South Indian Doctors at PGIMER get Punjabi training to facilitate patient care

Chandigarh: In order to facilitate patient care South Indian doctors at PGIMER are undergoing a crash course in Punjabi language.

750 doctors and a 100 nurses at the PGIMER who hail from South India have been making an earnest attempt to learn the local language.

Pandit Rao, an Assistant Professor at the Government College, Sector 46, who hails from Karnataka and is the winner of the good student ‘Angad Award’ for learning the language fast and well is teaching the south Indian staff to speak Punjabi.

The course which commenced on February 1 will end on February 21, the ‘International Mother Language Day,’ The classes are held near the doctor’s canteen between 5 pm to 8 pm.

Doctor Venkat from Tamil Nadu, attending the crash course, said that he does not know Hindi, but is now learning both Punjabi and Hindi. Another doctor from Kerala said it was an asset to know the local language as it resulted in better treatment of patients.

Dr Vishwanth, who has learned Punjabi in the past one year, said that he uses only Punjabi and Hindi with his patients.

Vishwanath, who won the 'Angad Award' last year for his for his outstanding performance said, a total of fifteen doctors have enrolled for the crash course, though only ten doctors attended the course on the first day due to a busy schedule.

Panditrao Dharenavar has been teaching Punjabi to south Indian doctors for a while now.

Grateful to the previous Director, PGI, Doctor Yogesh Chawla for allowing him to teach Punjabi, Panditrao said that he would not only teach Punjabi but also Hindi till his dying day.

Panditrao originally from Karnataka now has to his credit 12 books in the Punjabi language.He has even translated Jap Ji Saheb, Sukhmani Saheb and Zafaranama into the Kannada language reports the Indian Express.