Dr Tatyarao Lahane (small), but doing big job…

If I say I am going to meet Padhmashri Dr Tatyarao Lahane, Dean of Sir JJ Hospital, Mumbai and an eminent eye specialist and if you have not seen him earlier, what picture will you assume? A high profile doctor, but if you see him you will find a very sincere, polite, workaholic & calm person with simple lifestyle, white shirt with most probably black or brown trousers, without shirt-in!

Dr. Lahane is a self-made person. He grew up in rural Maharashtra as a farmer’s son, unaware of where his desire for knowledge would take him.

“I was working with my father every day on my farm, and whenever I had some leisure time, I used to attend the school,” he said. “My headmaster insisted my father that I should take up higher education”.

Upon entering college, the headmaster pushed Dr. Lahane toward science stream, which he excelled in, allowing him to pursue a medical career. He stood 10th in the whole Maharashtra division and got admission in medical school.

Such were his poor finances, that in medical school in Ahmadabad, Dr. Lahane said his friends helped him buy books and even clothes.

“But on the day of my examination in ophthalmology, my father-in-law died, and I failed in ophthalmology,” he said. “I was unable to write the paper. Next time, I passed with excellent marks!!”

Dr. Lahane said he was set to enter the pediatric field until he realized he would not be getting paid a residency stipend.

This pushed him toward ophthalmology, and 100,000 patients can be thankful that he made that choice. Dr. Lahane was felicitated for completing a historical record of completing one lakh cataract surgeries. Performing the most number of eye surgeries is the world record set by Dr. Lahane.

Among the 100,000 phaco-emulsification procedures (the most common surgical procedure for removing cataracts) Dr Lahane has done, 1,211 were performed on leprosy patients at Baba Amte's Anandvan in Warora near Nagpur. "So many phaco-emulsification procedures on leprosy patients, is in itself a world record that I haven't so far publicized," the surgeon says.

Born in a village in Latur District, Dr. Lahane was educated in Marathawada and came to Mumbai for his own kidney transplant, as both of his kidneys were not functioning.

In 1994, Dr. Lahane began travelling to Mumbai once a week for 3 years to receive dialysis at Grant Medical College. While he was there, he started helping the struggling department of ophthalmology at J.J. Hospital.

“I was going for dialysis every Thursday. And still, I was working throughout the week,” he said. “My doctor told me to go for the life insurance because I may die after 1 year.”

Although he took his doctor’s advice, Dr. Lahane was also told that a kidney transplant could save his life. On Feb. 22, 1995, he underwent a kidney transplant using his mother’s donated kidney. “That was my second birth,” he said.

I met him 6/7 years back in JJ Hospital, Mumbai. I told Dr Lahane about my mother's eye problem. I asked for his appointment. He said where you will bring your mother in Mumbai's crowd. I'll come down to Jamkhed to see her! I thought he must not be interested & just saying like that as Jamkhed is 350 km away from Mumbai!

One day, Dr Lahane called me & said I'll be coming to Jamkhed tomorrow. I was shocked. Was he joking?? No, he indeed came!! He crossed 350 kilometers driving his car to see my mother. He touched my mother's feet and checked her eyes. Such a great personality, yet very cultured, down to earth. It's his love & affection for the common people. ‘Words should be backed by action’, is the lesson I learnt from him.

Recently, I met Dr Lahane in Vidhan Bhavan, Mumbai where he was busy filling forms for eye donations. I filled my form too. Dr Lahane told me he will be coming to Pune in May. I called him & went to meet him in Yashada. While looking for Dr Lahane, I met Pune's collector Chandrakantji Dalvi over there. We all met & I was observing both were talking in the interest of common people. Being long time friends of each other, both thanked me for arranging this meeting!

I told Dr Vijay Bhatkar that Dr Lahane is in Pune. Dr Bhatkar said call him for tea to our office. I picked up Dr Lahane from Yashada. After reaching our office, he touched Dr Bhatkar’s feet, crediting him for contributing a lot to the country.

Dr Lahane made Ophthalmology Department in J.J. Hospital like a five-star government hospital with all the modern equipment & specialists, catering to the vast rural population of Maharashtra.

Now, Dr Lahane became dean of JJ & I don’t think any astrologer is required to tell that he will made whole hospital five star in the interest of to help common people in near future!!