"The struggle for health is a struggle for a more caring world": Amit Sengupta

Activists, PHM members, comrades and friends from around the world remember the life, work, activism, struggle and influence of Dr. Amit Sengupta in the struggle for the right to health and a more equitable world and whose legacy lives on and remains with us even after his death five years ago.

Amit was a founding member of PHM at its creation in 2000 in Savar, Bangladesh, in the first People’s Health Assembly.

Trained as a medical doctor, Amit dedicated his life to the struggle for universal access to health, and worked on issues related to public health, pharmaceuticals policy and intellectual property rights. He led several research projects in the area of public health and medicines policy, and was associated with several civil society platforms and networks, including the All India People’s Science Network. He was the Associate Global Coordinator of People’s Health Movement (PHM) and coordinated the editorial group of the Global Health Watch and the WHO Watch. He was the Co Convenor of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan (JSA), the Indian Chapter of PHM. He wrote regularly for journals and newspapers across India and the world.

Amit played a key role in the Fourth People’s Health Assembly in Dhaka (PHA4) where more than 1400 people from around 73 countries came together to share their struggles and plan for coordinated action for health and social justice.

Amit brought his enormous political, organizational and leadership capacity to PHM. We were privileged to have him as a co-traveller. He leaves us a wonderful legacy: the magic of his life, his intelligence, warmth, honesty, joy, wry humor and his steadfast commitment to a just and equitable world.