Me, my Dhaba and his world of Wynberg – Allen School

Today, he is remembered as Sikkim’s first COVID-19 death patient. Obituaries poured from different sections of the societies, including the ‘who is who’ of Sikkim. For many of his old students, being unable to attend their favourite teacher’s last walk remains the most unfortunate scenario in their lives. He was a highly respected individual, much appreciated for his simpleton lifestyle, and dedicated his life to the teaching profession. Without a doubt, Rongli has lost one of her proud sons.

My Dhaba (my father’s elder brother), Ghanashyam Pradhan, lovingly called ‘GS Sir’, by one and all, was a retired former Headmaster of Phadamchen SSS. An educationist with vibrant thoughts, as shown in his teaching days, had been the trademark of his more than two decades of illustrious profession. He enjoyed his retirement life at Rongli, his birthplace, with his wife, two sons (Praveen Pradhan and Pranay Pradhan), and his grandchildren, who also contributed to certain social gatherings. His elder daughter (Ambika Pradhan) is a nurse at New STNM Hospital at Sokaythang, based in Gangtok.

Dhaba had just celebrated his 69th birthday on July 1st. It was on July 24th, and I had my last mobile conversation with him; he was not well. He was having mild fever and dysentery. The next morning, news came that he was taken to Rongli PHC. He was on IV drips the entire day. Later in the evening, we were informed Dhaba had been diagnosed with symptoms of COVID-19 and was referred to New STNM the very night. Everything happened all of a sudden; the next morning, we heard the sad update that Dhaba breathed his last on the morning of July 26th, 2020. We, the family members, are still in complete disbelief that he is no longer with us.

Dhaba was a jovial person who was always full of life. He was born to the Late Siba Narayan Pradhan and the Late Nirlata Pradhan and the eldest of ten brothers and sisters. A complete family man, he was always fond of his family, brothers, sisters, nephews, and others.

He did his early schooling at Kumari Pema Tsedeun Middle English School, Rongli. Ghanashyam Pradhan was among the first 8 students to have got a Sikkim State scholarship to study outside Independent Sikkim. He joined the Wynberg-Allen School at Mussoorie. Some students who joined Wynberg-Allen School in the early 60s included Mingma Bhutia, Tej Rasaily, Gopal Rai, the late Janak Kumar Chettri, and others. His junior was PD Rai, a former MP from Sikkim.

But at any time, if one mentioned him about his staying at Wynberg-Allen School, he never made a gimmick in sharing the best years of his life. I had always admired his English accent and fluency, and without a doubt, all thanks to Wynberg-Allen School, those teachers, friends, and that atmosphere for it.

Vivid to my memory, on November 2nd, 2009, Mr. & Mrs. Pakianathan and Mr. & Mrs. Firth (very sad to hear him pass away a few months back) teachers from Wynberg-Allen School had visited Sikkim and met my Dhaba and a couple of other Sikkimese students of old days. I had requested my Dhaba to be part of that epic reunion that happened after forty years, to which he gladly agreed. It was me, Dhaba, and Dhama and an unexpected aura of yesteryears.

The meeting was held at Hotel Tibet, Gangtok; when the teachers moved into the Hotel, Dhaba walked towards them. He introduced himself, and they hugged each other. Watching both of them hug was something you don’t often come across. A smart and healthier Pakianathan teasing his student using sticks to walk was an interesting matter of laughter that still revolves around my memory.

Mr. Pakianathan would say, “Oh! Ganashyam” in his UK ascent, he was a nice student, a leader of a Gardening Club, and a sports enthusiast in reply Dhaba added what I am today is all due to Mr. Pakianathan’s lesson of mathematics and his morals. Mrs Pakianathan, Dhaba’s social study, passed on a smile, whereas Mr Firth too added his views on Dhaba in his couple of years stints as a teacher at Wynberg-Allen School. They talked about those days, those students, those colleagues. 

All of a sudden, the topic of conversation shifted to “Gundruk.” Yes, you heard me right. Mr. Pakianathan recollected his memories of Gundruk in his own words: “He (Dhaba) brought me a sack of Gundruk from Sikkim once, and it was Gundruk all the week till it was finished,” and we all laughed.

I watched everything as one watched over a silver screen, I could see the enthusiasm and shine in Dhaba’s face, and I could read his mind as he prepared to come out with every thought possible of those days to make the noon-time more momentous. He also brought old Wynberg-Allen School day photographs from his album that had Sikkim groups. He showed it to Mr. Firth, and he could identify a few of them.

That day was a big occasion, and I saw different emotions on my Dhaba’s face. The excitement of exchanging words with former teachers was nothing more than a fantasy, he later told me. He had then told me that, let alone visiting Mussoorie, they came all the way from the UK to meet us, and it was like angels coming themselves to bless you.

A few years back, Dhaba showed me a letter from Mr. LO Edwards (who passed away this year, too), his old Headmaster at Wynberg-Allen School. His former Headmaster had written, "It was good to know you choose to serve as a teacher, where you can serve and touch many lives, even though the remuneration is paltry." My Dhaba was very touched by his words.

With the advent of technology and my interest in blogs, I used to share Dhaba’s anecdotes with the rest of the world. This was the medium where Dhaba’s friends from Wynberg - Allen days contacted me, and off-lately, few of his good old friends were in contact with him. Just a few days before his passing, Kanwaljit Singh Narula, his friend from Bangkok, had contacted him. I felt it very hard to pass on the message that his school friend with whom he had talked a few days back after more than 50 years was no more.

After my Dhaba’s sad demise, his condolence calls, WhatsApp messages, and emails from his Wynberg friends have not stopped. As we do, they also miss their dear friend, ‘’very much”!!

Published in Sikkim Express - 09.08.2020