Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c14.s4.t38: Dr Madan Mohanlal Atal
Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c14.s4.t38
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Dr Madan Mohanlal Atal
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Dr Madan Mohanlal Atal was head of the five member medical mission sent to China by the Indian National Congress in September, 1938. He was a veteran doctor from Allahabad and previously had similar experience serving in Spanish Civil War. Dr Atal was the leader of the Indian medical mission to China; he was given the Chinese name Ai Dehua. He was an
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*Dr. Madan Mohan Atal*
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extremely mature and responsible doctor, dedicated to the welfare of the Chinese people in the time of war. After reaching China, he made personal efforts to communicate with the government personnel so that they could reach the exact location of war and action and start their medical aid without any delay.
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In the beginning, Dr Atal along with Dr Kotnis and Dr Basu were assigned to the Model Hospital of the Eighth Route Army, located in Guaimao, 17.5 km away from Yan’an. By November 1939, he along with Dr Kotnis and Dr Basu set forth for the front in the southeastern part of Shanxi. But life at the front was very hard and the doctors were faced with extreme climatic conditions. Dr Atal’s physical conditions worsened; he was suffering from measles and eczema and was in tremendous pain. All these unfavorable conditions finally compelled him to leave for India in February, 1940.
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After his return, Dr Atal strived to implement their ideals and experience in China in independent India as well. He joined the World Peace Movement and was also one of the founders of the All India Peace Council. He wanted to write a book based on his rich experiences in China; he believed that this would contribute to the development of India-China relations. But due to his sudden death this work remained unfinished.
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Dr Atal died of liver disease in Beijing in 1957, while on a friendly visit to China. Before he breathed his last, it was his desire that after his death, half of his ashes should be scattered around the ferry near Tongguan situated along the bank of the Huanghe river; Tongguan was the place he had passed on his journey to Yan’an, and to him it was a symbol of the Chinese nation. He wanted the other half of his ashes to be scattered on the soil of his motherland.
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His tomb, along with those of his fellow doctors, Dr Kotnis and Dr Basu, still stands in Shijiazhuang Martyrs Cemetery in China.