E-Paper
Former IMA chief Dr KK Aggarwal dies of Covid
Aggarwal, 62, died of Covid-19 related complications at 11.30pm on Monday at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Dr Aggarwal’s condition was critical and he was on ventilator support for the past few days, hospital authorities said.
New Delhi: Former national president of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) and Padma Shree awardee Dr KK Aggarwal died of Covid-19 late on Monday night.
Aggarwal, 62, died of Covid-19 related complications at 11.30pm on Monday at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Dr Aggarwal’s condition was critical and he was on ventilator support for the past few days, hospital authorities said.
Shortly afterwards, a statement was posted on Aggarwal’s profile. “It causes us immense pain to inform you that our dear Dr KK Aggarwal passed away at 11.30pm on May 17, 2021, in New Delhi, after a lengthy battle with covid-19...”
“Even during the pandemic, he made constant efforts to educate the masses and was able to reach out to 100 million people through numerous videos and videos and educational programmes and saved countless lives. He wanted his life to be celebrated And not mourned,” the statement on Twitter read.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said it was a “setback for the whole nation”.
“He acted all his life for the health rights of common people especially poor, deprived n marginalized. A great human being. RIP! (sic),” the chief minister tweeted.
Also Read| 269 doctors died of Covid-19 in second wave: IMA
Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot also offered his condolences. “My heartfelt condolences at the passing away of former Indian Medical Association president, Padma Shri Dr KK Aggarwal. His services as a doctor shall always be remembered. May God give strength to his family members to bear this loss. May his soul rest in peace,” he tweeted.
Dr Aggarwal was awarded Padma Shree in 2010. He was also awarded Dr BC Roy award. He was currently president of the Heart Care Foundation of India.
“The show must go on,” Aggarwal said in one of his last videos posted on Twitter, as he sat with a nasal cannula for oxygen support. “We have to get people out of this crisis,” he said in the video, urging doctors to see more and more patients with similar symptoms at one go during teleconsultations.
He was born in Delhi on September 5, 1958. He completed his MBBS from MGIMS, Sevagram under the Nagpur University in 1979.
Members of the medical fraternity remembered Aggarwal as “very hard working, innovative and pragmatic” and hailed him as an “iconic figure in mass education and awareness”.
“He was a medical activist who worked for 18 hours every day and in the last 16 months, the kind of work he did for creating awareness on the virus was phenomenal,” said Dr Vinay Aggarwal, former national president of IMA who had an association of nearly 35 years with the late doctor.
