The Boss’ Boss decided to have the
performance of Honorary doctors in the civic hospitals checked. It appeared that some of them were not regular in their work The
Boss made a committee of three heads of departments and put me on it.
I am unable to see myself in judgmental position at any time. It is
one of the reasons I refuse to be examiner for undergraduates and
postgraduates. But I could not refuse, because that reason would
perhaps be seen as pseudo-philosophical rather than practical. So we
went around looking at various civic hospitals. The order was to get
data about the qualifications and honorarium of the honorary doctors,
and then assess their performance.
“These honoraries seem to be getting
Rs. 1000/- per month as honorarium” I said.
“Yes. But that does not cover even
half of what they spend on petrol to reach the hospital” the
medical superintendent said.
“But there are four doctors who are
getting one rupee per month each” I said, quite surprised.
“Yes. They have been getting that for
years.”
“Why?”
He shrugged.
“Have they refused to get what the
others get?”
“No. The civic body pays them one
rupee each.”
The civic body wanted them to work for
twenty hours a week, week after week, year after year, for one rupee
a month! They must be extremely keen to serve the poor people selflessly, or they
would not continue like this. And there was our team, evaluating
their performance. I had never felt so ashamed at being judgmental as
I felt then, even when I wrote their performance was exemplary (as it
actually was), because I felt I was violating something sacred by the
act of judging such people.
