China marks 110th birth anniversary of Dr Dwarkanath Kotnis; all about the Indian doctor

China, on October 11, commemorated 110th birth anniversary of Indian Dr Dwarkanath Kotnis, who served in country during Chinese revolution headed by Mao Zedong and World War II. Kotnis was one of five physicians who was dispatched to China for medical assistance during second Si-Japanese war in 1938. Born in Sholapur, Maharastra, he is revered by Chinese and his statues and memorials have been set up in some of Chinese cities in recognition of his services. 

Kotnis was sent to China by Indian National Congress in 1938. He is kwn for his dedication and perseverance and also regarded as an example of Si-Indian friendship and collaboration. Zedong had praised Kotnis’ medical assistance during difficult days of Chinese revolution. Indian physician had joined Communist Party of China in 1942, however, unfortunately, he died same year at of 32. 

Deeply affected by his demise, Zedong even wrote in his eulogy that “ army lost a helping hand, nation lost a friend. Let us always bear in mind his internationalist spirit”.

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Dr Kotnis treated over 800 soldiers 

Kotnis stayed in China for almost five years and he worked in mobile clinics to treat wounded soldiers. His job as a battlefront doctor was stressful. He even performed operations for up to 72 hours, without getting any sleep. According to reports, Kotnis treated over 800 wounded soldiers during battle and he was eventually appointed as Director of Dr Bethune International Peace Hospital. 

Indian Physician could write and speak Chinese. He got married to a Chinese national, Gun Qinglan, in December 1941 and couple even had a son in 1942. It was three months after birth of ir son that epilepsy struck Kotnis and a series of epileptic seizures killed him on December 9, 1942. Kotnis was buried in Heroes Courtyard in Nanquan Vill. 

re are memorials of Kotnis in both Shijiazhuang, capital of Hebei province, and Tangxian county where he once worked. A school is also named after him as ‘Shijiazhuang Ke Dihua Medical Science Secondary Specialised School’. Moreover, China also made a movie on Kotnis in 1982, called ‘Dr DS Kotnis’. Back in 1982 and 1992, Beijing also houred him with stamps. Chinese government till date continues to hour his relatives in India during every high-level official trip. 

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