New road is named after much-loved doctor
Family, friends and former patients of a much-loved Wolverhampton doctor turned out as a road was named in his honour.
Dr Chaman Lal, who lived in Penn and ran Bradley Medical Centre in Bilston for more than 20 years, died aged 65 in 2018 following a lengthy battle with cancer.
The caring GP was incredibly popular in the area and described as someone who would go out of his way to do anything he could to help others.
The grandfather was a doctor in and around Wolverhampton for 40 years, and hundreds turned out for his funeral, including city MPs.
A road in the new Bilston Urban Village development has now been named Chaman Lal Gardens in his honour,following a campaign by former patients and people in the area who knew him.
Family members were joined by former patients and local councillors for a special ceremony to mark the naming of the road.
Rishi Chaman Lal Maman, Dr Lal's son, said: "It's a privilege for all the family – it's a real honour and it's something that dad worked hard for, but he would've been the first to say he didn't deserve it.
"But it's an honour the local community have bestowed on him this honour. It's a real privilege. He was definitely a hard worker, a family man who was dedicated to his job and to the community.
"He had been working for the past 30 years but I can't remember him taking a day off [until the later stages of his life]. All the family were there for the unveiling and it was really nice."
Mr Maman, a final year med student, is hoping to follow in his father's footsteps – with one year left until he is qualified to become a doctor.
Wolverhampton Council deputy leader Stephen Simkins added: "Dr Lal was our doctor for years, since I was a teenager. For this community, he really was like a family member. It was such a tragic loss when we lost him to cancer.
"Every time you went in you felt better just for seeing him. Nothing was too big or small for him. It was his conviction. It wasn't about what money he could get, it was about what he could do for you."
Councillor Simkins said the turnout for the event showed the level of feeling towards Dr Lal.
"It was fantastic. It was testament to how people felt about him. There were people from Bilston, Coseley and Bradley and a diverse mix of people there which shows what he meant to people. He was an asset to us."
