‘Lift stopped with a jolt… It was frightening,’ says Dr Hardikar who was with Ajit Pawar during mishap

The founder and director of Pune’s Hardikar Orthopaedic Hospital was at the inaugural event of Swarn Multispecialty Hospital at Wakad when the mishap occurred. “There was a power outage and the elevator stopped with such a jolt that it could have led to back pain,” he said. Pawar and Dr Hardikar were accompanied by Dr Uday Pote, founder of the hospital and a former student of Dr Hardikar.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Dr Hardikar said the power outage was brief but they were all worried whether the lift would climb up or go down. Dr Pote also told The Indian Express that there was a bit of panic due to the brief power failure. “However, we all stepped out of the lift on the first floor and walked down to the ground floor for the function,” he added.

When contacted, Dr Madan Hardikar, chief orthopaedic surgeon at Hardikar hospital and Dr Sharad Hardikar’s son, said the incident led to a bit of anxiety among family members. “Since the lift had stopped with a jolt there was a concern, especially as my father is 90 and has an age-related osteoporotic spine. We gave him muscle relaxants and he is doing fine,” he said.

Speaking about the incident at an event in Baramati on Sunday, Pawar said the lift came down suddenly from the fourth floor with a thud. “I am not lying, but today it would have been a Shraddhanjali event… He (pointing to someone on the stage) was with me, he almost broke open the lift and pulled me out. Then we helped Dr Hardikar out. He received minor injuries,” Pawar shared.

Dr Sharad Hardikar, who set up his hospital 55 years ago, was back in his consulting room on Monday morning. Sharing the secret to his fitness, the senior orthopaedic surgeon who is now writing his autobiography, said, “It is a combination of three things – keep yourself occupied with work that you are interested in, exercise to keep fit and have a peaceful mind.”