Dr. Ram Lal Datta now residing in Faridabad, had a long tenure of service as doctor in school, jail and colliery dispensaries. His four sons and two daughters are all well settled in life. His second son, Darshan Lal Datta and his wife Mrs. Nirmal Datta both are MA Ph.Ds and working as Readers in the Punjab University, Chandigarh, in History and English Departments, respectively. Their elder daughter, Namita Datta, was selected in IAS and is working as SDM, South Delhi.
Rai Bahadur Dr. Jaswant Rai Vaid of Shahpur had the rare honour of being the first Mohyal Civil Surgeon.
Bk. Kanhya Lal Chhibber of Tehi was a Hakim par excellance and used to diagnose just by feeling the pulse. By his unorthodox ways he treated Lt. Col. Dewan Chand Datta, hailing from Hoshiarpur, joined the Army Medical Service in the First World War after passing his MBBS. On release from the army as Captain, he started private practice at Lahore and was founder president of Mohyal Sabha Lahore (East). He again joined the Army Medical Service during the Second World War and retired as Lt. Colonel. After partition he settled in Model Town, Jalandhar City.
Dr. Dev Priya Bali MBBS LRCP MRCS DMRE, daughter of Pt. Dina Nath Bali, celebrated photographer of Rawalpindi, passed her MBBS from Lady Hardinge College, New Delhi. She went to London for higher studies and specialised in surgery and radiology. She joined the W.M.S. of the UP government and rose to the position of Deputy Director Medical and Health Services. She served with great distinction as Principal of the Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi, from 1947 to 1952 and was the first Indian to occupy that coveted position. When Raj Kumari Amrit Kaur as Central Health Minister wanted to convert the only women medical college of the country into a co-educational institution, Dr. D,P. Bali opposed the proposal vehemently and there was a strike in the College. The Health Minister could not succeed in many hopeless cases. He wrote a number of books in his own hand writing but the treasure was lost in Pakistan due to partition.
Dr. Prema Bali MBBS MD is serving as Professor of Preventive and Social Medicine and as Director of Marriage Counselling in the AIIMS, New Delhi. She conducted a sex education course on All India Radio during 1986-87 under title' Jankari'. She has served as chairperson of the steering committee for the Asia Pacific region of the International Association of Adolescent Health (Sexology) at the Conference held in Australia.
Bakshi Jasbir Singh MD, eldest son of late Bk. Sampuran Singh Vaid, noted industrialist of Amritsar, is the Medical Director of Mis. Boots Co. (India) Ltd., Bombay.
Dr. Dharam Vir Datt who died at the young age of 47 in May 1981 was head of the department of Hepatology, PGI, Chandigarh. He obtained his Ph.D. from the Royal Free Hospital London and earned national and international recognition for his research work on the diseases of Liver. He published more than 160 scientific papers in reputed international medical journals. On his death the PGI was closed as a mark of respect to his memory. The Indian Council of Medical Research has instituted an Annual Young Scientist A ward for best scientific work on liver diseases in his memory in the field of cardiac and renal pathology.
Raizada Amir Chand Vaid, the illustrious father of Principal T.R. Vaid was a famous physician of his time who cured thousands of patients of different diseases. His practice had spread up to N.W.F.P. and the tribal areas of Razmak and Waziristan. He was physician to Sir Sikander Hayat Khan, the Premier of Undivided Punjab. Rz. Raghunandan Dass Bali, the renowned Hakim of village Khanpur in district Jhelum was so popular that at the time of the partition, his Muslim clients chartered a 10 seater plane for his family to facilitate their escape from the horrors and mayhem of the time. He settled in Mathura and started his 'Bali Shafa Khana' in Sadar Bazar. He launched a Mohyal Sabha in that city and was its president for a long time. He was also an active member of the Congress and the Arya Samaj. His other love in life was Urdu poetry.
Dr. Ramesh Datta MBBS DCH exPaediatrician, Govt. of Libya, is now managing Jeewan Jyoti Clinic in Vikaspuri, New Delhi. Dr. Devinder Mohan (born 1940) MBBS MD (Psychiatry) is Head of the Psychiatry Deptt in the AIIMS, New Delhi. He has served in various positions in the past viz., Registrar Psychiatry Safdarjang Hospital, Consultant Psychiatrist etc. He was awarded scholarship by the Austrian Government and Fellowship by the WHO. He is member of the All India Medical Association and Fellow of Indian Psychiatric Society. He has conducted research projects and published nearly 75 research papers and reports. He is member, advisor and consultant of several Indian and international committees and WHO agencies on drug abuse, alcohol etc. He was awarded Indian Merchants' Chamber Platinum Jubilee Award worth Rs. 50,000 for outstanding work in the field of drug addiction. The Award was presented by the Governor of Maharashtra at Bombay on 11 Feb. 1988.
Prof. B.N. Datta is Chairman of the Deptt. of Pathology at the PGI, Chandigarh and was made Dean of the Institute. He joined the PGI in Nov. 1983 and is a renowned pathologist and has distinguished himself Dr. J.P. Datta is the Managing Director of Cox & Webrouney Pharmaceuticals (P) Ltd., Parwanoo (H.P.).
Dr. Tripta Datta MBBS, grand daughter (maternal side) of Mehta Lal Chand Mohan of Hardorwal, is a senior surgeon and member national and international Paediatric Associations and for four years was hony. surgeon to Giani Zail Singh,. the former President. She was also on the panel of doctors to Indira Gandhi family. She participated in paediatric
Conferences in Tokyo and Budapest and led the team of doctors under ITEC to Aden and Maldives. As a lover of nature and member Delhi Mountaineering Association, she took part in the expedition which scaled Hanuman Tibbah, height 19,800 ft. She is also activist of the Clean India project. Lately, working as senior consultant paediatrician at Ganga Ram Moolchand Hospital in New Delhi. Dr. Usha Datta MBBS MD MAMS FIC (path.) wife of late Dr. Dharam Vir Datta and daughter of the eminent Mohyal Rz. Y.R. Bali, is Additional Prbfessor Immunopathology in the Pathology Deptt. at Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh. She has specialised in Pathology and diagnosis of diseases affecting the tissues. Dr. Satish Bali commands lucrative practice as orthopaedist in Nigeria. He is the son of renowned Mohyal Rz. Y.R. Bali of Chandigarh.
Dr. Sudarshan Vaid and his wife, also a doctor, earned a scarlet pimpemal image among hundreds of Sikh men, women and children of Rohtas Nagar Colony, New Delhi for rescuing them from the jaws of certain death when lumpen elements idulged in indiscriminate killing of Sikhs and in acts of arson and looting; in the wake of assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi on 31 October 1984. The Vaid couple not only ran around escorting the Sikhs to relief camps but also distributed medicines and rendered medical aid. Their services were praised by the press and the government authorities. Dr. Vaid made a name in adventure with 30 other class mates by hitchhiking 25,000 kms, covering 14 countries in just 70 days and with only Rs. 2,4001-. He started his life as a welding apprentice in N.Rly. Workshop at Jaipur, drifted to
medical profession and earned distinctions and awards including the coveted 'Dr. P.N. Behal Award' for community service. A dedicated social worker, he is founder secretary-general of 'Suniye' which provides guidance to hearing handicapped children and helps in their rehabilitation. Dr. Raghunandan Lall Vaid is a renowned ophthalmologist of Jammu and Kashmir. He is Professor of Opthalmology in the Medical College, Jammu. He had a stint of posting in the Medical Institute at Srinagar where he had a roaring practice. He is the son of old timer, late Rz. Sahib Ditta Mal BA. LLB. retired Dy. Supdt. of Police and Advocate of Jammu. Dr. Vaid is son-in-law of the noted Bk. Thakar Dass Chhibber of Jammu.
Dr. Dharinder Singh Mehta FRCS son of the eminent industrialist Mehta Ranbir Singh Mohan of Khanna is a leading neuro surgeon of Delhi. Dr. Avinash Datt MD is professor of medicine in the Medical College Amritsar and is known for his professional skill. He is the son-in-law of noted mill owner Bk. Sampuran Singh Vaid.
Dr. Suman Mehta (Chhibber) is residing in Geneva since 1991 on deputation of the Ministry of Health. A graduate of AIIMS, New Delhi, and gold medalist, she did her MS in 1966 in Gynaecology and Obstetrics from Ahmedabad and Post Graduate Diploma Course in Family Planning from Bombay. She obtained Master of Science from the University of London followed by Doctorate in Public Health from the John Hopkins University, Maryland (USA) where she stood flfst and finally did her Ph.D. in less than 3 years, a record performance. She is closely associated with WHO for about 16 years and has been on panels of various expert committees. She is associated with India Council of Medical Research and agencies like the Ford Foundation, Population Council & National Institute of Health USA and South East Asia. She has about 60 publications to her credit. Her equally brilliant daughter, Deepali, is a Bachelor in Dentistry from Karnataka and now doing a Post Graduate Course in |
GMS and MERIT wish all of you a very happy and Prosperous New Year. 
MERIT-Industrial Training Centre, Computer Operating and Programming Assistant (COPA) session started from 1st August 2008.
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