M A I N   N E W S

Noor’s heart surgery a success

Schoolchildren pray for Noor Fatima, who underwent a heart surgery in Bangalore, on Tuesday. — PTI photo

Bangalore, July 15
Two-and-a-half-year-old Noor Fatima, the Pakistani girl whose heart ailment has generated emotions across the Indo-Pak divide, today underwent a successful surgery for plugging holes in her heart in a city hospital.

Not wanting to “take any chance”, doctors at the Narayanana Hrudayalaya on the outskirts of the city, decided to perform the surgery this morning, a day ahead of schedule, when she suddenly turned blue, hospital sources said.

“She is stable and has responded well to the surgery. The child is in the ICU and all her vital parameters are working as per expectations,” the sources said after the six-hour surgery that ended at 1 p.m.

Fatima was diagnosed as suffering from Multiple Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD).

The operation was conducted by a three-member team led by paediatric cardiac surgeon Rajesh Sharma, who knew the child’s condition since she was a six-month old baby.

Noor, who had holes in her heart, reached India on Friday by the first bus of the resumed New Delhi-Lahore bus service.

Dr Sharma has been monitoring Noor’s condition long distance through e-mail for some time. He shifted from New Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences two years ago and has since operated on some 55 infants from Pakistan.

Relief was writ large on the faces of Nadeem Sajjad and Tayyaba Nadeem, parents of Noor Fatima.

“We are relieved now”, the couple, who spent a sleepless night yesterday, told PTI, adding “we felt elated and paid obeisance to Allah after doctors came out of the operation theatre to break the news that the surgery was successful.”

With strains of anxiety and tension visible on their faces, Nadeem and Sajjad said they had not had even a drop of water since morning, but “we are relieved now after seeing our child.”

Sajjad said “Dr Rajesh Sharma informed us last night that the surgery would be performed tomorrow morning. And both of us could not sleep. Especially my wife, who was very tensed up since the surgery was a complicated one.”

On how India had received them, Mr Sajjad said: “We are feeling at home even 4000 km away”, adding, that perhaps he would come to India on a thanksgiving trip next year along with their two other children. They were thankful to sisters, mothers and those who had prayed for their daughter, he said.

India and Pakistan should extend their hand of friendship and facilitate peace in South Asia, he said.

Conflict and hostility between India and Pakistan only benefited politicians to seek votes, (Army) generals to seek enhanced defence budgets and pocket commissions, he said. — PTI, IANS