Saving a Situation

Four sentinels hold fort: Siba Prasad Maitra recites prayers from his mobile

For the first time, Siba Prasad Maitra led the morning prayers today. There was no other option as most of the members had defected to the ‘rehearsals’ (ref post of November 15) midway through the exercises. Shekhawat tried to save the situation and bumbled through the prayers for a while till Maitra whipped out his mobile and began to recite from the text appearing in some religious website. A small but significant ritual of the morning could thus be concluded.
In moments like this we realize how certain things we take for granted in our daily routine can be actually meaningful in the absence of a critical component. So far, not much importance was attached to the prayers because there was always Arun Patil (or earlier, Sitaram Hivarkar) to take care of them. At times Bhaswati Bose, Kiran Prakash and a few others would chip in. But today, in the absence of any of these people, we suddenly found ourselves at a loose end. Were it not for Maitra’s timely intervention, we would have ended up stuttering and stumbling through

Shanti Singh (wrapped in shawl) narrates her tale of woe

the prayers with only Shekhawat to blame!
But then, we were also to recognize Maitra’s importance in a completely unrelated area. Shanti Singh had reported for the exercises today after being indisposed for over a month. She was even hospitalized (ref post of October 14) in a precarious condition, her body all bloated and yet, the cause of her ailment could not be diagnosed. Maitra paid her a visit in hospital and figured that it was an adverse reaction to the medication prescribed for what began as a tiny pimple in her mouth tissue. Clearly, this was a case of sulfa allergy, a life-threatening condition.
Maitra is not a medical practitioner, nor a qualified doctor. But with his lifelong engagement in the pharma industry, he comes to us with the wisdom of his experience that has proved providential (ask Shekhawat). Maitra does not prescribe medicines, but his advisories have saved many in a critical state (ref post of June 26).
Today, while Shanti Singh thanked Maitra profusely for his timely intervention and narrated her tale of woe to us, Shekhawat looked wildly delighted. “Bilkul mere jaise!” he exclaimed gleefully. “Just as I was… Only he could save me.”
Embarrassed, Maitra walked away with a shrug. He is not one to take credit. All part of a day's work.