The hunter of maladies & mischief

Rajiv Sharma

Salt and pepper beard, lean frame, average height, energetic demeanour, white trousers, matching shirt and azure turban were the hallmarks of Mr Sucha Singh, the pharmacist at the school infirmary. He and the staff nurse, Mrs Evelyn, a corpulent lady from Kerala, were responsible for the health of 600-odd students, in the age group of 10 to 15 years, at the boarding school.

The health unit was the kingdom of Mr Sucha Singh and his writ ran in his territory. He and sister Evelyn were in charge of the affairs of the unit day and night, except for a half an hour when a medical specialist came for a daily round in the evening.

 Students sometimes feigned illness to get admitted to escape the rigorous routine of physical training and drill. But no one could deceive the sharp-eyed pharmacist. He was deft at separating the wheat from the chaff and hypochondriacs and malingerers were sent packing to the dormitories.

But it was altogether a different ball game when he confronted the ‘man-eater’, a tall, lanky and daring boy of 14. Two years senior to us, he was a tough nut to crack. His coterie addressed him as ‘Rajkumar’ — from a thrilling story, Bandhavgarh Ka Rajkumar, from our Hindi textbook, wherein Jim Corbett, the legendary hunter, is tested for his patience, skill and courage when sent to decimate the dreaded man-eating tiger (Rajkumar).

Though his obsequious coterie called him Rajkumar, the meek among us referred to him as a ‘man-eater’ in hushed tones.

With a sip of warm water, before placing the thermometer below his tongue, he was able to get entry into the kingdom of Mr Sucha Singh. The kind-hearted sister was taken in by his acting skills and Rajkumar was awarded a comfortable bed to escape the gruelling routine of the Army School for some days.

Mr Sucha Singh never believed what he saw or heard until verified by his scientific mind. His sixth sense did not want the man-eater in his den. But the temperature charts and perfect expressions worn by the patient were hard to ignore until his prying eyes discovered the daily dose of pills shoved under his mattress. From then on, there was an open war between the man-eater and the hunter. Peals of laughter and a variety of food items brought by Rajkumar’s gang were too much to handle for the hunter. 

The next day, Mr Sucha Singh noted ‘communicable disease’ on his file and shifted the man-eater to the isolation ward. Door of the ward was opened only thrice a day to administer medicine and provide bread and milk to the patient.

Used to pampering, Rajkumar could not withstand the isolation for more than two days. He broke down to render an apology. The man-eater was caged, tamed and let off with a warning to never masquerade again to enjoy the hospitality of the infirmary, ruled by Mr Sucha Singh, the hunter of maladies that plagued the young and exuberant.