Son of IAF officer from Tamil Nadu, Assam oncologist wins Magsaysay award

A seed planted in time inevitably sprouts and when it gets nourishment, it is bound to grow into a beautiful tree. That is exactly the story of this year's Magsaysay award winner, Dr Ravi Kannan, an oncologist and director of Assam's Cachar Cancer Hospital and Research Centre.

- PRASANTA MAZUMDAR

Son of former Indian Air Force personnel from Tamil Nadu, he had just one goal in life to become a doctor, one he pursued successfully.

"I remember my mother Indumathy had set this goal for me when I was a child. She had seen her family physicians - Dr Natarajan, Dr MK Shanmugham and Dr NK Subramaniam. They were from my mother's hometown Kumbakonam. She wanted to become a doctor too but her family circumstances did not permit it. So, she wanted her son to become a doctor. I had no other thought," Dr Kannan said.