Mathra Das Pahwa

Mathra Das Pahwa (; 9 October 1880 – 1972 ) was an Indian eye-surgeon who performed thousands of cataract surgeries free-of-cost. He was a member of the Provincial Medical Service. Over his lifetime, it is estimated he carried-out half-a-million surgeries and worked until the age of 92, completing a record 750 surgeries on a single day. He is known as the "messiah of modern Moga" and another popular epithet for him was Netra-Dev ("God of the eyes").

Biography

Early life Pahwa was born in a middle-class family on 9 October 1880 in Hafizabad. To accommodate the increasing number of patients, Pahwa's team had to raise improvised sheds at the Moga hospital. He held eye-camps in various cities throughout India and many eye-surgeons, including foreign ones, consulted him. In 1935, Pahwa retired as a civil surgeon.

Retirement and death After his retirement, Pahwa moved to Lahore. During this time, he would frequently travel to Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir state on family vacations, where he developed a close-bond with the ruling monarch Maharaja Hari Singh. In 1963, it was recorded that Pahwa was still working as a surgeon. Pahwa died in 1972. The CSR is headed by Anandita Pahwa.

Roles held

President of the Municipal Council of Moga, 1924–1940 Viceroy’s Honorary Assistant Surgeon, 1925–1935 Member of the District Board of Ferozepore, 1930–1936 Member of the District Board of Lahore, 1936–1937 Member of the Punjab Medical Council, 1936–1937 President of the N.W.R. Doctors Association, 1939 Member of the Swami Dayanad Trust, Ajmeer, 1940–1946 Vice-President of the Punjab Medical Council, 1946–1947

Institutions founded by him

Mathra Das Anglo Sanskrit School, est. 1919 Arya Putri Pathsahala, MDAS – High School (Sr. Sec. School), est. 1919 in Moga DM College of Education, est. in 1926 in Moga Mathra Das Civil Hospital, est. in 1927 in Moga

Awards

Kesari Hind - Silver Medal (1912) title of Rai Sahib (1919) title of Rai Bahadur (1921) Kesari Hind - Gold Medal (1924) Kesari Hind (rewarded again, 1932) Khilat Fakhra bestowed by Maharaja Rajendra Bahadur (1946) Padma Shri (1954)