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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.”

Raj tears hair at Mumbai traffic mess

Mumbai:  Belying political hiccups, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray sought to don a new avatar as an urban governance buff, with emphasis on managing the city traffic muddles.

 

Raj, along with his senior confidante Bala Nandngaonkar dropped in to meet Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today - fuelling wild speculation – a day after the MNS and his cousin Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) alliance was erased in the BEST Employees Cooperative Credit Society (BEST-ECCS).

 

After the 45-minute tete-a-tete with the CM, Raj told media-persons that he made a small but focussed presentation to rid the traffic and parking chaos plaguing Mumbai – with the city police brass attending.

 

Claiming the meeting had nothing to do with polls or partnerships, the MNS supremo declared: “Town planning is my interest… Show me the traffic status and I can predict the future of the country… Every city has rules and these must be followed to the hilt.”

 

“See the situation… Where 50 lived once, 500 are living. People and vehicles have multiplied manifold but not the road infrastructure. Mumbai has few roads, no organised transport system and no parking facilities. If not checked, the urban living will collapse,” said Raj grimly.

 

In a swipe at the ruling Mahayuti, the MNS said that “we are ignoring basic problems while getting obsessed with pigeons and elephants” – referring to the ongoing rows over pigeon-feeding in the city and a home for an aged female elephant Mahadevi belonging to a Kolhapur Jain Temple.

 

Providing solutions, Raj mooted new parking surface and underground parking facilities, clearly demarcating and painting zones with ‘Parking’ or ‘No Parking’ signs with detailed maps to prevent illegal dumping of vehicles anywhere.

 

Advocating steeper fines and harshness on the lines of drunken-driving to hammer in traffic discipline, Raj pointed an accusing finger at two-wheelers which create havoc on roads and cars that disregard road rules.

 

“Earlier this week, there was 400 cms of rainfall and traffic became a nightmare, roads jammed, haphazard parking and road congestion everywhere. Town planning is a critical aspect for me… Take cities like Mumbai, Thane or Pune which lack proper planning and also traffic discipline,” rued Raj.

 

On the Dharavi revamp project, Raj took a potshot at the Bharatiya Janata Party, saying: “Merely giving away the land to Adani Group will not help. Instead of getting worked up about ‘Urban Naxals’, address the fundamental urban issues in the city.”


MVA willy-nilly backs Raj Thackeray.

Unperturbed over the MNS President Raj Thackeray’s meeting, SS (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said that as an opposition party leader, “he can go and meet the CM for issues concerning the state”.

 

“Why are you hassled… He has met the CM even in the past,” Raut pointed out, even as Raj himself rejected any political connotations.

 

Congress leader Nana Patole said that it is not important who met the CM, but the crucial matter was the issues concerning the people of the state.

 

“After the recent deluge, Mumbai roadways were in shambles, boats plied on roads intended for vehicles. The situation is worse in rural areas where there are no roads left. This is the outcome of deploying ‘space technology’ on the ground,” said Patole, taking a jibe at the BJP.

 

“Many leaders meet one another as well as with the chief minister, irrespective of whether they are in power or not. Maintaining communication with each other is the tradition of the state. There is no need to give a political angle to this meeting.”

Ajit Pawar, Deputy Chief Minister

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