The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

HEALTH

Check lifestyle diseases: Walia
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 10
Delhi Health Minister A K Walia stressed the need for preventing lifestyle disease among people by increasing awareness about them.

Inaugurating ‘The Apollo Clinic’ established by the Apollo Health and Lifestyle Limited in Pitampura on Friday, Dr Walia hoped that the clinic would be instrumental in promoting preventive healthcare among the people of Delhi.

He said that the clinic, which is the second among a chain of 10 such clinics to be opened in the city, would take quality healthcare to the people and increase awareness among them. The first clinic is operational in Janak Puri.

Speaking on the occasion, AHLL CEO Ratan Jalan said the idea of The Apollo Clinic was born out of the realisation that India needed a strong primary health care backbone to ensure healthier population.

He said that AHLL, a 100 per cent subsidiary of the Apollo Hospitals Group, was planning to establish 35 such clinics across the Indian subcontinent by December 2002.

“Today 60 per cent Indians suffer form easily preventable diseases that can be cured, subject to their timely detection and diagnosis. With the comprehensive range of world-class services that the clinic offers, coupled with reliability and competitive pricing, we are confident that it will serve as every family’s preferred day-to-day healthcare destination.”

He said that the Apollo Clinic promised “complete healthcare for your family with a difference” and so in addition to consultation services with leading specialists, patients could avail themselves of its comprehensive diagnostic facilities, a range of specially designed preventive health checks. To increase awareness on the subject of preventive healthcare, talks would be organised by leading experts, road shows and awareness programmes for children would be held.

BODY & MIND
This trust hopes to curb trade in organs
Tripti Nath

Super surgery on Discovery Channel.

HOPE (Human Organ Procurement and Education) Trust, a two-year-old organisation, founded by well-known lawyer Rani Jethmalani, is organising a panel discussion on 'Organ Donation - Awareness, Problems and Pitfalls' at IIC annexe lecture hall on Sunday afternoon. Dr S. P. Aggarwal, Director General Health Services, Renuka Choudary, Congress MP, Rani Jethmalani, Supreme Court advocate, social activist and a liver recipient, Dr Samiran Nundy, Gastrointestinal Surgeon at Ganga Ram Hospital, Dr V.S. Mehta, Head of Neurosurgery at AIIMS and Tanuja Joshi, Director of Venu Eye Centre are participating in the discussion.

Dr Samiran Nundy, a member of the committee, set up by the government to draft the bill which led to the Human Organ Transplantation Act, 1994, says that the discussion is very relevant as many doctors do not know about brain death.

He says that the main purpose of enacting the legislation was to curb trading in human organs and to recognise brain death as a form of death. Dr Nundy says that two areas where implementation has not been very satisfactory is in cadaver organ donation and functioning of authorisation committees set up to screen offers for live donation from those who are not first degree relatives.

"For commercial gains, people are bribing members of authorisation committees in various States and Union Territories to prove that they are emotionally related. There are very few cadaver organ donations. Two lakh people in India die of liver failure every year. In the last four years, Chennai has maintained the best record of cadaver organ donations,'' Dr Nundy says.

The panel discussion will be moderated by Dr A. S. Soin, Transplant Surgeon, at Ganga Ram Hospital and paediatrician and liver specialist at Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, Dr Anupam Sibal.

A film on organ donation 'To be or not to be' will also be screened at the function.

Delhi Health Minister, Dr A. K. Walia is the Chief Guest, will also launch the Trust newsletter `Vital Spark' on the occasion. Members of the Hope Trust are Dr M. R. Rajasekar, liver transplant surgeon at Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, Delhi, Dr A. S. Soin, Transplant Surgeon from Ganga Ram Hospital, Rajmohini Takkar, a social activist, Sushma Malik, a Delhi-based schoolteacher and Isher Judge Ahluwalia, an economist.

GUTKA-FREE ZONE

Marching ahead of demarcations of smoking and non-smoking zones in public places, the Delhi Medical Association, the State apex medical body, has declared DMA House in Daryaganj a ‘Gutka free zone’s .

The gesture is a direct endorsement of state-initiated bans on Gutka in various parts of the country. The DMA President, Dr S.C.L Gupta says that they want to focus on getting Gutka banned in Delhi and simultaneously building public opinion and pressure on ousting other tobacco based products in a phased manner. "As part of our anti-Gutka campaign, we have made the DMA House a gutka free zone. We appeal to other private and public organisations to support us by introducing similar norms on restricting gutka consumption.''

The DMA has pointed out that eight lakh persons die in India every year due to tobacco related diseases and about four million worldwide. The DMA President is of the view that a strong public opinion favour the ban is needed. ``Every ten seconds, one Indian dies due to tobacco menace.

Delhi being the national Capital has a far-reaching impact on State-level policy making, especially in smaller states. A ban in Delhi is expected to be emulated in all parts of the country,'' Dr Gupta says.

STRESS TEST SYSTEM

BPL Healthcare Business Group (HCBG), manufacturers of healthcare and homecare diagnostic equipment, has embarked on expansion of the diagnostic system division by introducing the Stress Test System, a treadmill used to diagnose the functioning of the heart under stress level.

The system caters to diagnostic centres besides general and cardiac care hospitals. Priced at Rs 3,00,000, the stress test system is electrically operated and is equipped with state-of-the art equipment, which is at par with internationally designed treadmills. It has windows based stress test software, which enables the user to get immediate reports of pre and post test results. The system has computer hardware. The software is computable with any P III or higher system configuration.

According to Brigadier Anil Bhat, Chief Operating Officer, HCBG, the stress test system has been developed indigenously.

“This enables us for giving the Indian market a system, which is equipped with all the latest technology at a reasonable price,”' he said.

ENERGY DRINK

UB Products has recently launched `FIRE', a health and energy drink, manufactured by UB Beverages. Launched in India and overseas, FIRE has all the ingredients of an aerated drink. It contains Ginseng and Guarana, which increase energy and stamina. The company claims that FIRE regulates appetite, fights stress and is a good rejuvenating tonic. A 250 ml pack is available for Rs 20 in Delhi and Rs 22 in other cities.

SUPER SURGERY

Discovery Channel showcased on Saturday the premiere of a groundbreaking medical series, Super Surgery, which gives viewers the experience of the dramatic real-life stories of infants and adults pursuing their final hope for a cure.

According to Deepak Shourie, Managing Director, Discovery Communications India, "Super Surgery will make the viewers feel as if they are part of the surgical team as cameras capture intricate surgical procedures such as employing robotics to perform complicated surgical operations and to repair rate medical disorders untreatable by conventional means. This technology was first developed for the NASA space missions."

Each episode of super surgery will feature recently performed operations from different hospitals around the world. Mr Shourie says that robotic surgery uses small probes with multi-purpose tools inserted through minute incisions in the body and guided by the surgeons using controls similar to those on a gaming console.

In robotic surgery, viewers follow the progress of patients who have undergone heart and kidney surgery.

The super surgery episode on August 17 and August 24 will feature pre-natal surgery and sight restoration. Other health programmes on Discovery Channel are Human Body and Body Chemistry, Living Pulse, In search of a miracle, Body Challenge and Fitness Fantasy, Beating Time, Wedding Story, Love Hurts and Science of Beauty.

These shows cover physical, mental, psychological and emotional aspects of well-being.

SPORTS

‘I am not playing for name or fame’
A. Gulati

Rohtak, August 10
“The little marble balls (kanche) which I used to play in front of my house in the days of my childhood helped me a lot while targeting and hitting the opponent’s goalpost at Manchester.” This was stated by the ‘golden girl’ Mamta Kharab, whose heroics brought Indian eves’ the hockey crown in the recently concluded 17th edition of Commonwealth games held in Manchester. Mamta was talking to the NCR Tribune at her residence immediately on her arrival here today.

She described the two goals scored by her in the final of Commonwealth games as the ‘best goals’ of her career so far. She claimed that their title triumph was not a fluke. “After winning the semi final against New Zealand we entered the fray to clinch gold. We had discussed a strategy to beat the opponents. As European teams play very fast in the first ten minutes so we planned to restrict them for this duration and we adopted to play attacking hockey as the time progressed”, said Mamta. However, she conceded that when the Indian eves left India for the Commonwealth games they did think of a medal and not the gold medal.

Visibly happy Mamta gave bulk of the credit of her success to her elder sisters, who also played hockey at national level. “Had they not played hockey my turn to hold a hockey stick would have never come,” said Mamta. When asked about the conditions at Manchester during the all-important final, Mamta said “Most of the crowd supported England as we were playing at opponents’ venue.

Besides few Indian families, a few Pakistani families extended their support to us.” She expressed happiness on the recognition being given to Olympic sports in India after India’s glorious performance in Commonwealth games. She also expressed satisfaction on her sudden burst to fame but hastened to add “ Naam aur Sohrat to theek hai magar paise ke liye naheen khelte hain ham, Hindustan ke liye khelte hain, medal ke liye khelte hain game spirit hai ek alag se, aur ooncha jaane ke ham soch rahe hain (Name and fame are good but we play for India, medal and spirit of the sport and I wish to rise to the heights) “. She was referring to an Olympic medal.

Earlier, in the afternoon today, Mamta reached her hometown in a train from Mumbai. This was her first maiden visit to the city after she emerged the most prolific scorer in the final of women hockey in Manchester. Her sister Sushma, also a hockey player, accompanied her. The atmosphere at her house was that of ecstasy. The house was crowded with family members, well-wishers, family friends and officials of the Haryana sports department. The District administration is organising a function to honour Mamta this evening.

CRPF honours C’wealth Games medal winners
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, August 10
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Saturday honoured sportspersons from the Force, who won medals in the just-concluded 17th Commonwealth Games at Manchester.

CRPF sportspersons won eight gold, seven silver and four bronze medals to tote up a staggering haul of 19 medals, to account for one fourth of the medals claimed by India at Manchester. The weightlifters accounted for the bulk of the medals. N Kunjarani Devi and Sanamacha Chanu claimed three golds each in the 48kg and 53kg category respectively.

Pratima Kumari won two gold and one silver medal in the 63kg category and Neelam Laxmi secured three silver medals in the 69kg category. Another CRPF lifter, Prasumita Mangaraj, captured two silver and one bronze medal in the 63kg while Sunaina Anand grabbed three bronze medals in the 58kg category. Judoka Akram Shaha bagged a silver medal.

CRPF director-general Dr Trinath Mishra complemented the CRPF sportspersons for their achievements. He said the day will not be far off when CRPF boys and girls would dominate Indian sports in the international sports fora in a much bigger way.

“You are the pride of the force and the country as well”, Dr Mishra said. The heads of Central Paramilitary Forces and senior officers of the Sports Ministry and the Sports Authority of India also attended the simple, yet elegant, felicitation function. Dr Mishra also announced out of turn promotion for a couple of women sportspersons.

However, Kunjarani Devi was sore that she was not given neither any cash award nor any promotion for her achievements.

CRPF has a tradition of producing top class sportspersons, and the past veterans include legendary figures like Olympian hurdler Gurbachan Singh Randhawa, long distance runner Hari Singh, swimming champion Khazan Singh, R S Bal and now the likes of Kunjarani Devi, Sanamacha Chanu, Neelam Laxmi etc.

Delhi Customs edge past AIIMS
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, August 10
Delhi Customs edged past All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) 4-2 in a round-robin league match of the A Division Delhi Soccer Association Institutional Championship at the Ambedkar Stadium in the Capital.

Customs, who led by a goal at half time, scored by inside-left Shanker in the 12th minute, conceded the lead on resumption when Arun pulled off the equaliser.

But Customs regained the lead quickly when outside left Mohd Khaliq made it 2-1 while substitute Manoj Newa enhanced the tally to 3-1.

Dr Shakti reduced the margin for AIIMS 2-3, but Shanker struck again to make it 4-2. This was Customs’ first match, while AIIMS have not yet logged any point even after two matches.

In another senior division match, Food Corporation of India (FCI), Headquarters hit back to hold Zakir Hussain College 2-2.

Zakir Hussain College forged ahead in the sixth minute through Surinder Mann, and Mann himself made it 2-0 in the 55th minute. But FCI combined well to fight back, and got even when Sushil Kumar struck two quick goals in the 65th and 68th minutes to draw level (2-2).

There will be no match on Sunday. On Monday, Delhi Administration will take on Railway Board while Delhi Audit will clash against Central Secretariat.