I am writing to express my deep sorrow over the passing of Dr P V Cheriyan and wish to pay tribute to a veteran physician and a pillar of our community whose selfless service in the kingdom spanned more than 40 years.
His clinical expertise was so deeply trusted by expat and Bahraini doctors that he served on the medical team of the late former Prime Minister HRH Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, and co-ordinated medical care for major international events like the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix.
After his wife’s demise during Covid in 2020, he chose to live alone in Bahrain and remained a fiercely compassionate, deeply content and happy individual who advocated constantly for the needy and downtrodden of all communities.
While his days were defined by rigorous medical duties, his weekends and evenings were entirely dedicated to community welfare, filling his personal time with relentless social activities. He made friends across all societies.
I remember a lifesaving incident where he arranged an immediate emergency complex eye surgery for a desperate 60-year-old relative of my office colleague, at SMC. Another 30-minute delay would have left him permanently blind.
During my tenure as the COO of an insurance company, I experienced his community-driven vision first-hand as his critical feedback led us to develop a low-cost two-year health insurance product which acted as a vital health insurance surety for visas. It addressed a major gap for vulnerable categories across all nationalities, specifically senior citizens and families in distress and dependent daughters above the age of 25 to get a residency in Bahrain. His invaluable guidance on this initiative fundamentally transformed our firm into a primary community service provider in the kingdom.
His humanitarian legacy includes several other landmark achievements:
Cancer Care Trust: A founding member since 2015, he tirelessly supported local cancer patients.
Specialist visits: He regularly arranged visits of leading oncologists from India to provide critical cancer diagnoses to local patients free of cost.
Life-saving education: He organised regular CPR and first-aid training sessions to empower ordinary residents.
Community leadership: He served two impactful terms as the chairman of The Indian School, Bahrain and remained a vital pillar of various clubs and societies.
Dr Cheriyan loved this island, called it his true home and frequently expressed his profound wish to breathe his last on its shores.
On behalf of the thousands of lives he touched, I extend heartfelt condolences to his children, Nitesh, Nitin, Nideep and Nikita, and to his extended family in Bahrain and India.
May his noble soul rest in eternal peace.
Vineet Kumar
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