HEALTH

Health dept to get tough with scan centres
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, July 20
Making it clear that it means business and intends to come down heavily upon ultrasound scan centres in the district flouting the rules, the health administration has asked the defaulting scan centres to apply for renewal of their registration failing which strict action would be taken against them.

Presiding over a meeting of PNDT district advisory committee here yesterday, the Civil Surgeon, Dr Sat Pal Sharma, informed that during past fortnight, four ultrasound scan centres were sealed for a period of two weeks for failure to maintain complete record as provided under the PNDT Act.

He said the department had chalked out an elaborate programme to conduct intensive inspection of the scan centres in the district during the next few days to ensure that provisions of the PNDT Act were scrupulously followed and the menace of female foeticide was checked effectively .

According to Dr Sharma, out of the 243 scan centres in the district, 108 had submitted their applications for renewal of the registration and barring one centre, which had applied after the last date, the registration of all others was renewed for a further period of five years.

Cosmetic surgery no longer luxury: expert
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, July 20
"Cosmetic surgery has taken great strides in India. With the availability of trained cosmetic surgeons and affordable cost, it is no longer the domain of the rich and the famous."

These observations were made by Dr Kamal Murdia, noted cosmetic surgeon and Director, Advanced Cosmetic Surgery Foundation, Mumbai, while making an audiovisual presentation on cosmetic surgery and hi-tech personality techniques during a press conference at AIMC Bassi Hospital here today.

He explained that the cosmetic surgery could not totally change one person to another. For example, Michael Jackson has had some 36 surgeries, but he was still very much the same. Similarly, Prince Charles had undergone cosmetic surgery for bat ears when he was five years old. Among other celebrities, Dev Anand and Elizabeth Taylor have had repeated face lifts.

He said unlike in the past, the cosmetic surgery was no longer a luxury, available only to the affluent people, film stars and celebrities.