Shimla: Himachal resident Dr D.S. Rana, chairman of department of nephrology at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi, has been awarded the Padmashri for his distinguished services in the field of medicine in the country and rural areas of Himachal Pradesh. Dr Rana is among the pioneers to establish nephrology and kidney transplant services in India. He even contributed a telemedicine centre and a hospital to his native village, Dasmal, in Hamipur district. The hospital, Parvati Education and Health Society, which is named after his mother, is connected with over 300 expert doctors at the Ganga Ram Hospital who offer free medical advice to patients in the small village of Hamirpur. Acknowledging Dr Rana