Bidhan Chandra Roy

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Bidhan Chandra Roy
5th Mayor of Kolkata
In office
5 April 1931 – 9 April 1933
Preceded bySubhas Chandra Bose
Succeeded bySantosh Kumar Basu
Personal details
Born(1882-07-01)1 July 1882
Educationist
AwardsBharat Ratna (1961)
Signature

Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy

Chief Minister of West Bengal from 1950 until his death in 1962. He played a key role in the founding of several institutions and the cities like Salt Lake (now a part of Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation) and Durgapur.[1]

In India, the National Doctors' Day is celebrated in his memory every year on 1 July. He was awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour in 1961.[2]

Early life and education

Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy in 1911

Bidhan Chandra Roy was born on 1 July 1882 to a

Hindu Kayastha-Brahmo family in Bankipore in Patna, where his father, Prakash Chandra Roy coming from a wealthy family of Satkhira, Khulna district, Bengal Presidency (now in Bangladesh), was serving as an excise inspector. His mother, Aghorkamini Devi, was religious and a devoted social worker.[3] Bidhan was the youngest of five siblings – he had 2 sisters, Susharbashini and Sarojini, and 2 brothers, Subodh and Sadhan. Bidhan's parents were ardent Brahmo Samajists.[4]

Prakash Chandra was a descendant of the family of

better source needed
]

Bidhan studied at

Calcutta Medical College. While at medical school, Bidhan came upon an inscription which read, "Whatever thy hands findeth to do, do it with thy might."[6] These words became a lifelong source of inspiration for him.[7]

Intending to enroll at

Royal College of Surgeons
simultaneously. He returned home in 1911.

Career

Roy in 1943

After his return, Roy joined the Provincial Health Service. He exhibited immense dedication and hard work, and would serve as a nurse when necessary. In his free time, he practised privately, charging a nominal fee. He taught at the

NRS Medical College) and the Carmichael Medical College[7] (now R.G. Kar Medical College). Roy served as the first president of Cardiological Society of India from 1948 to 1950.[10]

Roy believed that swaraj (the call to action for India's freedom) would remain a dream unless the people were healthy and strong in mind and body. He made contributions to the organisation of medical education. He played an important role in the establishment of the Jadavpur T.B. Hospital, Chittaranjan Seva Sadan, Kamala Nehru Memorial Hospital, Victoria Institution (college), and Chittaranjan Cancer Hospital. In 1926, the Chittaranjan Seva Sadan for women and children was opened by Roy.[11]

Roy was also Mahatma Gandhi's personal doctor and friend.

In 1925, Roy ran for elections from the

Congress party in the 1920s). As early as 1925, Roy tabled a resolution recommending a study of the causes of pollution in Hoogly
and suggested measures to prevent pollution in the future.

Roy was elected to the

Pandit Motilal Nehru to nominate him member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) in 1930. The CWC was declared an unlawful assembly and Roy along with other members of the committee were arrested on 26 August 1930 and detained at Alipore Central Jail
.

During the

dispensaries
.

In 1942,

Doctorate of Science
was conferred upon him in 1944.

Chief Minister of West Bengal

The Congress Party proposed Roy's name for Premier of West Bengal. Roy wanted to devote himself to his profession. On Gandhi's advice, however, Roy accepted the position and took office on 23 January 1948. Bengal at the time had been torn by communal violence, shortage of food, unemployment and a large flow of refugees in the wake of the creation of East Pakistan. Roy brought unity and discipline among the party ranks. He told the people:[12]

We have the ability and if, with faith in our future, we exert ourselves with determination, nothing, I am sure, no obstacles, however formidable or insurmountable they may appear at present, can stop our progress... (if we) all work unitedly, keeping our vision clear and with a firm grasp of our problems.

On 26 January 1950, Roy took oath as the Chief Minister of West Bengal. In doing so, he became the first person to hold that post. Under his leadership, the Congress party won the legislative assembly elections in West Bengal in 1952 and 1957.

He was credited for the development of cities like Bidhannagar, Kalyani and Durgapur, which were crucial for the growth of West Bengal's economy at a time when it was ravaged by the ill consequences of partition.

Death

Roy died on 1 July 1962. Coincidentally, it was also the date of his birth. After his death, his house became a nursing home named after his mother, Aghorkamini Devi. He had also constituted a trust for his properties at Patna to carry out social service, with eminent nationalist Ganga Sharan Singh (Sinha) being its first trustee.[13]

Legacy

Bidhan Chandra Roy statue in Salt Lake City
A commemorative post stamp of Dr. Roy, published by India Post.
Statue of Dr. B. C. Roy in Howrah city
Bust of Roy at Bidhan Shishu Udyan in Ultadanga

The nation honoured Roy with the Bharat Ratna on 4 February 1961.

The

Teen Murti House, Delhi.[15][16]

His birthday, 1st July is commemorated as the National Doctors' Day in India.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Back to the beginning - On the 50th year of the landfill, here's the story of how Salt Lake came into being". The Telegraph. 10 August 2012.
  2. ^ "National Doctors' Day: All you need to know about Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy". Firstpost. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  3. ^ "Biography of Bharat Ratna "Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy" complete biography for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes". eVirtualGuru. 1 February 2018. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  4. ^ Thomas, K.P. (1955). Dr. B. C. Roy (PDF). Calcutta: Atulya Ghosh, West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 September 2018. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  5. ^ Nandalal Bhattacharya (2004). Karmajogi Bidhanchandra (Life of Bidhan Chandra Roy) (in Bengali). Grantha-tirtha. p. 15 & 16.
  6. ^ "Remembering Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy: Facts about the doctor who dedicated his life to the profession of medicine". India Today. 1 July 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Bidhan Chandra Roy Biography – Bidhan Chandra Roy Childhood, Life, Profile, Timeline". www.iloveindia.com. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  8. ^ "Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy -Biography and Life History | Great Rulers". greatrulers.com. Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  9. ^ "When India's 'National Doctor' Was Denied Service By an American Restaurant". The Wire. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  10. ^ "Past President - CSI". csi.org.in. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  11. ^ Sumit Kumar (2021). "Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy Biography: डॉ. बिधान चंद्र राय जीवन परिचय" (in Hindi). Sumit-Kumar.
  12. ^ "Bengal's physician chief minister – The Statesman". The Statesman. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  13. ISBN 978-81-7023-002-1
    .
  14. ^ "Dr. B.C. Roy Award | MCI India". www.mciindia.org. Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  15. ^ NMML. "Archives". www.nehrumemorial.nic.in. Archived from the original on 26 July 2020. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  16. ^ "India's Iconic Doctor: Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy| DailyRounds". www.dailyrounds.org. Archived from the original on 26 August 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
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Political offices
Preceded by
Chief Minister of West Bengal

1948–1962 		Succeeded by
President's Rule
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