Dr Jagdev Singh Badhesha cutting his birthday cake at his home in Section 6, Petaling Jaya, Selangor. With him are (from left) Amreek Singh, his wife and Dr Jagdev’s niece Simren Kaur, Lieutenant-Colonel (Rtd) Baldev Singh Johl, Dr Jagdev’s grand-daughter Sunaina Kaur, his wife Neeta Kaur and daughter Sharan Kaur. - NSTP/ADRIAN DAVID
PETALING JAYA: Captain (Rtd) Dr Jagdev Singh Badhesha had scored many an innings during his prime as a prolific sportsman and a medical doctor.
Hence, turning 90 yesterday was akin to not being dismissed for as many runs as a batsman in the gentleman's game of cricket.
Dr Jagdev, a leading aviation medicine examiner, had at one time captained the national cricket team during his prime, where he was a top bowler.
Looking back, Dr Jagdev said that he had a fruitful life the past nine decades, despite having to struggle in his early years from humble beginnings as a milk boy to becoming the nation's pioneer aviation medicine doctor.
Featured Videos
"What I am today, I owe it to my parents and grandparents who nurtured and groomed me through the rough shackles of life to become a success story.
"It was a tough journey all the way and I have no regrets until today.
"They grilled me through the mill so that as a well-fed milk boy, I did not end up a sloppy, pot-belly 'Billy Bunter' (a fictional obese schoolboy comic character).
"They organised daily errands for me to remain trim and proactive," he told the New Straits Times at a special prayer session to honour his birthday at the Gurdwara Sahib Petaling Jaya, here.
Present were family members, friends, former 6th Battalion Royal Ranger Regiment commanding officer and cousin Lieutenant-Colonel (Rtd) Baldev Singh Johl as well as Armed Forces Medical Corps Veteran Officers Association president Lieutenant-Colonel (Rtd) Dr Jaswant Singh.
Also present were his wife Neeta Kaur and daughters Manisha Kaur and Sharan Kaur.
Dr Jagdev revealed how his earlier stringent young lifestyle ensured he turned out as a talented hockey and cricket player for Perak, Selangor, Melaka, the armed forces, his club, university and the country later on.
In cricket, he represented the country in tournaments like the Saudara Cup with Singapore, inter-port series and Carl Shubert Trophy.
He was also a regular in the Malaysian Cricket Association's Navaratnam and Stonor Shields.
One of his finest achievements in cricket was when he turned out for his alma mater, King Edward VII School of Taiping, Perak where he managed to grab five wickets for six runs against Penang Free School.
The opponents were dismissed for a paltry 11 runs, in an inter-school match in 1949.
Special prayer session to honour Dr Jagdev Singh Badhesha’s birthday at the Petaling Jaya Gurdwara Sahib yesterday. - NSTP/ADRIAN DAVID
The same year, Dr Jagdev represented Perak and took six wickets for 37 runs against Negri Sembilan, which was all out for 73 runs.
Recounting his early years, Dr Jagdev recalled how he supplemented his family's income by delivering milk on his bicycle to the police barracks before morning classes at King Edward VII School.
"The experiences and hardship of my early childhood inculcated a sense of discipline and a steely resolve to pursue my dream to become a doctor," he said.
After completing his Senior Cambridge (Form Five) in 1950, he left home to continue his pre-university studies at St Xavier's Institution in Penang.
On his longevity, Dr Jagdev said that he practiced a healthy lifestyle with a moderation of food and beverage consumption, plus regular exercise and a good rest.
"My life has been very fruitful as I grabbed whatever opportunities that came along to move on successfully," he said.
After graduating as a doctor from Australia's Adelaide University's Medical School in 1958, Dr Jagdev began his government service at Melaka Hospital.
Six months on the job, he was seconded to the armed forces as a military doctor for two years with the rank of captain.
"My initial stint was at the Port Dickson garrison before taking charge of aviation medicine at the Royal Malaysian Air Force base in Sungai Besi, Kuala Lumpur.
He is credited to have served under the country's first army chief General Tan Sri Tunku Osman Mohd Jewa and its first armed forces chief Lieutenant-General Tan Sri Sir James Newton Rodney Moore.
"In later years, I was among the first to propagate the cardiopulmonary resuscitation technique to many industries, and later helped formulate the country's Occupational Safety and Health Act for the Human Resources Ministry," he said.
In fact, thousands of the nation's civilian and military pilots may not have continued flying, if not for people like Dr Jagdev.
"Till today, my services are still sought after by the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia as its chief medical assessor for pilots and air traffic controllers.
"I am some sort of a double-checker when it comes to aviation medicine.
"My services are still sought, owing to my years of experience in the medical field. I oblige whenever called upon, if I am not preoccupied with other chores and family life," he said.
Dr Jagdev is probably the first local in the early years to screen pilots to become great aviators for the airlines and air force - serving a total of 64 years in all.
"At that time, other than military officers, I was among a handful who were qualified in aviation medicine, to screen cadet pilots and professional ones, too.
"I did my basic aviation medicine training at the Royal Air Force base in Singapore in 1961.
"It was only very much later that the (Malaysian) armed forces established a proper aircrew screening centre (the Institute of Aviation Medicine at the Kuala Lumpur air force base)," he said.
One of Dr Jagdev's career highlights was during the 1969 racial riots.
At the height of it all, when the federal capital was in a state of chaos, the dashing doctor was roped in by the Red Cross to provide emergency medical treatment at Kuala Lumpur Hospital.
"I was summoned to the hospital's accident and emergency ward in an army vehicle.
"It was helter-skelter with people screaming and bloodstains everywhere.
"It was a shocking scene and I had to summon the courage and calm my nerves to get the job done - that of assisting the skeleton crew of medical officers in attending to slash victims," said Dr Jagdev.
Dr Jagdev said he had to work tirelessly with government doctors to render medical aid to the victims.
"At one stage, we had 100 patients brought in for emergency treatment for slash wounds and we had to work overnight owing to a shortage of doctors.
"The scene was gory" said the octogenarian.
In 1963, Dr Jagdev joined Drs Young, Newton and Partners clinic and rose to be its principal partner in Kuala Lumpur.
During his long sabbatical leave, he took the opportunity to first pursue aviation medicine at Farnborough in England, then occupational medicine at Dundee University, Scotland, followed by public health at University of Singapore.
Dr Jagdev even served as a "flying doctor" in Kargoolie, Western Australia, during another sabbatical in 1966.
After retiring from Drs Young, Newton and Partners in 1980, Dr Jagdev served Exxon-Mobil as its medical director until 1996.
