Dear Members,
Having hosted 48 online Foundation meetings over the past seven years, I found myself unable to host the 49th meeting for a rather unusual reason: I was literally up in the air, travelling from Mumbai to Chennai. What initially seemed like an inconvenience turned out to be an excellent opportunity to hand over the responsibility of running a Foundation online meeting to the next generation.
The meeting was recorded, and I had the opportunity to watch it after returning to Chennai. To my surprise, it ran for almost two hours, a clear indication of both the quality of the discussion and the enthusiasm of those involved.
The subject of the meeting was the UPSC Civil Services Examination and how a medical graduate might prepare for it if interested in pursuing a career in public administration. Dr Arun Pandian, a graduate of Madras Medical College, was interviewed by Dr Praveen Selvanandam about his journey, preparation strategy, and eventual success in securing an excellent rank in the 2025 examination.
I hope the students who attended gained valuable insights into the examination process and the commitment required to succeed. Much of what was discussed sounded like Greek and Latin to me! I suspect many of our senior members may have felt the same. We belong to a generation that entered medicine primarily to care for patients rather than to become administrators. Yet the world is changing rapidly, and perhaps the healthcare systems of the future will benefit greatly from doctors who combine clinical knowledge with administrative leadership.
A special word of appreciation goes to Akshaya, the student leader of our organisation, who stepped into the role of host and chaired the meeting with confidence and professionalism. She introduced the speaker with ease and demonstrated that she is fully capable of leading future online meetings. The time has now come for her to mentor her juniors so that they, too, can confidently take over when needed.
Dr Praveen Selvanandam, our Secretary in charge of student members, conducted the conversation with Dr Arun Pandian in a relaxed and engaging manner. He displayed the qualities of an excellent interviewer, asking thoughtful questions that helped bring out practical lessons for the students.
Dr Ramadevi thanked Dr Arun Pandian for generously sharing his experiences and offering guidance to students interested in pursuing the UPSC Civil Services Examination. His story demonstrated that with determination, careful planning, and perseverance, a medical graduate can successfully navigate this highly competitive examination and open the door to a different avenue of public service.
An interesting revelation during the discussion was that Dr Ramadevi herself had once considered a similar path. Her father had served as an IAS officer, and after completing her MD in Biochemistry, she was strongly attracted to a career in the civil services. She even appeared for two UPSC examinations before eventually deciding that her true calling lay in academia. The students of Madras Medical College undoubtedly benefited from that decision, as she went on to build a distinguished career as a Professor of Biochemistry.
The meeting was brought to a close by a very confident Darshan, who delivered the vote of thanks with poise and clarity.
As I watched the recording, I felt reassured that the Foundation’s future is in capable hands. The next generation is already stepping forward, not only to participate but also to lead. That, perhaps, was the most encouraging outcome of the meeting.
What pleased me most was not merely the successful conduct of the meeting, but the reassuring evidence that responsibility is gradually passing into capable younger hands. For any organisation to remain relevant and vibrant, leadership succession is essential. Watching these young doctors/students confidently organise, host, interview, and conclude the meeting gave me confidence that the Foundation will continue to serve future generations of students long after the present leadership has stepped aside.
K. Badrinath