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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.”

The Vanishing Green Cover

When will National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) complete 84km of Mumbai-Goa highway? Fourteen years of construction, a hike in spending to over Rs 15,000 crore, an incomplete road, potholes, accidents, and politics. This, in a nutshell, is the saga of the long-pending Mumbai-Goa highway expansion project. This pathetic situation has left no answer to the question, when will NHAI complete 84km Mumbai-Goa highway?


Several factors have marred the crucial project to expand what is known as National Highway 66 (NH-66) from delays in getting forest clearances and lengthy land acquisition processes to shoddy work by contractors. Every year, the condition of the highway and the delays in its expansion come into the news discourse just before the ten-day Ganpati festival, during which a large number of Konkan natives living in Mumbai have to use the road to travel to their villages in the Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts. Once the festivities end, the highway is again easily forgotten while the meter on the project keeps running.


Ever since it was announced in 2011, National Highway 66 connecting Mumbai and Goa has been held out as a dream thoroughfare that will enable travellers to commute between the two places in six hours flat. However, the situation on the ground paints a starkly different picture. For those who regularly travel on this highway, the reality is murky as barring some portion the entire stretch is riddled with potholes.


Nitin Gadkari, union minister for road transport and highways, has apologised for the delay in the work on the Mumbai-Goa highway and assured that it will be completed at the earliest. At the same time the political leadership in Konkan is busy in taking on each other and passing the tantrums underscoring the infighting in the ruling alliance. Sharp comments by Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam sparked the flutter. Even the Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was forced to intervene to subside the matter. Kadam dubbed Public Works Department Minister Ravindra Chavan a ‘useless minister’ over the poor state of the much-delayed Mumbai-Goa Highway. “After 14 years, even Ram’s ‘vanvas (exile)’ ended, but problems on the Mumbai-Goa highway still persist. PWD Minister Chavan seems completely useless”. Dy CM Fadnavis should ask for Chavan’s resignation,” demanded Kadam. A peeved Fadnavis responded, “We are only human and such remarks are painful.  I am going to talk to CM Eknath Shinde about this.


Gadkari who has apologised has made it clear that the project initially started in 2009 under the Congress Party and was later handed over to the BJP. Despite the handover, the project remains incomplete, causing frustration among the public. Gadkari acknowledged the delays and highlighted that the government is working on a comprehensive strategy to complete the project. He assured that efforts are being made to overcome the challenges and expedite the work.

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