Readers' Forum
Pioneer of oral health
Dr Kaikhashru Dorabji Jila (1893-1960), a dentist from Navsari, was the pioneer of oral health care in India. A firm believer in the dictum that prevention is better than cure, he wrote and published for free distribution 58 booklets in Gujarati on care of the teeth. A special postal cover was released in his honor on December 1, 2018 by the Post Master General, Ahmedabad, nearly 60 years after his death. I have gleaned this information from an article in the Jam-e-Jamshed of July 14, 2019 which I translated into English from the original Gujarati.
It is due to the efforts of the Indian Dental Association (IDA) Gujarat State Branch, that the title "Pioneer of Oral Health” was bestowed on Jila and hereafter August 1 will be commemorated by the IDA in his memory. Earlier, a postal stamp and picture postcard on Jila had been released by Dr Ashok Dhoble, national honorary secretary, IDA.
Jila suffered from dental disease in childhood and had come in contact with dentists. He tried to learn more about dental problems but found that there was no published literature available on the subject in Gujarati. He met Dr Hormasji Manek of Bombay who ran a charitable dispensary in Navsari and worked with him. Soon Jila began to write articles in Gujarati on dental diseases which were published in the Parsi Press. Jila also came in contact with leading dentists of Bombay such as Drs J. J. Modi and S. M. Desai.
Noticing his interest, knowledge and enthusiasm, Dr R. Ahmed of Calcutta, who is considered to be the father of dentistry in India, invited Jila to enroll in a dental college, now known as the Dr R. Ahmed Dental College. During his studies in Calcutta, Jila continued to write on dental science in newspapers and in 1921 published his first booklet, Our teeth, their formation and care. He published booklets every year thereafter. In 1933 he obtained his degree as a dentist and served as an honorary dental surgeon at Calcutta’s Howrah General Hospital before starting his own dental clinic in Navsari.
In 1948 a vulcanized rubber dentures oven exploded, but he was spared from a potentially fatal accident.
Jila decided to write 52 booklets (about 20 milk teeth and 32 permanent teeth), but during his lifetime he published 58 booklets in all. Despite financial difficulties he persisted, raising funds from Parsi donors. His work received notice in several Gujarati newspapers, The Times of India and the Journal of the Dental Association. He made his books interesting and informative, with poems, dramas, humorous quotes, dreams and knowledge of teeth.
Almost all his booklets are in the collection of the Dr Chandarana Dental Museum. Fifty-two of his published works in Gujarati are available at the First Dastoor Meherjirana Library in Navsari.
MARZBAN GIARA
Navsari
marzbang@gmail.com
It is due to the efforts of the Indian Dental Association (IDA) Gujarat State Branch, that the title "Pioneer of Oral Health” was bestowed on Jila and hereafter August 1 will be commemorated by the IDA in his memory. Earlier, a postal stamp and picture postcard on Jila had been released by Dr Ashok Dhoble, national honorary secretary, IDA. Jila suffered from dental disease in childhood and had come in contact with dentists. He tried to learn more about dental problems but found that there was no published literature available on the subject in Gujarati. He met Dr Hormasji Manek of Bombay who ran a charitable dispensary in Navsari and worked with him. Soon Jila began to write articles in Gujarati on dental diseases which were published in the Parsi Press. Jila also came in contact with leading dentists of Bombay such as Drs J. J. Modi and S. M. Desai.
Noticing his interest, knowledge and enthusiasm, Dr R. Ahmed of Calcutta, who is considered to be the father of dentistry in India, invited Jila to enroll in a dental college, now known as the Dr R. Ahmed Dental College. During his studies in Calcutta, Jila continued to write on dental science in newspapers and in 1921 published his first booklet, Our teeth, their formation and care. He published booklets every year thereafter. In 1933 he obtained his degree as a dentist and served as an honorary dental surgeon at Calcutta’s Howrah General Hospital before starting his own dental clinic in Navsari.
In 1948 a vulcanized rubber dentures oven exploded, but he was spared from a potentially fatal accident.
Jila decided to write 52 booklets (about 20 milk teeth and 32 permanent teeth), but during his lifetime he published 58 booklets in all. Despite financial difficulties he persisted, raising funds from Parsi donors. His work received notice in several Gujarati newspapers, The Times of India and the Journal of the Dental Association. He made his books interesting and informative, with poems, dramas, humorous quotes, dreams and knowledge of teeth.
Almost all his booklets are in the collection of the Dr Chandarana Dental Museum. Fifty-two of his published works in Gujarati are available at the First Dastoor Meherjirana Library in Navsari.
MARZBAN GIARA
Navsari
marzbang@gmail.com
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