Dr Amulya Kumar Singh (left) greets Padma Shri winner Dr Jitendra Kumar Singh in Patna on Wednesday. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

Seventeen institutions in the city came together on Wednesday at the planetarium to felicitate Mahavir Cancer Sansthan director Dr Jitendra Kumar Singh, who got the Padma Shri recently.

Indian Institute of Business Management, Surendra Pratap Singh Institute of Journalism and Mass Communication, Patna chapter of Computer Society of India and Nand Kumar Singh Paramedical College are some of the institutes that organised the programme. SNP Sinha, a former vice-chancellor of Patna University, Padma Shri Gajendra Narain Singh, a former chairperson of Bihar Sangeet Natak Akademi and Dolly Sinha, the principal of Magadh Mahila College, were some of the dignitaries at the meet.

Indian Institute of Business Management director-general Uttam Kumar Singh, who was also was the convenor of the programme said Singh had received the national recognition because of his hard work and dedication. “Jitendraji is a source of inspiration not only for doctors in Bihar but also for other professionals. He has really made us proud by winning this award. Very few people know that Jitendraji left his job of an associate professor at PMCH (Patna Medical College and Hospital) to accept the offer of Acharya Kishore Kunal, the founder of Mahavir Cancer Sansthan, and started the hospital as a small unit. Now, the health hub caters to nearly 5,000 patients everyday,” said Singh.

He added: “We wish Jitendraji all the best and hope that he continues his good work and wins many more awards and laurels.”

Dr Singh was born in 1952 at a village in Banka district. He completed his MBBS degree in 1975 from PMCH with a national scholarship. He is also the recipient of Indian College of Radiation Oncology award in 1995.

He worked at the radium institute of PMCH for 14 years as a senior faculty member before joining Mahavir Cancer Sansthan as director in 2001.

Dr Singh stressed on the need to initiate national-level awareness campaign about cancer. “If a person suspects that he has any symptom of cancer, he should get a thorough check-up done. Community outreach programme for cancer is the need of hour. People should be made aware of the diseases. Else it will continue to plague people,” said Dr Singh.