LATE COL AJIT SINGH KASHYAP

Colonel Ajit Singh Kashyap joined AFMC with ‘O’ batch in 1977. A tall, good looking, reserved medical student, he is remembered by his batchmates for his quirky sense of humour and powerful ‘one - liner’ jokes delivered with an absolutely deadpan expression. A brilliant student throughout MBBS, he went on to complete his MD in Gen Medicine from AFMC in 1986. During his tenure as RMO in Nagaland in 1983, he was awarded Chief of Army Staff Commendation Card for meritorious service. It was as Clinical Tutor in AFMC, in 1987, that he met his future wife in Surekha Gandhi, a ‘V’ batcher. They were married in Nov 1988, and were blessed with a son, Aseem, in Aug 1990. Ajit was posted as Medical Specialist to MH Babina, MH Kasauli and 92 Base Hospital, from where he proceeded on study leave for DM in Endocrinology to PGIMER Chandigarh in 1996. Upon completion of study leave, he was posted to AFMC, Pune as Associate Professor in Dept of Medicine in 1998. He quickly became a beloved and popular teacher for both, undergraduates and postgraduates, and began publishing articles in recognised journals regularly. In Jun 2002, tragedy struck in the form of a solitary seizure, which was found to be due to Frontoparietal Grade III Astrocytoma. Despite the grim prognosis, Ajit did not allow the disease to even slow him down. After getting the tumour operated in a teaching hospital in USA in August 2002, he was back taking classes and seeing his OPD, treating the radiation and chemotherapy sessions as small breaks in his hectic and full days. He was promoted to Colonel and sidestepped to Command Hospital (SC) Pune, where he continued both, teaching and clinical practice till 2006. During his next tenure, at Command Hospital (CC) Lucknow, he was successfully operated for a tumour recurrence in Jan 2008. In Feb 2009, he was posted to Army Hospital (R&R) as Head of Department of Endocrinology, but had a tumour recurrence in Apr 2009 from which he could not recover. He continued joking with colleagues and grilling residents during his hospitalisation. His last letter to the editor was published in BMJ in May 2009 from his sick bed. But, despite the best efforts of the entire MDTC team, and support of family and friends, Ajit left us for his heavenly abode on 26 Oct 2009. He has left behind his wife, Col Surekha Kashyap, presently posted to Army Hospital (R&R) as OIC Medical Stores, his son Aseem, who is in 3rd year, B Tech (Computer Science) at Amity University, Noida, and grieving family members, friends and students. But most of all, he has left behind a shining example of his silent courage in the face of a deadly disease. His conduct with everyone was courteous and gentlemanly. He will be remembered forever, as a beloved husband and father, an officer and a gentleman, a doctor par excellence and a most respected teacher.