The Quetta Experience- courtesy sniwire.com uploaded on 23 Oct 2018

§  Pakistan

The Quetta Experience: What Lessons Are There For India

Suresh Bangara New Delhi, India 23 October 2018

In the early 1980s, a book titled On the Psychology of Military Incompetence, written by Norman F Dixon, a psychologist by profession but with a military background at the Royal Engineers for a few years, caught my attention for its perspicacity and audacity. Predictably, it was the military which found the book unpalatable but it also received glowing reviews from many who even ventured to call it a “classic”.

In the book, Dixon looked at many of the wars fought by the British for over a century and a half, and later the Allies, and examined them from the leadership perspective. Based on scientific methods of critical assessment, the author was able to deduce the factors that had led to poor ‘Generalship’ and inept leadership in wars that were unsuccessfully fought. Essentially, the book pertained to the levelling down of human capabilities.

It is in this context that a recent study titled The Quetta Experience – Attitudes and Values within Pakistan’s Army, becomes relevant to all of us. The author Col (Retd) David O. Smith has painstakingly conducted a field research in 2013-14 based on interviews of U.S. Army officers who attended the Pakistan Army Command and Staff College in Quetta between 1977-2014. Primarily focussed on the attitudes and values of the Pakistan Army, the study provides an insight into the very course which shapes the minds of a selected few young officers of their service.

What is unique is that although reports rendered by officers attending foreign courses are routinely processed by almost all countries, this is the first such report in the public domain which covers a period of 37 years. This is long enough to corroborate conclusions based on individual assessments.

As far as we are concerned, some of the conclusions arrived at by Col Smith may not necessarily coincide with our thinking on our consanguineous neighbour. We do interact with them at UN peacekeeping operations and on courses conducted by friendly countries. It is true that the Indian and Pakistani officers more often than not become good friends due to factors of commonality of food, music, language and Bollywood. Even during wars there have been instances of display of human qualities not seen on battlegrounds elsewhere. However, that has partly been vitiated by the recent disrespect shown to our soldiers with their mutilated, dead bodies handed over across the border.

Coming back to the study, a number of key issues have been covered here. I will analyse four of them below and bring in observations based on my personal knowledge of our neighbour. This knowledge has been collated during courses in the U.K. U.S.; chance meetings in friendly ports; stay in Pakistan for three years during the Zia regime; my participation in CBM related issues at sea between an Indian and Pakistani group of maritime experts; and my recent participation at an anti-piracy seminar at Karachi in March 2012.

First – Demographic changes and social issues. Smith concludes that, “Fears of Islamisation within the Pakistan Army officer corps and its susceptibility to radical religious influence are exaggerated.”

At the outset, I must admit that my interactions were biased towards the Navy and not so much the Army. Given that the Army in Pakistan is all powerful, and that the other two services play a secondary role even in the joint commands, Islamisation would be steered by the Army, as dictated by the stereotypical general-turned-president of the country.

Ironically, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto along with Zia, later to be his bête noire, laid the grounds for Islamisation of the Armed Forces. Introducing special clauses in the ACR format on imperatives based on religion, identifying those prone to alcohol consumption and making religion the primary focus, were overseen by Zia during his time in power. When viewed from an Indian perspective, other critical changes such as rewriting the history of Pakistan, and thereby detaching their past from India, ensured that the alienation of the future generation was more or less achieved.

The impact could immediately be seen in the military. The Pakistan Navy, I knew then, was no different from our navy except that they had increasingly become more Americanised in their outlook. We had moved from British, to Russian and finally to a concatenated Indian model.

It is with this backdrop that I was saddened to see the sailors of PN Ships in 2011, lined up on deck looking like mullahs rather than sailors. They hurled invectives at us followed by praises of Allah as they steamed past one of our ships. This was over two decades after I left Islamabad. My datum on Islamisation changed even as I witnessed the conduct of their Army at Kargil. As a result, I disagree with Smith that Islamisation and radicalisation have been exaggerated. In fact, it is a cause for worry, if not concern for India.

Second – Perception of external threats. Smith alludes to a growing generational divide between the senior and mid-level officers. He suggests that the younger generation does not view India as a primary threat.

My observations of university students at the Bahria college at Karachi in 2012 gave me hope. Not a single student questioned me — the only Indian — about Kashmir or other controversial subjects. Instead, I was bombarded with questions on reputed colleges and institutions of India for skill development and scientific research; medical facilities and commercial activities if and when we open our facilities for South Asians. They were more than happy to interact with me with little or no anger. Their careers and future were on top of their agenda.

This tallies with Smith’s assessment, but there is a flip side which needs consideration. The younger generation which is brought up on tinkered history and Wahhabi culture get more of that when they enter service. Fortunately, Bollywood continues to allure them with songs and visuals of India. Social media does the rest to keep them up to date. Breaking of barriers of communications using WhatsApp (a double edged tool though it may be) has its merits too.

Given that the change of official history has completely alienated the post-Zia generation from their roots in India, if anything, they should be more antagonistic. Perhaps the knowledge that India has advanced well beyond their reach in academic, economic, commercial and industrial capabilities and hence militarily too, has sobered their current threat assessments.

Third – Attitudes towards the State and its institutions. The most unresolved riddle for a young Pakistani officer is democracy. That all democracies are highly flawed but survive since there are no better alternatives, is an idea which is not sellable in Pakistan.

When a General is in power the military stands to gain materially and financially. The military which runs many major commercial institutions including transportation tends to be pampered even more. Large incomes that accrue from purely military-run commercial ventures pay for more perks and comforts. On the contrary, democratically elected leaders tend to be corrupt, indecisive and poor administrators and thus contempt for civilian governments and institutions is endemic. As a result, the military officer would any day support an Army regime in Pakistan.

Fourth – attitude towards nuclear issues.Two important deductions that Smith makes here are critical. First, there is the issue about negligible material on nuclear issues in their foundation course. Use of tactical nuclear weapons and its strategic implications are not appreciated at Quetta. Such an attitude needs to change. Encouragement to pen analytical material on nuclear issues, like many Indian scholars and authors have done, is an essential pre-requisite to grow in a nuclear environment.

Second, the safety and security of the Pakistani nuclear arsenal is being repeatedly reassured even by ill-informed students of this course. Repeated reassurances in the face of internal threats is a bad sign and cannot be construed as a positive and confident gesture in relation to the safety and security of their nuclear assets.

In conclusion, there are issues on the strengths and weaknesses of the curriculum. Militaries all over are averse to changes. The “all is well” theme of the famous movie Three Idiots is a culture that should be discouraged. Continuous reappraisal of course content is often stymied by the military-bureaucracy in most democracies. Going by Dixon’s findings, one needs to beware of the military bureaucrat — he tends to be much worse when placed in a seat of power.

(The author is a retired vice-admiral of the Indian Navy and former chief, Southern Naval Command. Views expressed are personal.)

Tribute to Admiral Jayant Nadkarni (Former Chief of Naval Staff (Indian Navy) 1987-1990)

(My tribute to Admiral Nadkarni on his demise. Dated 22 July 2018 at Pune, Maharashtra, India)

President Navy Foundation Pune, Members of the Pune chapter, the very special Golf four- ball who ensured that Adm.. Nadkarni played as long as he could, Ladies and Gentlemen.

It would be puerile on my part to summarize the naval career of Adm. Nadkarni. I know that a number of you have served under him, perhaps none here has been his peer and surely no one senior to him is present in this audience.

Exactly a year ago I paid tribute to a hero of the attack on Karachi and I began with what Gen Patton had said; "It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather, we should thank God that such men lived".

Adm. Nadkarni certainly belongs to that category which exhorts or commends us to Thank God that he lived and that his inherent intellect guided the navy during a very difficult phase of our growth. 1987 to 1990 saw many ups and downs in our economy and the defence budget took a beating.

Yet during his watch much was achieved and those are listed on the internet. You don’t need me to elucidate those records. What I shall do today is to tell you a few stories that have perhaps never been told before. Let me at the outset state that I came to know more about him after I retired than while in service. After all, post retirement activities are truly reflective of one’s ability to contribute to the society as a whole. Apart from being the founding member of CAAS, IMF and the Patron of MHS which he handed over to me, he was also sought after by Academics and had even contributed to the print media with some incisive articles on affairs Maritime.

That he was least flamboyant, unflappable and extremely observant is known to many. Allow me to present a couple of anecdotes, which I believe have not been recorded. But before that, this is what Adm. Awati said within hours of Adm. Nadkarni’s departure. “Podgy was an accomplished navigator who had a special touch for the Haven-Finding art which I do not see since his days at sea in a ship or as the Commander of the Western Fleet. I hope my readers understand the point I have made in describing this officer in his heyday. I experienced it first-hand. None, to my knowledge, has matched him in the past fifty years or more. The quiet, self-effacing facade hid a steely determination to do right, always and every time, by his ships and men. He belongs to that immensely rare breed of men who display character. It was forged during his difficult teens and early adulthood when he had to struggle against adverse conditions at home, facing denials.” Having been the navigator of INS Delhi, he knew that ship pretty well. He made a name for himself and that has been recorded in the history of the navy titled ‘Blue print to Blue water’. When INS Delhi, which was under long refit had to be pulled out in 1961 for gun fire support to the Army off Diu, Capt. Krishnan (later Vice Admiral and C-in-C East during the 1971 conflict) asked that his old crew and especially Podgy as the navigator should be brought back on board. The rest is history.   And so years later while in command of INS Delhi which lay at anchor at Port Blair flying the Flag of the then C-in-C East, he remained confident and unflappable.  When the Capt. was told by the Admiral that he should leave harbour in total darkness, he promptly saw the opportunity to go fishing during the remaining day light hours- with two of his ship mates. The Capt. returned on board 15 minutes prior to weighing anchor and was on the bridge wings conning the ship out of Port Blair while casually chatting with his ship mates on the successful fishing expedition. This left the C-in-C speechless and rather neglected, perhaps.

The second anecdote is when he visited Moscow in the then powerful Soviet Union, He was to deliver a pre-dinner speech. The problem was that the carefully crafted and politically correct speech prepared by his NA and the Naval Attache was left behind at the Hotel. The Admiral had merely glanced at it. When he was invited to speak and realised that the papers were not quite there, he merely waived his hand and whispered to the NA that he had glanced at the points and that was enough. He was not a great orator and yet managed to convey his message effectively.

Of the many other stories, here is a true story narrated by Prof Gautam Sen who lives in Pune. “In 1993, Podgy took her (Mrs Nadkarni} on a holiday to Europe. He was my house guest in Florence for seven days where I was a Jean Monnet Fellow at the European University Institute. She had already lost more than 60% of her vision. Every single day he would take her around Florence and give a continuous commentary explaining everything that came in the line of sight. But the most astounding thing was when he took her to the Da Vinci Museum and explained every Michael Angelo sculpture/ painting for nearly six hours. If you closed your eyes and only heard the voice of Podgy each item came to life. And there she was holding his arm listening and asking questions. Even some of the visitors trailed behind the two to listen to Podgy’s narration - an unusual display of his knowledge about art and architecture of the renaissance period to perfection. Not many may have known his deep understanding, study and appreciation of European history, its legacy of culture and the role of the Catholic Church. But what stood out was his devotion to her to ensure that she saw through his eyes exactly as you and I would see and remember Europe.” To bring him back to life today, I shall play a short extract of his interview that I recorded in March 2016, for the book on Ronnie Pereira. He was a great admirer of Adm. Pereira. He was the COS in quick succession to three legendary Admirals of our Navy. Adm. Pereira, Adm. Rusi Gandhi and Adm. Barboza. This is what he said to me.

Click to hear Adm. Nadkarni speaking about Adm. R.L Pereira

Let me conclude this chapter with the one I have chosen from a plethora of anecdotes narrated to me during the last week when I contacted a number of officers who had served under him. His NA who is not keeping too well narrated this one. Just prior to his retirement Adm. Nadkarni noticed that the navy had begun to pursue a new penchant for pre- retirement activities. Traditional activities such as wining out, dining out and pulling out had expanded to Golfing out, in some cases ‘tennising out’ and riding out too. Hence, he enquired with tongue in cheek whether he could be ‘Kabbadeed’ out as that was the only sport suitable for his podginess.

I gave a lot of thought to how I can conclude this tribute to Adm. Nadkarni. I think he would be delighted if we gave him a theen jai. Ladies and Gentlemen please rise- “THEEN JAI KE LIYE THAYYAR-ADM NADKARNI KI - JAI…….”

WHY DIGITIZATION IS A BOON AND A BANE

Private sector multiplies profit while the public sector exploits  corruption.

While tremendous strides have been made to bring in transparency and efficiency in the digitized economy of India, a section steeped in corruption ensures that the old inefficient and opaque system continues to prosper . There may be many examples but one each from the private and public sectors should suffice to educate and suggest remedial measures for the benefit of the "common man".

It is a well known fact that manufacture, information dissemination, billing and collection of payment in a vast array of products have promoted greater sales of modern utility goods in the digitized Indian market. My decade old car was up for sale. Examining multiple market friendly ventures to sell used cars, I decided to explore a relatively recent player. The website promised to deliver the following;

• Approximate sale price depending on basic parameters of the car
• A free- of- cost 45 minutes inspection of the car including all the documents which are mandatory.
• After the assessment of the expert,uploading the findings of the expert with photographs to the centre which then starts a process of auction among potential bidders.
• In 30 minutes of the above to show me the lowest and highest bids. If the bid is unacceptable no further action needs to be taken.
• In the event the bid is acceptable a 30 minute process of verification of documents and signing a joint agreement commences.
• The above process completes all necessary signature to meet mandatory requirements for resale  as stipulated by the RTO.
• The joint agreement then releases the seller from all responsibilities of the car.
• Finally the accepted bid amount is transferred instantly to the bank account of the seller.after deducting the nominal service charges.

Did all this happen? Indeed. In 15 minutes after closing the deal, I had  confirmation of receipt of money in the bank. The episode would be incomplete without the last mile connectivity with the RTO. One of the mandatory checks includes a visit to the traffic police site to check on unpaid challans for traffic violations as also accident related data if any. To my surprise there was an unpaid challan for Rs400 for a traffic violation caught on camera in 2017. Since I neither received an e mail or a telephonic message I was completely  oblivious to the misdeeds of my driver, I am told that we are required to visit this site from time to time. What if no payment is done? Well, you can't sell your car until it is done. Did anyone among my friends know about this silent camera- captured violation process? Not really. Hence this explanation.

 Could I have imagined such a tear less sale of my old car? Not at all. Full use of digital technology and completion of action within hours. All with a smile and a cup of coffee too.

Now coming to the story of how the babu, steeped in procedures functions  not only to tire you but to ensure that you follow an opaque system with built in guaranteed harassment. 

My driving license was due for renewal. This being a process once in 10 years or 5 depending on ones age, one is not aware of the impact of technology on efficiency of Govt run institutions. Getting a passport for instance has been streamlined through data exchange on internet. And so I visited the portal of RTO Pune. It also led me to a site run by a private operator who claims to deliver the prized document without tears. I opted for the tear less process of merely uploading all necessary papers including photographs. It was named appropriately as itseazy.com

After a few days of exchange of mails, I was asked to pay about six times or more of the official rate for renewal. "Aha," I said, pay more for no tears.

The final communication asked me to proceed to the RTO with my old card and meet their representative at the out gate.The entrance at the RTO was a bit overpowering due to hoards of people at every counter. At the out gate it appeared well nigh impossible to locate my interlocutor. In the event I did not have to. I received a call from a man who said he was watching me while seated on a scooter and he literary guided me to his location. One look at him and I realised that he was an agent who normally swings things in any Govt office. How on earth was he connected to the web portal its eazy.com?

The supreme confidence with which he outlined his plan made me wary of him. He asked me to proceed for a medical examination which was mandatory for license. I objected stating that the web service had not asked me to appear for a medical that too at a location as crowded as this. He was completely at ease with the developing situation and merely stated that he could arrange for a medical certificate if I merely followed his guidance.

I whipped out my cell almost like a cowboy at gun fight and phoned my service provider. The agent grinned and waited for my conversation to end. I was told that it was a minor oversight and that the payment made to them would take care  of the rest. I promptly grabbed all my papers from the agent and said that I did not need any license and that too from an agent of the RTO  whose role as a" pimp "should have vanished with the transparent internet based digital process. The agent followed me and advised me that at no time did he tell me to pay for the medical and what is more, I did not have to wait for more than 2 minutes to get a certificate. That said he turned around and was back in 30 seconds with a medical certificate pronouncing me fit and signed by a medical officer with a stamp on it.That done he collected my old license and promised me that my new license would arrive by speed post in 72 hours.

It is then that I realized that the old system of the "pimp" has been reincarnated by a private website which gives the necessary confidence to the customer but which is entirely dependent on the good old agent who in turn bribes all those in the pipeline. Now you can compute the profit margin of the website, the cut earned by the agent and the bribe up the chain including the Medical officer who never saw me. It struck me that I could have been blind and yet be cleared to drive.I had electronically transferred Rs 2000 for a job which costs Rs 300.

Now I engaged the agent in conversation on how he functions. He gladly shared his insights and gave  me a business card  with a caption "Any thing to be done with RTO" Indians are known to be innovative while avoiding taxes and creating channels for bribing. It is a win-win arrangement -unbeatable in concept and meticulous in execution. In parting, he hinted that those who come to him directly would need to pay only Rs 1000.

More recently I gathered that direct contact with the RTO at the crowded counters would have been sufficient if one had the patience. Look how wisely the plan has been hatched. The common man should receive the service at the counter a bit more efficiently without paying a bribe while other middle class and above customers who have internet facility may pay more. Thus my driver renewed his license without any tears,that too-at one sixth the cost!!

The pie'ce de re'sistance was when an affluent friend from Chennai claimed that he was harassed by the RTO of his zone while an adjoining zone was run transparently and efficiently. The modus operandi at the Agent- run RTOs appear to have been standardized  at the  National level. Money makes the world go round. Try beating the system!

     

My Love Story

IT is exactly 60 days since I lost my dearest possession of my life. Ironically it was 46 years ago that in an old quaint theatre in the Naval base at Kochi that both of us- newly married,watched the movie Love Story. No, it is just a sad story I thought. Cancer takes away a young wife.It was moving enough for Geeta to cry inconsolably. Many in the theatre were crying . The theme song would make anyone remotely connected with the theme cry!

But then the song became so popular that much like the hit songs of Bollywood, one heard it playing over and over again. Perhaps many of the current generation have heard the song.  It was etched in my memory not only for its lyrics but due to the ambiance of the thatched roof theatre for officers and men of the Navy. There was no Television at home and the latest Hindi movies were shown in theatres in town. But the base theatre was special. It did have regular shows for Hollywood hits too. Easy on the pocket when your take home pay was just Rs 400. A very disciplined crowd. The Officers were seated at the back on cane chairs-some times with bugs crawling out. But who cared!

KV was my immediate neighbour in a hired house opposite the Cochin shipyard. The Yard did not exist. Was it a mere coincidence that he too lost Lakshmi, his dearest possession a few years before mine. Geeta could not speak to KV to console him for well over a year. Much against statistical odds, we were to be neighbours twice more at Mumbai.  Lakshmi and Geeta were inseparables- perhaps they have joined hands again Now watch the song.......  Love Story Video

    

CHEMO OR NO CHEMO THE PERENNIAL DILEMMA

India has unexplored options

It all started in April 2016. My vivacious, loving and caring wife of 44 years with two children in their 40s and four grand children in their teens, began to lose weight. As a measure of tracking our health after retirement, routine blood checks were a norm at intervals of six months. Both of us were free of sickness of any description until one such routine blood check   in April 2016 revealed that her blood sugar levels had suddenly gone through the roof. A repeat test to rule out inconsistencies in computing the results confirmed that it was notably high. Visit to an Endocrinologist was the pressing option. In hind sight, no Doctor asked why it was a sudden occurrence. Metformin was prescribed along with strict sugar free diet. All seemed to be well with the blood sugar levels dropping to acceptable limits. 

By the end of 2016 the discomfort with increasing pain in the upper stomach radiating to the back and acute digestive complaints began to dominate her hitherto peaceful and joyful life. It is at this stage I shall link my story to my blog which narrates the first part of her journey through cancer. That it was declared a non-malignant pancreatitis in June 2017 is explained http://scsbangara.blogspot.com/2017/06/miracles-do-happen-from-malignant-to.html

Weight loss and pain from here on was consistent and if anything, on the increase. Repeated visits to specialists failed to alleviate the deteriorating status of her health.

Pain management became the first priority at this point. From June to September as care givers to her, my daughter and I found it debilitating to see her on regular pain killers ranging from Ultracet to Narcogen. The original diagnosis of non- malignancy began to be questioned even as we struggled with palliative pain management techniques called coeliac Plexus Block consisting of CT guided injection. That too failed to relieve pain.

A tumour board of oncologists reviewed the case and found it necessary to recommend two immediate procedures. Firstly, since an open surgery was resorted to for the samples that proved to be non- malignant, a EU guided intervention to establish the status of the tumour. Secondly  since her bilirubin count was on the rise with Jaundice setting in rapidly, PTBD/stenting was to be done.

By end September 17 it was categorically established that Gita had pancreatic cancer. The only known therapy was chemo and radiation. By then she had lost over 20 kgs of weight, she had acute jaundice, her blood sugar was being contained and her blood pressure had risen and her thyroid readings were abnormal. A combination of all this   prevented immediate commencement of chemo. Chemo and Radiation are the only options available in modern medicine.

During the course of this journey, I had ceased all commitments and activities and with the constant help of my daughter,son and my daughter-in-law, was deeply involved in care giving and understanding alternate medical cure which has been practiced  in India for centuries. Having been born before independence and having spent my early childhood in remote coffee growing plantations, an enduring memory was the total absence of pharmacies and Doctors in the immediate vicinity. It was rare for anyone who suffered illness not to be cured with herbal and organically produced food. Every illness had an immediate remedy. Jaundice as known to the West was cured with well identified juice of certain leaves. It was a well-known fact that animals and humans consumed similar herbal medication to remain healthy and physically fit. Sadly, the quality of medication depended on how well the knowledge transfer occurred between the Vaid and his selected successor. Since science and technology as known to the West was inaccessible to assess the success rate of cure and documentation along with record keeping was not mandatory, the trust reposed in the Vaid played an important role in overcoming the illness.

As it happened Gita needed medical attention and yet her body would not tolerate chemical intervention including pain killers. Yes we needed modern tools for immediate suppression of pain or to stabilize a critically ill patient. Rightly or wrongly, the family with Gita’s active participation decided that Ayurveda should form the backbone of her treatment while lab results and emergency care should be sourced from well known Hospitals. Now began the hunt to select a Vaid.

It is here that I would like to underline the process and its infirmities and strengths.  It is well known that Ayurveda has centuries of experience in well-structured methodologies and mechanism for identifying and administering medication. BUT, just as we need to identify good Doctors, we also need to carry out a critical assessment of available expertise in Ayurveda and Homeopathy. We used the following matrix;

• ·       Can we assess the success rate of cancer cure through identifying the survivors and interview them?
• ·       Is there a known channel such as whats app group which could facilitate communication with known Vaids ?
• ·       Is the Vaid notorious for commercial exploitation of patients or is it a mission due to circumstances that enabled his acquisition of knowledge.
• ·       Is he capable of understanding relative strengths of modern medicine and interpreting lab reports and scan results? 
• ·       Does he have an open mind to accommodate suggestions?
• ·       Finally, does he have the patience and time to have detailed discussions on patient’s reactions and tweaking of the medicines as appropriate.

By early October we had found the Vaid who met our QRs.  From then to the day Gita passed away we had the most satisfying and educative relationship with an octogenarian missionary who took to Ayurveda after he lost some close family members to this dreaded disease. Ayurveda does not believe that it is a disease. It is called a cell disorder which is eminently curable. Pancreatic cancer is a challenge and as known to many, both Homeopathy and Ayurveda do not claim to suppress pain. They treat the source of the malady.

Now I turn to what happened from October 17 to April 18. Lessons learnt by us form the integral part of this narration. It may throw up many more questions but that is how life is. No one guarantees that the patient will live but the quality of life during the healing process ought to be what the body can sustain with minimum intake of chemicals.

In end Oct 17,Herbal treatment with strict dietary restrictions commenced soon after examination of available CT Scan and PET Scan results. Our first detailed assessment with Gita in attendance was meticulous, incisive and interactive. At no stage did the Vaid give us an impression that he knew it all. His knowledge of interpreting lab results and other diagnostic tools indicated his ability to correlate scientific data with the whole-body approach adopted by our ancient practices. It was in stark contrast to the highly opinionated super specialist of a Hospital who listens less than he speaks. Most specialists spend the least amount of time with the patient and speak only on the area of their specialization. Ayurveda, as we understood was rooted in the belief that every part of the body is interconnected. When anyone of the parts is tinkered with it has significant impact on other parts too. Quantum physics and the approach to medical science as a consequence has many similarities with Ayurveda. Most of the drugs administered in hospitals have chemicals which are intrinsically rejected by the human body.  The latest statistics of death caused by Adverse Drug Reactions (ADR) are now being documented for posterity. Pain killers are normally unwelcome since they cause irreparable damage to the liver and kidney. However, patients suffering with pancreatic cancer have little option but to suppress pain to the extent possible.

Since the diagnosis in this case was delayed due to many reasons, we were faced with the dilemma of how to reduce the intake of pain killers. Ultracet, Ketrol and later Narcogen had left indelible scars in her body. Severe allergies were just one manifestation. In this context, let me dwell on pain management which becomes the backbone of patient’s comfort and her ability to participate in the treatment of the illness.

While the onset of pain was predictable due to the potency of the drug, it became necessary for my daughter and I to closely observe Gita’s conduct. Facial expression, body movements and energy levels were indicators to watch 24/7. By trial and error, we devised a combination of Reiki and acupressure techniques to ease the pain soon after its advent. By a constant tweaking process, we ensured that she suffered for the least possible duration of time. But, we were not able to materially reduce the dosage as the treatment had just begun. Time for absorption of herbal medication was a necessity.

The Vaid commenced simultaneous treatment for blood sugar, thyroid, blood pressure and jaundice.  Leaves of castor seed plants freshly picked three times a day were cleaned and juiced for a table spoon at a time. No refrigeration was permitted and it had to be fresh. That for instance was only for Jaundice. Similar herbal and other medication was to be administered almost every hour. 

By early December, all the parameters pertaining to the above were brought to normal as indicated by frequent blood tests and their analyses. No allopathic medicines except pain killers were required thereafter.

Using the principle that anything naturally grown or produced with no chemical addition is preferable, the Vaid had no objection to administering Hemp oil which is now available in India. In about a month, the pain management schedule began to show positive results. We were dreading the use of opiates which is normally the final pain reliever in this food chain. To our relief, the dosage of Narcogen and Ultracet reduced gradually till we reached one tablet a day and to zero tablets. This was a milestone event in her healing process. By February two more significant developments made us optimistic. Weight gain commenced and her tumour marker reading dropped to half its number.

We did not realise the downstream effects of continued pain killers of high potency for well over a year. Her kidney began to show signs of distress. Soon her heart began to pump less. Edema set in in all parts of her body and her protein levels dropped. To cut a long story short, despite critical care of hospitalization and ICU, she sank in the presence of all family members. She knew that she was going and had left behind very detailed instructions for all of us.

I lost my most valuable possession of my life. The pain does not permit me to give detailed readings of her body parameters during the remarkable journey through Ayurveda. I shall, after my recovery, share what little I have learnt from this experience.

What I know for sure is Western Medicine has no alternatives to Chemo and radiation. Looking back, would I have taken the Chemo route if given a chance. The answer is an emphatic NO. If anyone claims that he knows how the human body-the most complex mechanism ever created – works, tell him to work with alternative medicines and then assess whether he knows enough. Strangely a few Doctors that we had to interact with at reputed hospitals, supported our decision to use Ayurveda. That is a good sign for future application of shared knowledge to fight cancer, both to provide options, as also to make it affordable for those who are not covered by medical insurance or healthcare programmes.

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IS DEFENCE PLANNING COMMITTEE A NEW BEGINNING?

http://bharatshakti.in/defence-planning-committee-is-it-a-new-beginning/

My take published by the portal above