Saroj Chooramani Gopal, is an Indian medical doctor, medical educationist and considered as the first woman M.ch paediatric surgeon from All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi in the country. She is currently the President, National Academy of Medical Sciences (India). She was honoured by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

, in 2013, by bestowing on her the

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

, the fourth highest civilian award, for her contributions to the fields of medicine and medical education.

Biography

Saroj Chooramani Gopal was born on 25 July 1944, in the pilgrim city of Mathura,

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

, India. After schooling, she chose a career in medicine, graduated from the

Sarojini Naidu Medical College Sarojini Naidu Medical College (SNMC), is one of the oldest medical schools of India. It is located in Agra, Uttar Pradesh state. It is named after the first lady Governess of Uttar Pradesh, poet and freedom fighter, Bharat Kokila Smt. Sarojini N ...

, Agra in 1966 and did MS at the same college, in 1969. This was followed by securing MCh in paediatric surgery from the

All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, also known as AIIMS Delhi, is a public medical research university and hospital in New Delhi, India. The institute is governed by the AIIMS Act, 1956 and operates autonomously under the Mini ...

, in 1973, the first woman to obtain a degree in paediatric surgery in India. Saroj Gopal's career started by joining the faculty of the

Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University The Institute Of Medical Sciences (IMS-BHU) is one of the Six institutes of Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi, India and comprises three faculties, Faculty of Medicine, Dental Sciences, and Ayurveda. The Institute of Medical Sciences is the ...

in 1973 where she worked till her retirement in 2008 as the Medical Superintendent of the medical college hospital and as the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine. That year, she was selected as the Vice Chancellor of the

King George's Medical University King George's Medical University is a medical school, hospital, and medical university located in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. The medical school was raised to a medical university by an act passed by the government of Uttar Pradesh on 16 Sep ...

(KGMU), Lucknow, becoming the first woman to head the university which for a while during the reign of

Mayawati Kumari Mayawati (born 15 January 1956) is an Indian politician. She has served four separate terms as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. She is the national president of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which focuses on a platform of social cha ...

, was under the name, the ''Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj Medical University''. She retired from the university in 2011.

Legacy

Saroj Chooramani Gopal is reported to have pioneered several techniques in paediatric surgery and is known for the developmental efforts put in by her during her tenure with KGMU, besides the many research articles she has published.

Scientific and administrative contributions

Gopal is credited with many low cost innovations intended to benefit the financially compromised people. The

National Research Development Corporation The National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) was a non-departmental government body established by the British Government to transfer technology from the public sector to the private sector. History The NRDC was established by Attlee's La ...

, (NRDC) New Delhi have issued patents for six of those innovations to Saroj Gopal. She has also been reported to have invented new surgical techniques and she has published the details of three of such techniques. She helped establish a well equipped ''Department of Child and New Born Surgery'' at the Institute of Medical Sciences during her tenure at the institute. She has also organized many international symposia in paediatric surgery, has delivered key note addresses at a few of them and has participated in many social campaigns.

Publications

Gopal has published several articles, counted at 120, in peer reviewed national and international journals. Some of her articles on

hemangioma A hemangioma or haemangioma is a usually benign vascular tumor derived from blood vessel cell types. The most common form, seen in infants, is an infantile hemangioma, known colloquially as a "strawberry mark", most commonly presenting on the ski ...

and

teratoma A teratoma is a tumor made up of several different types of tissue, such as hair, muscle, teeth, or bone. Teratomata typically form in the ovary, testicle, or coccyx. Symptoms Symptoms may be minimal if the tumor is small. A testicular terato ...

have provided valuable insights on the treatment of the disease. * * *

Positions

Saroj Gopal holds the position of the honorary Professor of the Centre of Biomedical Research. She was the President of the ''Indian Association of Pediatric Surgeons'', in 1998, of which she is currently a member. She has been a member of the Expert Panel of the

National Academy of Medical Sciences National Academy of Medical Sciences (India), better known by its acronym, NAMS, is a nodal agency under the Government of India, which acts as an advisory body to the Government in matters related to National Health Policy and Planning and as a ...

, New Delhi, an examiner with many universities and an inspector of the University Grants Commission. Currently she is the President of the

, New Delhi She is also a member of professional bodies like the Association of Surgeons of India, the

Indian Medical Association The Indian Medical Association (IMA) is a national voluntary organisation of physicians in India. It was established in 1928 as the All India Medical Association, and was renamed the Indian Medical Association in 1930. It is a society registered ...

and the Indian Academy of Medical Sciences.

Awards and recognitions

Saroj Gopal is a recipient of many honours such as: * Commonwealth Medical Scholarship, 1984 * Senior Commonwealth Medical Scholarship, 1994 * INSA Senior Fellowship -

Indian National Science Academy The Indian National Science Academy (INSA) is a national academy in New Delhi for Indian scientists in all branches of science and technology. In August 2019, Dr. Chandrima Shaha was appointed as the president of Indian National Science Academ ...

- 1994 * Indo German Fellowship - 1997 * Indo Finnish Fellowship - 1994 * University Grants Commission Fellowship *

Fellowship The Government of India conferred the

Dr. B. C. Roy Award The Bidhan Chandra Roy Award was instituted in 1962 in memory of Dr. B. C. Roy by the Medical Council of India. It is presented by the President of India in New Delhi every year on July 1, National Doctors' Day. It is also the highest honour tha ...

on Gopal in 2002, and followed it up with the civilian award of the

, in 2013. She has also received the President's Medal in 1966, Shushila Nair Shield for excellence in studies, Dr Mridula Rohtagi Oration Award of the Association of Pediatric Surgeons of India in 2005, Col. Sangam Lal Oration Award of Indian National Medical Academy in 2007.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gopal, Saroj Chooramani 1944 births Living people Recipients of the Padma Shri in medicine 20th-century Indian medical doctors Indian medical writers Indian medical academics Scientists from Varanasi Indian surgeons Dr. B. C. Roy Award winners Fellows of the National Academy of Medical Sciences Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy 20th-century Indian inventors Banaras Hindu University faculty All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi alumni Sarojini Naidu Medical College alumni Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar University alumni Heads of universities and colleges in India Indian women science writers Indian women surgeons 20th-century Indian educational theorists Indian women educational theorists Women scientists from Uttar Pradesh 20th-century Indian women scientists 21st-century Indian women scientists 21st-century Indian medical doctors Indian scientific authors 21st-century Indian educational theorists Medical doctors from Uttar Pradesh Women educators from Uttar Pradesh Educators from Uttar Pradesh 20th-century women physicians 21st-century women physicians Indian paediatric surgeons 20th-century women educators 21st-century women educators