A life of service and vision: Remembering Dr Subodh Nundloll

Obituary

There are individuals whose steadfastness in life provides profound comfort. I felt this strongly with my father, Dr Subodhananda Vyas Nundloll, who died on August 8, 2025, at the age of 75. He was an Anaesthetist who made significant contributions to the public health services of Mauritius.

He was born the eldest of four children in 1949, to Parbati Kumari Nundloll (née Davay) and Bharadwaja Nundloll, a Senior Agricultural Superintendent at the Ministry of Agriculture. Academic success appeared to come quite easily to him, it seems, as he skipped two years of primary schooling at St Julien d’Hotman Government School before pursuing his secondary education at the Royal College of Curepipe. He later trained in medicine at the University of Bombay, India (MBBS, 1970-1976).

In 1985, he specialised in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care at the University of Bordeaux, France, on a scholarship from the French Government. It is through this specialisation that he came to develop a genuine passion for his career, which he would pursue till the age of 74. Ironically, his first encounter with anaesthesia had been at the age of 11, for a surgical procedure, where a General Practitioner had used chloroform for a tonsillectomy. Though common practice at the time, chloroform for such a procedure was, in fact, fraught with risks.

With a profound sense of duty towards Mauritius, my father harboured the deep conviction that one needed to contribute to our country’s growth, bring best practices home, and foster a culture of quality. It is with this conviction that he coordinated efforts locally and internationally for the setup of the Prehospital Emergency Medical Services, also known as the SAMU — the “Service d’Aide Médicale d’Urgence,” with the assistance of the University of Bordeaux, the SAMU of Reunion Island, and the French Government. My father was also a part of the team which trained the emergency medical and paramedical personnel — 25 doctors and 35 nurses.

Prior to the successful inauguration of the SAMU at Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital in Rose Belle in 1997, and upon the recommendation of Prof Philippe Erny of the University of Bordeaux, my father was appointed Director of the SAMU services. The SAMU was successfully launched across the whole island and offered assistance to many patients in distress.

Together with Dr Madho Jingree and Dr. Abdool Jackaria, he founded the Association of Anaesthetists of Mauritius. Their shared dedication and leadership laid the foundation of the association. With the help of a very active and dedicated team of colleagues, they organised the first yearly conferences in collaboration with the World Federation of Anaesthesiologists. Such enthusiasm in nurturing the association stemmed from a sincere intention of helping anaesthetists to remain abreast of industry trends. My father served as Secretary of the association for many years, briefly as President, and was until recently an active member.

Other than his dedication to the field of medicine, my father was well cultured. He was convinced that you had to embrace every opportunity of life with curiosity. It is with this openness to life’s opportunities that he pursued his hobbies. One of them was photography, which he started as a teenager. His eagerness and seriousness in his undertaking led him to assist his siblings and uncles in developing photo negatives in a darkroom set up in the family home in St Julien d’Hotman. Many family portraits were patiently and skillfully developed. Later, in our home in Quatre Bornes, a huge cupboard remained packed with photo negatives and cameras — Canon and Mamiya — for amateurs as well as for professionals.

We also remember his eclectic taste in music. His playlist featured Simon & Garfunkel, Atif Aslam, Anup Jalota, tabla player Zakir Hussain, Vaya Con Dios, and Gilbert Bécaud, to name just a few. In his younger days, he was keen about tennis, rarely missing the weekly Wednesday sessions at the Triveni Club. He was also keen about sketching and watercolours (aquarelles), which he encouraged my sisters and me to pursue in our free time. It is also with this openness to life that he spurred my sisters and myself to pursue careers different from his, in engineering and architecture.

My father never failed to acknowledge the infallible support of my mother, Sunita Kumari (née Pulton), with whom he shared his life with great affection and complicity. They had married after a long-distance relationship, at a time when letters arrived fortnightly, while my mother studied for her degree in the UK.

Although my father achieved success in his career, his life had not been without its share of hardship. Yet amidst life’s tribulations, he had remained steady and content. While not deeply religious, he was gentle and caring to us. He was a good father and a good man. He consistently helped those in need and offered medical advice and support to neighbours, relatives, and friends alike. When he passed, many in the neighbourhood came to pay their respects and related how he had always been there to offer support.

He will be dearly missed — in particular by my mother Sunita, his siblings Seshadhur, Pradeep, Nivedita, my two sisters — Sapna and Deepa, and me. For the numerous messages of love and sympathy that we received during and after the funeral, we would like to convey our deepest thanks.

Farewell, dear Papa.
Reshmi Nundloll

Mauritius Times ePaper Friday 31 October 2025