The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

EDUCATION

Technical varsity signs MoU for IT courses
From Our Correspondent

LUDHIANA, Dec 19 — One year post-graduate diploma courses in e-commerce, mobile commerce, web engineering and medical transcription, certified by Punjab Technical University, will begin in the city soon. A memorandum of understanding was signed by two local companies, King Infotech Software Solutions (KISS) and Offshore Informatique Limited (OIL) with the university this evening.

While the medical transcription course will be handled by OIL, the other IT courses will be conducted by KISS. According to the programme, faculty, space and infrastructure will be provided by the companies. The syllabus will be designed by the two companies and approved by the university. The university will set the papers and also conduct examinations in two semesters.

Mr Satvinder Singh, Director, KISS, said the course will be beneficial to graduates and even post-garduates who want to boost their IT skills. He said the courses would be of an advance nature and will also help the students avail high-profile jobs in India as well as abroad.

Talking to Ludhiana Tribune about the project, Mr Paramjit S. Juneja, Director, OIL, said the complete plan would be chalked out in a few days.

Dr H.S. Gurm, Vice-Chancellor of the university, said that the project was finalised yesterday following a meeting of an eight-member committee of computer experts which included Mr Jagmohan Singh, Professor in the department of Computer Sciences and Electrical Engineering, Punjab Agricultural University, Mr Amarjit Singh Grewal, Director Out Reach, PTU, Mr M.S. Sukhija, Director, Planning and Adminstration, PTU, Mr Surjit Singh, Managing Director, Punjab Micro Circuit Research Laboratory, Ludhiana, Mr Harjit Singh, Rohini Microsystems, SAS Nagar, and Mr S.B. Joshi, retired account officer, and Dr Kamal Gupta of the Karan Hospital. Dr Gurm said a similar project would also be undertaken in collaboration with two private firms in Jalandhar.

Talking about the programme, Mr Jagmohan Singh, member of the committee, said that it was a timely step taken to shift the man-power engaged in the agricultural sector to the more in-demand IT field. He said some of the courses may also be conducted online. Even the tests would be conducted on the Net.

Mr Amarjit S. Grewal informed that committees for planning distance education via various media, including the Internet and occupational education will also be constituted soon. Through occupational education, value-added courses including fashion designing would be imparted and centres would be opened up at several cities of Punjab.

HEALTH

Hope for childless couples
By Shivani Bhakoo

LUDHIANA, Dec 19 — In the country like India whose population is about 100 crore, there are couples who are unable to bear a child. It is estimated that 20 per cent of spouses experience difficulty in conceiving and a major portion of them need proper assistance in managing their fertility.

A study conducted by Dr Mrs Suman Puri, Senior Consultant, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Guru Teg Bahadur Charitable Hospital, says that intra-uterine insemination (IUI) is one of a simpler and cheaper approach for the treatment of infertility.

There are various causes of infertility, which might be present either in male or female partner or in both. Dr Puri says that the panic which arises in the couples in the initial months after marriage due to inability to conceive is uncalled for and needs proper counselling. Treatment of infertility needs a systematic approach in the evaluation of the cause and appropriate management should be carried out.

The study stresses that simple investigations, analysis of seminal fluid and an explanation of the ‘fertile period’ can help up to 50 per cent infertile couples. A detailed examination of the woman which includes hormonal assays, ovulation studies and a diagnostic laparoscopy is needed as a first step.

There are various methods of assisted reproduction which are available like IVF, ICSI, GIFT, ZIFT and TET. All these techniques are invasive, cumbersome, expensive and require complex laboratories and highly trained personal.

According to the study, the IUI is the least invasive method that is used as a first line of treatment in assisted conception. It is technically simple and can be performed outside assisted conception units. The study shows although it is not the solution to every infertility problem, but it can significantly improve the chance of conception.

The IUI is an artificial technique of insemination in which the seminal fluid is collected from the man. The fluid is prepared by one of the various techniques available so that a specimen of large number of morphologically normal motile spermatozoa, which is free of leukocyte and bacteria, can be obtained. The most important step to achieve pregnancy is to achieve fertilisation of the egg with the sperm. The sperms are directly put inside the uterine cavity close to the internal opening of fallopian tubes at the time of ovulation for fertilisation.

Dr Puri says that accurate diagnosis of ovulation is essential for a successful insemination. The development of follicle is closely observed by ultrasound scans and can be estimated by either blood or urinary ovulation tests or an injection can be given to trigger ovulation.