AGRA: Doyen of Hindi poetry and Padma Bhushan awardee Gopal Das Neeraj's wish that his body be donated to AMU’s JN Medical College to enable students to learn the intricacies of the God’s greatest creation, will be fulfilled by his family on Saturday.Confirming this, Neeraj’s daughter, Kundanika Sharma said, “My father had given in writing to donate his body to the medical college after his death. We would go to Aligarh on Saturday to fulfil his wish.”A declaration by noted poet Gopal Das Neeraj to donate his body to the AMU 's medical collegeNeeraj's decision has once again proved that he had not only lived as a great human being but died as one too. Neeraj had a short stint as a lyricist in Hindi cinema, but his writings, even after he left Mumbai, have left a mark on millions of poetry lovers.Neeraj’s songs were considered a valuable addition to any Bollywood movie although the death of his favourite music directors, S D Burman and Shanker-Jaikishan, led him to leave Bollywood and return home to Uttar Pradesh where he has a huge fan-following. A large number of audience would wait till late in the night in every mushaira and kavi sammelan just to listen to Neeraj who was always the last to take the stage.Neeraj’s wish that his body be donated to medical college has no match, but the fact that his family is fulfilling his wish, without getting into the myths related to body donation, is commendable. Though many people pledge their bodies but their family’s rarely fulfil their wishes because of superstitions and beliefs attached with it.According to figures given by the Anatomy Department of JN Medical College, nearly 141 persons had got themselves registered for body donation in the past six years, but the hospital has received only 6 cadavers till date. The department actually needs at least 5 bodies per year for students’ training.Head of Anatomy Department of JN Medical College Prof Tariq Zaidi told TOI that Neeraj had filled the donation form on 15 September 2016. He had signed on stamp paper in the presence of witness and his sons. “All arrangements will be made and the body would be embalmed for preservation to be used at the right time,” he said.Before him, noted Hindi critic, Professor K P Singh had also donated his body to JNMC.Expressing his condolences on Neeraj's demise, AMU vice-chancellor professor Tariq Mansoor said that he is deeply saddened by the poet's sudden demise and moved by his noble gesture of donating his body to the university's medical college adding that Neeraj's death has left a void, which will never be filled.

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