Dr Jitendra Nath Pande (78), the former head of the medicine department at AIIMS.

Dr Jitendra Nath Pande (78), the former head of the medicine department at AIIMS and a stalwart in the field of pulmonology, died due to coronavirus at his residence in Siddhartha Enclave on Saturday. After retiring from the country’s premier medical institute in 2003, Dr Pande had taken up the mantle of director and professor of the pulmonology department at Delhi’s Sitaram Bhartia Hospital.

“Dr Pande was under home care and seemed to be recovering. The cause of death is suspected to be cardiac arrest. Deepest condolences to his family and everyone who will miss him dearly,” the hospital said.

Dr Pande had authored hundreds of papers on respiratory medicine, was a recipient of several prestigious awards, and was the personal doctor to President Ram Nath Kovind.

Read in Tamil here.

Dr Randeep Guleria, AIIMS director, described Dr Pande’s death as a personal loss. “He joined AIIMS as an undergraduate and stayed with the institute till retirement. I have known him as a senior when I joined the department in 1992 and worked under him until his retirement. I have also known him since my childhood because he was my father’s student. For me, it’s a great personal loss,” he told The Indian Express.