Pathologist’s Truth: Save Regularly, Find A Purpose

Dr Kuldeep Singh’s morning starts much before the scenic city of Rajouri stirs awake. Singh, a 68-year-old retired pathologist, wakes up at 6:30 every morning to prepare for his daily 50-kilometre commute to teach at a private medical college in Katra, where he started his second innings in 2024 as the Dean of Academics. For him, this post-retirement chapter is not a frantic chase for survival, but a deliberate choice to utilise his time.

Singh retired in 2021 as the principal of a government medical college in Rajouri, Jammu, after nearly four decades of service. Being a nature lover, he spent many Sundays tending to the garden he has cultivated at his home. Like most others, he imagined retirement as “sitting in my lawn, reading the newspaper, and sipping green tea”.

But that was not to be, because he missed having a sense of purpose. He says: “I was at home for 2-3 years and spent my time mostly in keeping my documents updated, organising the paperwork, and doing household chores. Then, I felt, I could still give something to society. I am a doctor by profession, but I was not practising, so I could only teach.”

So, when an opportunity to serve as the director of a new medical college in Katra came, he grabbed it and found the sense of purpose he was looking for. Whether it’s teaching in a classroom, sharing life lessons during the commute to Katra with the junior faculty, or staying connected with family and friends on Sundays, he ensures that his decades of expertise are put to good use.

Early Financial Lessons

His journey through medical school was not just about mastering pathology; it was also about learning the hard facts of life and preparing for a financially secure future.

A tin piggy bank, preserved over six decades through several transfers, symbolises how he prioritised savings from an early age. When he was in medical college, he would see fellow students arriving in cars donning smart blazers. “I wanted to own a blazer too, but I had no money,” he says, adding that he couldn’t afford a blazer in college and travelled by bus.

“Such experiences and peer pressure can inhibit students. But I didn’t let it become a source of inferiority, rather a driving force for me to build a secure future.”

Financial Acumen

His savings and investing history quite aptly represent his verve to learn and grow with changing times and needs. He started investing in the mid-1980s, starting with a recurring deposit (RD) of Rs 100 per month. “That helped me fund my wedding when it grew to Rs 8,000.”

Over his service period, he kept investing in the General Provident Fund (GPF), which was mandatory for government employees at the time, and other small savings schemes. But he didn’t shy away from experimenting with a new product, UTI 64, the flagship mutual fund scheme launched by the Unit Trust of India (UTI) in 1964. “UTI-64 was very popular. When I had children, I invested in the UTI Children Fund,” he says.

Later, at around 55 years of age, he invested in the National Pension System (NPS) under the all-citizen model, primarily to save tax. He also continued investing in mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

He explains that he never took advice directly from professionals. “I read magazines, watched news and discussed my finances with family and friends. This is how things usually go for a middle-class salaried person.”

While the rest worked for him, he did fell prey to insurance mis-selling and bought a money-back policy which he didn’t find useful. He says: “The agents never showed us the term plans. They were only talking about money-back. And people like us used to fall prey to that.” At the time, the market was flooded with traditional insurance policies and term plans were unheard of.

He took to health insurance earlier than a lot of his peers, though he believes he should have bought it sooner. “The state government didn’t provide health insurance at that time, so I bought a plan around 1995 that covered my wife, two children, and myself,” he says. Both his children are now married and the policy only includes the couple now.

He doesn’t mind paying a premium of Rs 70,000 per year, for a Rs 22 lakh cover, which has been bumped up from Rs 15 lakh due to accumulation of no-claim bonuses. “The state started giving a medical allowance of Rs 300 per month around 2000. On hospitalisation, the government would reimburse the amount but only after following a tedious procedure involving lots of formalities and filling out long forms. That too was not available for all the employees.”

Since 2020, all residents of Jammu and Kashmir are covered for Rs 5 lakh under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) SEHAT scheme.

His financial skills are not limited to investing in financial instruments only. He is equally mindful of household expenditures. Concerned by the monthly electricity bill that ranged from Rs 5,000-6,000 per month, he recently got a 10-kilowatt solar panel system installed in his home. That has reduced the monthly bill to around Rs 1,000.

Forward Looking

Unlike many senior citizens, Singh is digital savvy and helps his colleagues and friends navigate apps and other tools. He believes in staying updated.

“Some of my colleagues were not very comfortable with apps, so I showed them how to use them. I helped them instal their bank apps and told them they could complete transactions through the app without needing to go anywhere. That has helped them ease everyday life.”

Even when it comes to retirement planning, he advises starting early. “If you lose a single day, you will lag behind… There is no shortcut to saving money,” says Singh, adding that it’s important to create a contingency fund to handle emergencies.

Finding a purpose changed the course of his life and he advocates that to others as well. “My purpose is mainly to be a good human being and to deliver good things to society. This is how life goes on.” Singh’s life choices prove that retirement is only a pivot, and not the end.

versha@outlookindia.com