Doctors who served farmers during stir to now help students in Ukraine

Another doctor, Sukhmandeep Singh Dhillon, who had returned from Ukraine that same year in June after completing the MBBS course and was planning to move to the US to pursue higher degree, joined Dr Swaimaan at the facility that the latter had put up at the Tikri border.

Now the two doctors, alongwith one more Dr Harpran Singh Deol from Rampura Phul, are all set to fly to Berlin to help distressed Indian students stranded in Ukraine. They will also reach out to Ukrainians affected by the Russian military invasion.

“I came to India when farm agitation had just started at Delhi borders. I along with several other doctors from India and abroad provided medical help to the farmers. At that time, teams of German and Ukrainian doctors too had reached the Tikri hospital to help me. Now, as a war rages on, we have again decided to offer a helping hand to the Indians stuck in Ukraine as well as to the locals,” said Dr Swaimaan.

The cardiologist is the founder of Five Rivers Heart Association, which has more than 1000 doctors from India, Germany, the USA, Ukraine and some other countries as members.

Of the two who will be traveling with him to Berlin, Dr Dhillon contested the February 20 Punjab Assembly elections from Tarn Taran constituency as the Sanyukt Samaj Morcha candidate. Dr Deol is pursuing MD in the US and is currently in India.

Both Deol and Dhillon have applied for Visa for Berlin. “They applied for the Visa four days ago. If they get a reply by Wednesday, they will fly with me, else will join me later,” said Dr Swaimaan.

He said the team, after reaching Berlin, will get in touch with all the member doctors and later travel to a shelter some 200 km away from Kiev, the capital of Ukraine from where they will coordinate the aid. “The shelter is under-construction. We have already flashed our numbers amongst groups of Indian students so that they can approach us if they need any sort of help. We will try to provide all sorts of help — from medical aid to arranging transport or arranging food or even setting up shelters for people to rest,” said the 35-year-old.

The family of Dr Swaimaan, who hails from Pakhoke village of Tarn Taran district, had moved to the US 25 years ago. His parents, wife, brother and sister are doctors and stay in New Jersey. The cardiologist, who came to Indian to provide medical aid to the agitating farmers at Delhi border for a few days, never went back. “I provided my services during farmers’ agitation at Delhi borders. Later, I worked as a volunteer of the Sanyukt Samaj Morcha. Now, I feel that I need to serve the war-affected people,” said the doctor who had earlier worked for sometime in Ukraine and is in contact with that country’s military hospital.