One of the British-built revetment which had got weakened at the Sozhagan head sluice near Kuthalam in Nagapattinam district. / Photo: A. Muralidharan
Under IAMWARM scheme on an outlay of Rs. 90 crore
A British-built irrigation infrastructure on three major rivers passing through Nagapattinam and Thanjavur districts will be renovated at an estimate of Rs. 90 crore.
The Public Works Department will execute the work under the Irrigated Agriculture Modernisation and Water bodies Restoration and Management (IAMWARM) scheme. The British-built revetments, damaged sluices, regulators and weak banks will be renovated and strengthened so ensure effective management of irrigation supply.
The infrastructure on rivers such as Manjalaru, Veerasozhanaru and Manniyaru will be given a facelift with total strengthening of the revetment. The brick work will all be replaced by concrete structures and the damaged head sluices, regulators and bed dams would be renovated, an official source told The Hindu here on Thursday.
The Manjalaru flowing from Sathanur near Kuttalam accounted for a course of 40 km, with 25 sluices, eight regulators and one bed dam. It had an ayacut of about 50,000 acres. The Manniyaru, with a total course of 60 km from Thanjavur to Nagapattinam, had about 60,000 acres irrigating the fields through 30 sluices, two regulators and one bed dam. The Veerasozhanaru had 50 head sluices, six regulators and eight bed dams. It ran its course for about 50 km.
The source said that the work would facilitate efficient management of water for irrigation. The work would be taken up after the forthcoming monsoon. “As it involves a good part of masonry and civil works, it can be executed only during the non-monsoon season,” the source said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Tiruchirapalli / M. Balaganesin / Nagapattinam – August 02nd, 2016
About two-third of the symptoms leading to gastrointestinal diseases occur in the food pipe and the stomach in the form of heartburn and ulcer. But reading textbooks and following practices pioneered in the West alone cannot help doctors in treating them.
More than 30 videos that demonstrated surgical procedures in managing diseases of the gastrointestinal tract including that of the stomach and food pipe as well as those involving the liver, pancreas, gallbladder and bile duct (hepato-pancreatic biliary) were screened. Experts, who had done the procedures and had mastered the techniques involved in successful management of the diseases later gave tips to more than 200 post-graduates and practising surgeons.
The videos were screened to give an update of the latest techniques involved in some standard as well as complex procedures to treat diseases like hernia and chronic inflammation of the pancreas. It was screened as part of the Global Gastro Update organised by Institute of Gastro Intestinal and Hepato Pancreatic Biliary Sciences of Global Health City.
“The videos focusses on the most important steps critical to the success of the procedures,” said Dr S M Chandramohan, director, department of gastrointestinal surgery, Global Health City.
State health secretary Dr J Radhakrishnan, who earlier inaugurated the event, said while surgeons updating their scientific knowledge will ultimately benefit the public, he urged the experts to work together to make them accessible and affordable.
Assistant professor from Madras Medical College Dr Raj Kumar Rathnaswamy, who attended the sessions, said such an event can help them correct the mistakes that happen in planned surgeries.
“Besides live and lecture demonstrations, viewing such videos and interacting with experts involved in such surgeries can help us learn the recent advancements in the procedures and refine our techniques,” the doctor said.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Chennai / TNN / July 31st, 2016
Students of Zoology Department conducting a bird count./ Photo: Anusha Sundar / The Hindu
Workshops, nature walks, intercollegiate competitions and guest lectures are part of the year-long celebrations. L. KANTHIMATHI reports
As part of its diamond jubilee celebrations, the Department of Zoology at Stella Maris College will invite its former faculty and students from across India and abroad to deliver lectures through video-conferencing. This programme would however continue beyond the diamond jubilee year.
Rita Jayraj, assistant professor and Head of the Department of Zoology, says, “The main objective of this initiative is to be up-to-date with the trends in the field. Two of our former staff members, who are from Australia and the United States, have agreed to be part of this programme.”
The celebrations would include a series of events that would be conducted through the year. There would be workshops on molecular biology, nature walks, involving spotting of butterflies and insects, intercollegiate competitions, guest lectures, release of a book on butterflies and also the release of a souvenir, which consists of a collection of photos and a brief description of birds, insects and spiders.
According to Kalpana Jayaraman, assistant professor, “Our students are never short of enthusiasm when it comes to trying out new things, which encourages us to organise a range of interesting programmes.”
The Department was founded in 1956 under the leadership of late Dr. Eileen Riordan.
In an email communication, Meera Paul, the second Head of the Department, says, “Over the years, the Department has witnessed a steady growth, continually adding new subjects that are allied to zoology. Another achievement of the Department lies in the area of animal welfare. With the support of the World Society for Protection of Animals, the Department has introduced papers on animal welfare. The Department also celebrates Compassion Week and has spearheaded several animal adoption drives in association with the Blue Cross of India. Our students have been involved in the activities of the Sea Turtle Conservation Network and the Crocodile Bank. They have also taken part in the Black Buck census conducted at the Guindy Park. Also, the Department has undertaken soil studies as part of the restoration project at Adyar Poonga.”
In 2005, the Department began to use computer simulations as an alternative to wet labs in the same year.
Another important milestone of the department was achieved in 2013 when the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, accorded Star status to the zoology department. According to the college authorities, SMC is one of the two colleges in Tamil Nadu which received the status in the first phase.
“On an average, close to 1,000 frogs and other fauna are dissected for academic purposes. To put an end to this practice, we adopted computer simulations,” says Rita Jayaraj. At the inauguration of the celebrations, the college principal, Sr. Jasintha Quadras, welcomed the chief guest, Additional Director General of Police Srilakshmi Prasad, who is an alumnae of the Department.
In her address, she said, “The Department has stood the test of time due to the teachers’ dedication and the keen interest they have been taking in spotting talent in students.”
She also advised the students to lead a life ruled by moral values.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Down Town / L Kanthimathi / Chennai – July 16th, 2016
Dsudee and her family use the stove which reduces emissions, uses less fuel and cooks
Chennai:
At the crack of dawn, 14-year-old Dsudee begins an arduous journey to collect firewood. Shivering under her monkey cap and sweater, the Class 9 resident of Khalsa village in Uttarakhand struggles through rocky terrain and uneven paths. She repeats this trip thrice a day, walking nearly 18km in total. Once home, she helps her grandmother make a tall stack of rotis for the family, coughing and battling tears due to the clouds of smoke from the chulha or mud stove. But her difficult lifestyle is slowly changing for the better after ‘clean stoves’ were distributed to houses in her village as part of the Himalayan Clean Cooking Project (HCCP).
Launched by the Chennai Hub of the Global Shapers Community and the Himalayan Environment Trust in 2014, the project seeks to supply clean cooking stoves to remote mountain communities. These stoves combust the same fuels – wood and biomass – more efficiently. “We got the idea when we were stuck in a hailstorm during a trek in Himachal Pradesh. We took shelter in a hut but the smoke was suffocating,” says Varun Gunaseelan, project director.
In an article on the World Health Organisation (WHO) site dated March 2014, an estimated 700 million people in India still rely on solid fuels and traditional cook stoves for domestic cooking. It further states that having an open fire in the kitchen equivalent to burning 400 cigarettes an hour. Women and young children are considered the first victims of smoke-related acute and chronic respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. “According to WHO estimates, in 2012 there were close to 1.7 million premature deaths attributed to household air pollution from cooking in the Southeast Asia region with India shouldering the biggest burden,” it says.
After extensive research and surveys, the HCCP team distributed their first batch of single-burner stoves to all the 55 households in Sidri village in Uttarakhand, last year. “We conducted road shows and live demonstrations by boiling water. On seeing that the water heated much faster, many locals placed orders,” says Varun, adding that the stoves were provided at a discounted price of 1,000.
The village headman, Ram Singh Pawar, said that households continued to use the appliance as it produced ‘less smoke, cooked food faster and used lesser wood.’
For the next phase of the project, the team partnered with Puducherry-based social enterprise, Prakti, to provide double-burner stoves suited for Himalayan families. The stoves accommodate wood, cow dung and agricultural wastes without processing while the steel combustion chambers ensure the fuels combust more completely.
“The stoves produce 80% to 95% less smoke compared to traditional mud stoves and three-stone fires. It also uses 40% to 80% less fuel and reduces deforestation,” says Prakti program officer Mimi Liu, adding that cooking time is brought down by about 70%.
Limited access to healthcare facilities in these remote areas makes fuel-efficient stoves the need of the hour.
“Using these stoves is crucial as early exposure to large amounts of smoke and pollutants could lead to asthma, wheezing or bronchitis in children below five years and prolonged exposure can cause lung cancer,” says Dr Samantha Balaji, who is pursuing her masters in paediatrics.
The team now conducts periodic roadshows and awareness programmes through student volunteers for various mountain communities on clean cooking methods.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Chennai / Aditia Maithereya / TNN / July 24th, 2016
The Royal Society of Biology, London, has elected S. Vincent, Dean of research, Loyola College, as a fellow of Royal Society of Biology, a press release said. By its resolution, the society elected Mr. Vincent on July 1 for his outstanding contribution to biological sciences, the release said. Mr. Vincent came up with a biophysical method for quickly finding the levels of metal accumulation and toxicity based on electrical conductivity of proteins.
His contribution will help solve crisis in water management and vector-borne disease management. — Staff Reporter
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Staff Reporter / Chennai – July 24th, 2016
A team of doctors of Government Hospital in Manapparai on Saturday performed a spine surgery on a 27-year-old labourer. It was said to be the first spine surgery performed at the GH in Manapparai ever since it was upgraded as District Headquarters hospital recently.
Though the GH was yet to get many facilities on par with a district hospital, the doctors have successfully performed the surgery that lasted for three hours and removed a neurogenic tumour over spinal cord.
Ravi Selvakumar (27) of Puthupatti near Manapparai, who underwent the surgery, was recuperating well.
John Viswanath, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, who performed the surgery along with anaesthetist Malai Durai, said there was no post operative neurological deficit in the patient’s leg. He was responding to the treatment well.
It was successfully done with the cooperation of family members of Selvakumar. He preferred the surgery at the Manapparai GH after visiting a few leading hospitals and a Central government hospital in Puducherry. He said the surgery would cost Rs.80,00 to Rs.1 lakh in private hospitals. It had proved that complicated surgeries could be done at GH on par with private hospitals.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Tiruchirapalli / Special Correspondent / Tiruchi – July 24th, 2016
A surgical team in a city hospital has claimed to have successfully performed a ‘Domino Transplant’ using a liver with a rare genetic disorder called Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy (FAP).
The procedure is technically more complicated but allows the hospital to expand the number of patients who can benefit from this lifesaving surgery, Dr Nalla G Palanisamy, Chairman of Kovai Medical Centre and Hospital, claimed at a press conference today.
The first transplant recipient, 36 year old male was suffering from chronic leg pain, had approached KMCH, where the doctors suspected a rare condition of FAP, which was later confirmed by a nerve biopsy and genetic study testing at Royal Free Hospital, London, he said.
FAP is a genetic disorder that causes a protein called Amyloid to get deposited in nerves, kidneys and heart to cause multi organ failure and is a hereditary disorder which runs in families.
The second patient, was a 50-yer-old man and was diagnosed with decompensated cryptogenic cirrhosis for which liver transplantation was the only solution for both patients.
With two transplant teams performing simultaneous surgeries, the patient with FAP, received a new liver from a brain dead donor.
Then the FAP affected man’s liver was transplanted or Dominoed into the second patient.
Even though the second patient had received a liver with a genetic disorder, typically the condition will not impact his health for at least for another 15-20 years, Vivekanandan claimed.
NVM RC
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Coimbatore / PTI / July 06th, 2016
A solar-powered hand pump developed by a teacher has simplified and reduced the costs involved in irrigation of small fields.
M Manikandan, a wiring and electrical teacher at the TVS community college in Madurai, said that this would be the good solution to many small farmers who do not have electric powered motors on their land. “It costs about Rs15,000, but I am ready to help any farmer who needs it because I want my invention to benefit farmers and the public,” he said. If fitted to street taps, in water scarce areas, the solar power hand pump would save time and energy for many women.
V Murali, from Paravai who works in a private firm said that he was always passionate about having his own orchard, but his financial situation enabled him to purchase only five cents of land. He had started planting a variety of saplings on his land, and each morning watered them manually with the help of his father by catching water in buckets. But it was time consuming and laborious as the plants started growing. “I went to banks seeking loans for setting up a pump system, but was refused the same because my plot was too small and it did not have a building on it,” he said.
In desperation he decided to dig a borewell and fit an electric motor and work out the finances later. It was then that he came across Manikandan who decided to invent a solar power hand pump for him, as his plot received copious sunlight during the day.
Solar panels were fitted on two pillars along with two 12-volt batteries and a small 1 Ah motor connected to them. The handle or force rod of the hand pump is connected to the motor. The device can pump out 1,200 litres of water per hour, and 12,000 litres per day. Murali is relieved because he has now dug out channels in his plot so that when the water reaches all his plants.
His well is just 100 feet deep, for deeper wells the handle of the hand pump will have to be elongated, according to Manikandan.
He is now in the process of inventing a submersible pump which can be powered by solar power. This would be a breakthrough technology and will go a long way in saving power, he added.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Madurai / by Padmini Sivarajah / TNN / July 11th, 2016
Since he lost his left ear lobe in an accident last month, 14-year-old Jayanth has been wearing a cap pulled down over his ear. He will throw that cap away coming weekend when his new 3D-printed ear arrives from Mumbai.
“The ear will be made of polyjet plastic and coloured to match his other ear,” says Chennai-based maxillofacial surgeon Dr John Nesan who is handling Jayanth’s case.
After providing organ models for surgeons to practice, 3D printing service providers are now making exact replicas of diseased organs in the latest marriage of technology and healthcare. While ear lobes and teeth are easy to print parts, teams are working on printing liver cells which is a complex task.
“The cost and ethics involved in using such 3D bio-printed living human tissues for medical research is much better than animal and human trials,” says Chandru. “In the long run, these technologies will allow on-demand manufacturing of personalised human organs, and alleviate the acute shortage,” says Chandru.
In Bangalore, at Pandorum Technologies, Arun Chandru and his team are working on 3D printing live cells to be used in liver toxicity studies. “The cells are printed into tissue-like architectures, which are then grown in bio-reactors for further study,” he said.
“To print the cells we use what is called a bio ink, which is a mixture of cells and hydrogel,” says Chandru, who adds that the cells are printed into tissue-like architectures, which are then grown in bio-reactors for further study.
On June 27, interventional cardiologist Dr A B Gopalmurugan of SRM Institute of Medical Sciences, Hospital, Chennai, used a 3D printed rubber heart to help prep for a complicated stent insertion. In November 2015, city-based cardiac surgeon Dr K M Cherian used a 3D model before operating on a child with a complex congenital heart disease.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Chennai / Kamini Mathai / TNN / July 10th, 2016
Sathyanarayana Kolla got a graft that was imported from Israel
Chennai :
Believed to be the first such surgery in India, an aortic arch replacement without open surgery has been carried out at SRM Institute for Medical Science (SIMS) hospital.
“It is a life-threatening operation. Across the world, the operation without open surgery has been done only 16 times before,” said Dr V V Bashi, senior cardiothoracic surgeon and chief of aortic surgery at the press meet today. The arch is one of the main areas of the aorta, the largest blood vessel, that supplies blood to the head, brain and upper limbs.
A 53-year-old patient, Sathyanarayana Kolla, who has been diagnosed with a dissection and aneurysm of aortic arch, a bulge in the portion of the aorta closest to the heart, had approached SIMS hospital from Hyderabad after many doctors had declared open surgery was risky for him.
Endovascular treatment (a keyhole approach), was not done in India before due to lack of availability of grafts and expertise that were needed for the operation. “As everyone’s arch of aorta differs, the grafts can’t be bought readymade,” said Dr A B Gopalamurugan, senior interventional cardiologist and chief of endovascular intervention. The grafts were imported from Israel.
A few days before the surgery, the entire process was done on a trial and error basis with a rubber mould of the patient’s aorta to ensure the feasibility of the patient, they said.
Once Dr Bashi carried out a procedure on the patient’s neck to divert the blood vessels to the brain and head, Dr Gopalamurugan performed the endovasular procedure to replace the arch of aorta with the graft. “If the arch bursts, the person will die within 3 to 4 mins,” said Dr Gopalamurugan. The operation lasted for almost five hours.
As it affects one of the many organs, the symptoms varies with different people. For Sathyanarayana, it led poorer kidney function.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Express News Service / July 09th, 2016
