Bengaluru: Victoria Hospital began its quasquicentennial (125 years) celebrations with the installation of a 108-foot national flagpost on its campus by the 1986 MBBS batch. It is the third medical education institute in the country with a flagpole that high.The hospital’s medical superintendent, Dr Deepak S, who mooted the idea, said the effort was both symbolic and practical. “This is one of the first initiatives to mark the 125 years of Victoria Hospital. We wanted each batch to plan and contribute something towards refurbishing the heritage structure, so that the building will remain strong for the next 100 years,” he said.Explaining the choice of a 108ft flagpost, Dr Deepak said the height was deliberate. “Only two medical colleges — Armed Forces Medical College-Pune and All India Institute Of Medical Sciences-Delhi — have 108ft flag poles. We wanted Victoria Hospital to stand alongside them. Taller structures would have interfered with the helipad nearby, so 108ft was the ideal height,” he said. This initiative is the first in a series of projects planned over the next two years involving college alumni. “One batch has already agreed to renovate the rose garden in front of the admin block, and we’re exploring the idea of installing a statue of Kempananjammani avaru, the Mysore regent who laid the hospital’s foundation stone,” Dr Deepak added.Carrying the legacy forwardFounded in 1897 by Kempananjammanni Devi, the regent of Mysore and mother of Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV, Victoria Hospital was inaugurated in Dec 1900 by British Viceroy Lord Curzon. The teaching hospital, which began with just 140 beds, is attached to Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute. It is among the largest in India, accommodating over 1,000 patients at a time. Over its 125 years, it has trained more than 35,000 doctors, along with thousands of nurses and paramedical staff, and treated millions of patients.
