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Dr K.K. Aggarwal, a former President of the Indian Medical Association, died of Covid-19 on Monday night. He was 62. Aggarwal had been on ventilator support for the past few days at the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), his family said.
His passing is a great loss to the medical fraternity in the country and, especially so, at IndiaLegal where he was a regular columnist who dealt with medical and policy issues including the coronavirus pandemic. He has written over 20 articles on Covid-19 alone.
A passionate vaccine supporter, he had taken both doses of the coronavirus vaccine. In his columns for IndiaLegal, he dismissed rumours and the cloak-and-dagger surrounding the pandemic and dismissed the very many immunity building protocols that still flourish and enrich our lives via WhatsApp.
Since the pandemic broke out last year, he had been vocal on various aspects of the Covid-19 and shared his medical expertise with millions through his YouTube channel by posting countless videos, statements and educational programs to raise public awareness.
In an official statement released on his Twitter account, it was revealed that Dr Aggarwal died at 11:30 pm on Monday after a lengthy battle with Covid-19. It was only three days ago that rumours about his death went viral on social media, and the family had issued a statement quashing the rumour.
Ever since he became a doctor, Dr Aggarwal dedicated his life to the welfare of the public and raising health awareness, the statement said. A cardiologist by training, Dr Aggarwal headed the Heart Care Foundation of India and was conferred the Padma Shri in 2010. Even during the pandemic, he made constant efforts to educate the masses and was able to reach out to over 100 million people through numerous videos and educational programs and saved countless lives, said the statement.
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Dr Aggarwal also experienced the viral factor of social media first hand when a video of his being reprimanded by his wife on phone for not taking her along with him for receiving the Covid-19 jab went, well, viral.
Rest well, Doc! We will miss you.