Magnanimity of Dr Randhawa

Chiranjit Parmar

DR MS Randhawa was a person who encouraged juniors and helped them. I met him in Solan in 1979. He had come there for convocation of the College of Agriculture, where I was assistant professor of horticulture. He had arrived about two hours before the function and was sitting with the Dean. My office happened to be next to the Dean’s office.

Incidentally, this was one of the leanest periods of my career. I was not getting positive response for my efforts. I had started research on wild fruits of Himachal Pradesh. Work on these fruits had not been undertaken by any researcher until then. I wanted to bring out a book on these fruits. The manuscript was ready. But no publisher was ready to bet his money on a book written by a young assistant professor.

One of my senior colleagues, Dr RS Minhas, who happened to know Dr Randhawa, was also sitting with him in the Dean’s office. He introduced me and my work. Dr Randhawa gave me a piercing look and asked me in rustic Punjabi, ‘Kithe hai, lya (where is it, bring it)’. I gave him the manuscript. To my great surprise, he started reading it. Then he took out a pen and started making corrections.

After a few minutes, Dr Randhawa looked up and said the work was worth publishing but had many mistakes. He advised me to take it to Dr Kishan Singh Bedi in Chandigarh for corrections. He further said he would recommend it to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research for publication. He told me that a fee would be charged for correcting the manuscript. But noticing signs of worry on my face, he offered to do the corrections free of cost. However, he asked me to book a room for him at the PWD Rest House, Barog, and also arrange for a good stenographer. I found the first option easier and preferred to go to Dr Bedi, who also happened to be the principal of Government Agricultural College, Ludhiana.

Luckily the manuscript did not have to go ICAR for publication. A publisher of agriculture books from Ludhiana agreed to publish it. It was released in 1982. Dr Randhawa was kind enough to write its foreword.

It was a pleasant surprise to run into him at the Chandigarh Airport en route to Delhi in 1982, on my way to west Africa. I had been selected for a teaching assignment at the University of Liberia. He was happy to see me and even happier to know that I would be teaching in Africa. He wished me luck and asked about my future plans. I told him that a book on lesser-known fruits of the world was next on my list. I bade him adieu by touching his feet. He placed his hand on my head and said: ‘Parmatma tainun kamyabi deve (may the Lord grant you success).’

I think that Fruitipedia, my popular online encyclopedia of edible fruits of the world, which has been viewed by over four million people, is the result of that blessing.