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By:

Bhalchandra Chorghade

11 August 2025 at 1:54:18 pm

Healing Beyond the Clinic

Dr Kirti Samudra “If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.” This thought by Mother Teresa finds reflection in the life of Panvel-based diabetologist Dr Kirti Samudra, who has spent decades caring not only for her family but also thousands of patients who see her as their guide. As we mark International Women’s Day, stories like hers remind us that women of substance often shape society quietly through compassion, resilience and dedication. Doctor, mother, homemaker,...

Healing Beyond the Clinic

Dr Kirti Samudra “If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.” This thought by Mother Teresa finds reflection in the life of Panvel-based diabetologist Dr Kirti Samudra, who has spent decades caring not only for her family but also thousands of patients who see her as their guide. As we mark International Women’s Day, stories like hers remind us that women of substance often shape society quietly through compassion, resilience and dedication. Doctor, mother, homemaker, mentor and philanthropist — Dr Samudra has balanced many roles with commitment. While she manages a busy medical practice, her deeper calling has always been service. For her, medicine is not merely a profession but a responsibility towards the people who depend on her guidance. Nagpur to Panvel Born and raised in Nagpur, Dr Samudra completed her medical education there before moving to Mumbai in search of better opportunities. The early years were challenging. With determination, she and her husband Girish Samudra, an entrepreneur involved in underwater pipeline projects, chose to build their life in Panvel. At a time when the town was still developing and healthcare awareness was limited, she decided to make it both her workplace and home. What began with modest resources gradually grew into a trusted medical practice built on long-standing relationships with patients. Fighting Diabetes Recognising the growing threat of diabetes, Dr Samudra dedicated her career to treating and educating patients about the disease. Over the years, she has registered nearly 30,000 patients from Panvel and nearby areas. Yet she believes treatment alone is not enough. “Diabetes is a lifelong disease. Medicines are important, but patient education is equally critical. If people understand the condition, they can manage it better and prevent complications,” she says. For more than 27 years, she has organised an Annual Patients’ Education Programme, offering diagnostic tests at concessional rates and sessions on lifestyle management. Family, Practice With her husband frequently travelling for business, much of the responsibility of raising their two children fell on Dr Samudra. Instead of expanding her practice aggressively, she kept it close to home and adjusted her OPD timings around her children’s schedules. “It was not easy,” she recalls, “but I wanted to fulfil my responsibilities as a mother while continuing to serve my patients.” Beyond Medicine Today, Dr Samudra also devotes time to social initiatives through the Bharat Vikas Parishad, where she serves as Regional Head. Her projects include  Plastic Mukta Vasundhara , which promotes reduced use of single-use plastic, and  Sainik Ho Tumchyasathi , an initiative that sends Diwali  faral  (snack hamper) to Indian soldiers posted at the borders. Last year alone, 15,000 boxes were sent to troops. Despite decades of service, she measures success not in wealth but in goodwill. “I may not have earned huge money,” she says, “but I have earned immense love and respect from my patients. That is something I will always be grateful for.”

Kharge counters Yogi’s ‘batenge, katenge’ slogan

Updated: Nov 12, 2024

Says many Congress leaders died for country’s unity


batenge, katenge

Nagpur: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday asserted that several leaders from his party have laid down their lives to unite the country, countering Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath’s ‘batenge toh katenge’ slogan.


Those who want the country to remain united will never pass such divisive remarks, he said.

Addressing a press conference in Nagpur city of Maharashtra, where assembly elections will be held on November 20, he asked the BJP to decide between Yogi’s slogan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unity message of “Ek hain, toh safe hain”.


The senior Congress leader accused the BJP and RSS of provoking people to gain votes. Citing a newspaper article, Kharge said he read that RSS favoured the slogan of ‘batenge toh katenge’ (if divided, we perish) being raised by the UP CM.


“First, you decide between yourselves whose slogan is to be followed – Yogi ji’s or Modi ji’s,” he said, and added, “BJP leaders give inciting speeches and speak lies and divert people’s attention from core issues.”


Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP for equating a “red book” of the Constitution with “urban Naxalism” and said the PM gave a similar copy in 2017 to then President Ram Nath Kovind.


Addressing a press conference here after launching the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi ‘s (MVA) manifesto for the November 20 Maharashtra assembly elections, Kharge also said his party’s demand for a caste census is not to divide people, but to understand how various communities are placed at present so that they can get more benefits.


Notably, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis recently alleged that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was trying to seek support from “urban Naxals and anarchists” by holding a “red book” in his hand.


Gandhi, the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, has been displaying an abridged version of the Constitution in a red cover during his rallies.


Kharge said the red handbook was only used for reference and it was not the entire Constitution.

‘Even Narendra Modi gave a similar copy to then President Ram Nath Kovind on July 26, 2017,’ the Congress leader said displaying a picture of the two leaders.


Kharge also displayed a red book of the Constitution, saying it was not blank as was being projected by Modi and the BJP.


‘It is necessary to enroll him in a primary school again,’ Kharge said targeting the prime minister.

The Congress leader described the MVA’s manifesto as all inclusive and participatory.

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