Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 27: Eminent Neonatologist Dr Neelam Sehgal Kler is among the four Padma awardees from Jammu and Kashmir, this year.
She is daughter of C L Sehgal of Gandhi Nagar Jammu and has rendered distinguished services in her field. She is Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neonatology in Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi. She is also a member of high power committee on infant mortality, headed by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
Dr Neelam Kler’s husband, Dr T S Kler is credited with starting Angioplasties in GMC Jammu, GMC Srinagar and training local doctors of Jammu on cardiac procedures. He was awarded Padma Vibushan by the Government of India in 2011 for his distinguished services.
Tashi Tondup of Leh, who has been conferred with Padma Shri award along with four others of J&K this year, is a prominent community leader in Ladakh. He was born in July 1938 in Leh Ladakh and completed his graduation from Kashmir University in the year 1956.
He has provided yeoman service and contribution in the field of public, social and political sphere for the tribal population of the border region of Leh-Ladakh.
He played a heroic role during the 1962 Chinese aggression in Ladakh. By virtue of his being a community leader and village headman, he was able to mobilize the entire village communities of Chemrey, Sakti, Karu along with the strong contingent of 70 yak and 340 ponies, followed by 1000 soldiers of 5 Jat battalion, led a daredevil march on the snow clad Changla pass at a height of 18500 feet, by crash-jumping himself on the snow ahead of the yak contingent. This kept the enemy at bay and protected our territorial sovereignty upto Pangong Lake.
Mr Tondup, by mobilizing crucial logistic support, greatly helped in saving Ladakh and in this gallant venture he himself suffered from serious illness caused due to extreme exposure to cold climate.
As vice president of Ladakh Buddhist Association for 13 years, he did a great service to the tribal population of Ladakh in preserving the tribal culture by relentlessly pursuing for the introduction of Bhoti language as compulsory subject in schools and also in granting of Scheduled Tribe status to the people of Ladakh.
He was nominated as member of Ladakh Development Committee (LDC) under the chairmanship of then chief Minister Sheikh Abdullah.
In January 26 issue of this paper, it was inadvertently mentioned that this year’s Padma awardee Tashi Tondup is an Executive Engineer in PHE Leh.
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