Third edition of Vaidya Vishwakosha, encyclopaedia on medicine in Kannada, released in Kalaburagi

The third edition of Vaidya Vishwakosha, an encyclopaedia on medicine in Kannada edited by eminent medical teacher and practitioner Dr. P.S. Shankar and published by Kannada University, Hampi, was released at V.G. Women’s College in Kalaburagi on August 10.

Minister for Medical Education Dr. Sharan Prakash Patil, who released the 875-page volume, described the work as an extraordinary and challenging achievement.

“It is no easy task to produce a comprehensive medical encyclopaedia in a regional language. Dr. Shankar, who commands mastery over both medicine and Kannada, has done it with distinction. This will be an invaluable resource for students from Kannada-medium background to grasp medical concepts in their mother tongue,” Mr. Patil said.

Highlighting that nearly 900 students from Kalyana Karnataka secure medical seats annually, thanks to the region’s Special Status under Article 371(J) of the Constitution, Mr. Patil said the volume would serve as a key academic aid. He lauded Kannada University, Hampi, for taking on a project that, in his view, ought to have been undertaken by the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) that functioned under his department.

The Minister announced that he would issue a circular directing all medical, para-medical, nursing, and pharmacy colleges under his department to purchase and keep copies of the encyclopaedia in their libraries.

Recalling the difficulties faced in compiling the encyclopaedia, Dr. Shankar explained that teaching medicine in Kannada is often deemed impossible due to rapid advances in medical science and technology.

“While teaching the entire subject in Kannada may not be feasible, medical students should at least learn functional Kannada to communicate effectively with patients and understand their problems,” he said.

Kannada University Vice-Chancellor D.V. Paramashivamurthy, who presided over the event, emphasised that the institution’s mission is not only to disseminate knowledge in Kannada, but also to create it.

“Our aim is to absorb knowledge from all regions, cultures, and languages, and present it in simple Kannada. This encyclopaedia is part of that mission. I thank Dr. Shankar for undertaking such a monumental and unprecedented task. No other regional language has such a comprehensive encyclopaedia on medicine,” he said.

Madhav Peraje, Director of Prasaranga, Kannada University, said the encyclopaedia was first published in 1995, followed by the second edition in 2015. Forty-eight scholars contributed to the current volume, he added.

The event was attended by Dr. P.S. Shankar Pratishtana working-president Dr. H. Veerabhadrappa and Dr. P.S. Shankar Pratishtana secretary Narendra Badasheshi, V.G. Women’s College principal Rajendra Konda, along with academicians and scholars.