Indian-American doctor donates millions to his native village

New York, Aug 2 (UNI) An Indian-American doctor has donated 20 million US dollars for the development of his native village in Kerala in a rare gesture, according to a news report published in upstate New York.

The report, which appeared in Buffalo News, said Kumar Bahuelyan donated the huge sum for setting up a neurosurgery hospital, a health clinic and a spa resort in Chemmanakary, a village in Kerala.

Bahuelyan was born in abject poverty in a Harijan family. He was able to buy a pair of shoes only after his entry into a medical college.

''I was born with nothing. I was educated by people of that village and this is what I owe to them,'' he told the Buffalo newspaper. ''I am in a state of nirvana, eternal nirvana. I have nothing else to achieve in life. This was my goal, to help my people. I can die any time, as a happy man.'' Bahuleyan, who lives in Buffalo with his wife who is also a doctor, Indira Kartha, divides his time between India and the United States. While in his native village, the neurosurgeon moves around on a bicycle though in Buffalo he possesses five Mercedes Benzes and an airplane.

Dr Pearay Ogra, who is also Indian-American and a former head of the infectious diseases at Women and Children's Hospital in Buffalo, is now president of the Bahuleyan Charitable Foundation.

''He grew up in a traditional Hindu culture, with a deep sense of universal giving. If you can afford it, give it back to the people who brought you up,'' the newspaper quoted Dr Ogra as saying.

A brilliant student, he went to high school and attended medical college in Chennai. The Kerala government sent him to Scotland, where he spent six years on medical studies. He couldn't land a right job after his return to his native land.

Before arriving in Buffalo in 1973, he went to Ontario in Canada.

Much of the time before his retirement in 1999, he had been in private practice during which time he made millions.

Ten years before his retirement, Bahuleyan set up the charitable foundation. It built a small clinic, constructed lavatories, roads and a water supply system. A brain and spine center was added in 1996. None of his achievements glorifies his name.

Bahuleyan played down his own importance and philanthropy.

''My dream is to see this all running without my help, so I can pass away peacefully, knowing that I created something and gave something back,'' the newspaper quoted him as saying.

UNI