The 138-year-old RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, currently in global news for the alleged rape and murder of one of its trainee doctors, is Asia’s oldest non-government medical college. It proudly carries a glorious legacy and illustrious past unlike any institution.
The man behind it, Dr. Radha Gobinda Kar, was born on August 23, 1852, in Howrah’s Betore in the British-ruled Bengal presidency, to an affluent Bengali family.
Dr Kar’s father Durgadas Kar was also a physician and a teacher at the Calcutta Medical College. Dr Durgadas Kar was one of the first to write medical textbooks in Bengali. He had also helped in setting up the Mitford Hospital in Dhaka.
However, young Radha Gobinda didn’t have much interest in studying medicine. Inspired by his brother, his passion lied in theatre. He had also come across eminent theatre personalities such as Dinabandhu Mitra and Girish Ghosh.
Nevertheless, due to his father's influence and his compassionate nature, he was persuaded that studying medicine would enable him to improve the lives of impoverished Indians during the British rule.
After completing his early education at Hare School in Kolkata, he joined the Calcutta Medical College in 1880. Later he moved to Scotland to do his post-graduation. He received his prestigious L.R.C.P and L.M degrees from University of Edinburgh in 1887.
Dr Kar realised that Calcutta was plagued by numerous diseases, and there were insufficient facilities for native Indians to receive modern medical care. As a result, most Indians depended on unscientific methods of treatment.
Dr Kar discussed the matter with renowned personalities and doctors in Bengal at that time, such as Dr Mahendra Nath Banerjee, Dr Bipin Behari Maitra, among others, and founded the Calcutta School of Medicine in 1886.
The school was first set up in a rented house on Baithak Khana Road in Bowbazar before shifting to another place in the same locality. Since there was no affiliated hospital at the time, practical classes were held at the 24-bed Mayo Hospital. Dr Kar also authored several books, including ‘Concise Physiology’ and ‘Illustration and Brief Theory of Gynecology’.
Meanwhile, Dr Radha Gobinda kept looking for donations from all corners of the society with the aim to expand his school. In 1898, a plot of land measuring 12 bighas, or roughly 4 acres, was obtained for building the college at its present site in Kolkata’s Belgachia.
In 1899, when Kolkata was devastated by a plague outbreak, Dr Kar met the renowned Irish social worker, Sister Nivedita. They joined hands and relentlessly worked to treat and save those affected by the epidemic.
A 30-bed hospital was opened by then-Governor Lord Woodburn in Belgachia in 1902. Two years later, the Calcutta School of Medicine merged with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Bengal, which had been established in 1895.
Over time, the institution grew, adding new departments. In 1916, it was officially renamed Belgachia Medical College. The college was inaugurated by Governor General Lord Carmichael, who was instrumental in affiliating it with Calcutta University. In his honour, the college was named Carmichael Medical College.
Unfortunately, Dr. Kar did not live long to witness his cherished dream come to fruition, as he passed away on December 19, 1918. But his legacy, as a doctor, writer, and social worker, remains deeply embedded in every brick of the institution he established.
In 1933, the first psychiatry outpatient department (OPD) in Asia was established in this college, followed by the introduction of a cardiology department in 1939, also a first of its kind in India.
By 1941, the college had become one of the most prestigious institutions in the country, with its facilities, faculty, and students earning widespread admiration across the country and continent.
In May 1948, the college was renamed in honour of its founder and it has since been known as RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. Ten years later, the Government of West Bengal assumed control of the institution.
Even in post-independent India, it has been one of the best government-run medical institution. It works as a lifeline where lakhs of people in northern part of Kolkata get the best medical care without any cost.
The institution is now seen by many around the world as unsafe and unholy. However, with the CBI investigating the case and a new administration taking over, RG Kar Medical College and Hospital is looking forward to a fresh start.
Professor Dr Saptarshi Chatterjee, the recently-appointed medical superintendent cum vice-principal (MSVP), also hoped the same. “Our primary aim is to restore normalcy glory days of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital,” Dr. Chatterjee told the media on his first day in office.
