Prescriptions from the past

He has spent most of his growing years in Pune, as his family has been comfortably settled in the Camp area for many years. An active person even at 78, he has seen the city transformed many times over. For the better, in some cases and for the worse in some. Born in pre-Independence era, he remembers Poona not Pune as a very quiet city, with a population of only 20,000 in the late 8217;30s.8220;There were hardly any cars on the wide streets, the roads were well maintained and watered everyday. Austin and Ford were the most popular makes then. And the Tommies used to frequent Main Street on their bicycles. And by and large, the British troops behaved themselves,8221; he says, with only a hint of a smile in his eyes.

Another aspect he recalls vividly is how the cantonment was kept clean and hygienic due to the heavy concentration of the British Army. 8220;Though the drainage system was archaic, the surroundings were clean, as a health inspector regularly supervised the open gutters everyday. Pune has become an extremely polluted city today. With the traffic congestion, you8217;re lucky to get back home in one piece, he remarks skeptically. Those days, there was so much discipline, today its chaos,8221; he laments.

Dr Grant is nostalgic about the easy life of those youthful days. The climate was extremely cool, when fans were seldom needed. 8220;The social life was limited. We hardly visited outside Pune, we couldn8217;t afford it. We enjoyed sitting out in the open, clean maidan, admiring the surroundings, or played hockey.8221; This is something which is impossible today, as construction activity and noisy traffic makes it impossible. 8220;The Golibar Maidan was a plain ground with a shooting range, where Tommies came for target practice,8221; he adds.

St Vincent8217;s, where he studied, had German and Swiss teachers who were extremely dedicated. 8220;Students were not crammed into one classroom as they are today. Teachers were familiar with the students. Education was imparted in an enjoyable manner,8221; he reminisces.

The Camp area was a far sight from what it appears now. 8220;The Royal Bakery, the Lobo8217;s Bakery, the Weiss Bakers were famous then. P Framji8217;s was the most popular general store. The Poona Hosiery, The Imperial Hosiery and the Bombay Swadeshi were the three leading stores. A Dinshaw was the leading optician, while Macedo and Poona Drug Stores were the leading druggists.8221;

The Albert Petit Library on East Street was a major landmark, and continues to be one till today. The Westend and Capitol were the two famous cinema halls which screened English movies. Besides the Botanical Gardens, the Empress Garden and Bund Garden were the popular public gardens. 8220;A band played there every Saturday, and these gardens were lush with thick foliage making an outing very rejuvenating,8221; says Dr Grant.

The Main Street and adjoining areas housed some well-frequented restaurants like The Fish8217;n Chips restaurant, next to Poona Drug Stores and the Kohinoor restaurant famous for ice-creams and faloodas. The Murator8217;s on East Street patronised by the British replaced by the Telephone Exchange and Kayani8217;s Bakery later, and Cornaglais Kabir restaurant now had a live band once a week.

Dr Grant left to study medicine in Mumbai at the JJ Hospital and around 1950, he was in America, specialising in Cardiology. He returned to Pune a few years later and set up practice at Ruby Hall, the former residence of David Sassoon. Today Ruby Hall Clinic is famous for its cardiology and cancer units. 8220;People think Ruby is my wife8217;s name, but that is not the case,8221; he laughs.

According to Dr Grant, the city altered drastically after 1960. 8220;As far as I can remember, in East Street the Income Tax Office was taken over, an old textile centre was pulled down and in general a lot of old buildings were converted into high-rise apartments. Updated versions of Kayani8217;s, Royal and Manney8217;s are still there though,8221; he recalls.

Large-scale industrialisation also started around that time. Pimpri and Chichwad developed later, he recalls. 8220;I thought it was a good idea, that Pune was growing, coming out of its traditional mould. But I regret that the opportunity to develop Pune into a beautiful city was completely lost. The development planners hashed it up completely. Those days there were no slums. Look at the number of slums today,8221; he rues.

In the medical field, however, many positive changes occurred, although not many doctors go in for general practice, the trend being towards consultancy. 8220;Those days there were more diseases. Smallpox, chickenpox, mumps, scarlet fever, tonsillitis, jaundice, typhoid were very prevalent.

Thanks to immunisation and antibiotics penicillin came in 1942-43 these diseases are no longer dreaded,8221; he says. Advantages are also accompanied by disadvantages, which have to be taken into account for sustainable growth. Dr Grant is in favour of progress because, as he says, 8220;change is the most permanent feature of life.8221;