The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

HEALTH

Endoscopy, a boon for debilitating slip disk
Nalini Ranjan

New Delhi, December 4
Bad body movement and sedentary life style has wreaked havoc with the backbone of all and sundry in the Capital. The spinal unit in every hospital in the city is flush with patients coming with backache and other complaints afflicting backbone on which lies the onus of keeping the whole body up and going.

Slip disc is a major affliction of the backbone in the Capital, keeping a large number of working people home bound. Resulting often into excruciating pain, and in extreme cases, into paralysis of the part of the body below stomach. In extreme cases, persons with slip disc loses even control on urinating and passing stool.

Well known ortho—specialist and a surgeon at the Jaipur Golden Hospital, Dr Rai Gupta, says, backbone being the most important part of the body, any affliction here results into a plethora of complications. According to him, slip disc is a major problem regarding backbone. Due to this, recurrent and unbearable pain occurs in the lower part of the back. The number of people coming to this hospital is on the increase for the latest and most successful surgery known as endoscopy.

Endoscopy has proved to be a boon for the people unable to get rid of this paralysing back pain. According to Dr Gupta, “now even youth are coming to spine clinics with disc symptoms because of their changed life style.” Other causes such as lifting of heavy weight, wrong posture, sudden jerks, wearing shoes with high heels by women, lack of physical fitness and proper exercises result into early disc degeneration.

Even dancing is causing harm to the backbone. With dancing schools proliferating in the Capital, a number of young danseuse are coming with slip disc problem. Survey shows more and more children are turning couch potatoes. Lack of exercises may make them victim to this condition quite early in their life. Dr Gupta says: “Between every two vertebrae, there is a disc which acts as a shock absorber. When the disc degenerates, it herniates and causes acute pain in the lower back which is transmitted to one or both legs.

Initially, all patients are treated with rest, pain killers and physiotherapy. But when all fails, standard surgical treatment is done by endoscopy—- the latest surgical mode. The patient is allowed to stand and walk on the same day and may be allowed to go home the very next day.

In the United States and other developed countries, endoscopy is the only handy technique for slip disc. Thanks to this precise technique, more rapid and comfortable rehabilitation of the patient with slip disc has become possible.

In the United States, this technique has been able to save substantial man-hour. But in India, the small number of experts are unable to cope with much larger number of patients with slip disc and other problem related to backbone.

SPORTS

Software expert is ESPN Star ‘Super Selector’
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, December 4
Dheeraj Jain, a software expert, has been adjudged the ESPN Star Sports ‘Super Selector’ for the month of November. He beat 2,65,000 other participants to amass a super score of 4,330 points.

Mr Jain from New Delhi, an ardent fan of Sachin Tendulkar, has won a brand new Maruti-Suzuki Versa car and a free trip to Australia to witness the Test match to be played between Australia and South Africa, starting on Boxing Day on December 26.He will also get an opportunity to be in the commentary box with renowned cricket experts.

Dheeraj Jain’s Dream Team, which won the first prize, includes Herschelle Gibbs, Stuart Carlisle, Dion Ebrahim, Grand Flower, Gary Kirsten, Andrew Flower, Jacques Kallis, Shaun Pollock, Makhaya Niti (substitute is Heath Streak), Harbhajan Singh (substitute Douglas Marillier) and Nantie Hayward (substitute Muttiah Muralitharan).

ESPN Managing Director Manu Sawhney said,” The Super Selector game show has already broken the world record with 2,65,000 entries for last month”. The show will be aired on Star Sports on Wednesday at 6pm and on Thursday at 6.30 pm. It will be shown on ESPN on December 6 at 7 pm and on December 7 at 5 pm.

Aizawl enter in Subroto final
Bhutia felicitated by Subroto Cup Society
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, December 4
Government Higher Secondary School, Aizawl, (Mizoram) outclassed MPLL Adarsh Inter-school, Faisabad (Uttar Pradesh) 4-0 to storm into the final of the Subroto Mukherjee Cup (Under-17) Football Tournament at Ambedkar Stadium here today.

In a one-sided match, the Mizoram school scored goals through Lal Zawnchhuaha, Robert Lelthannuana, Lal Ram Zauva and Ziahmeng Thanja. The Mizo school now await the winners of the second semi-final between Army Boys ASC College, Bangalore, and AP Sports School, Hakimpet (Hyderabad) in the final to be played on December 12.

India’s hottest football star, Baichung Bhutia, was the star attraction at the stadium as he was felicitated by Air Marshal R.C.Mahadik, president of the Air Force Sports Control Board, before the start of the match.

Bhutia praised the good work being done by the Subroto Tournament in promoting junior football talent in the country as he himself had come up through the Subroto route into the senior league. Bhutia fondly remembered his early days in Subroto where he was first spotted and selected for the India Under-16 team. He had played for Tashi Namgayal School, Sikkim, in the Subroto Cup in 1991.

Wednesday’s fixtures: Shree Kamlakar School, Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) vs IV E, BSL High School, Bokaro (9.30 am); Government Middle School, Tamaloo, Carnicobar vs SAI Training Centre, Salt Lake (Kolkata) (1.30 p m); Army Boys, ASC Centre (Bangalore) vs AP Sports School, Hakimpet (Hyderabad) (3.15 p m)—Ambedkar Stadium.

IHF Juniors draw with Indian Airlines
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, December 4
The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) Juniors, coached by former Olympic goal-keeper Charles Cornelius, put up a splendid performance to hold star-studded Indian Airlines to a one-all draw in Pool B in the Lal Bahadur Shastri Hockey Tournament at the Shivaji Stadium here today.

The IHF Juniors played without any inhibition to have their experienced rivals on the run, and Indian Airlines were lucky that they escaped with a draw. The IHF Juniors were somewhat unlucky as their close calls on the rival goal missed the mark by inches. A couple of debatable umpiring decisions also robbed them of a few possible scoring opportunities.

The Indian Airlines team, coached by former India star Mervyn Fernandes, consisted of India players like goalkeeper A.B. Subbaiah, Bimal Lakra, Prabodh Tirkey, Mukesh Kumar, Mohd. Riaz, Altaf-ur-Rehman and Samir Dad. But the junior players were not daunted by the formidable reputation of their rivals and set up a scorching pace, which their ageing opponents found difficult to cope with.

After a goalless first half, Indian Airlines took the lead in the first minute of the second half when Rajnish Mishra banged home a penalty corner. After missing the mark several times, IHF Juniors finally pulled back the equaliser when Vevek Gupta converted a penalty stroke in the 67th minute.

RAF lose in CRPF tourney
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, December 4
Manipur and Nagaland Sector beat Rapid Action Force 15-2, 15-4 on the opening day of the CRPF Badminton Tournament at the Group Centre, Jharoda Kalan.

The Inspector-General of Police, Rapid Action Force, Mr G.M. Srivastava, inaugurated the tournament. Ten teams, representing various sectors of the CRPF from all over the country, are taking part in the tournament.

Ten teams, representing various sectors of the CRPF.

ADMINISTRATION

Police curb use of colour lights on vehicle top
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 4
The Delhi Traffic Police have laid down restrictions on the use of coloured lights on top of motor vehicles from tomorrow.

The Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Mr Sanjay Singh, said that no vehicle owner would be allowed to carry or fix coloured light on the motor vehicle which might cause annoyance or danger to other road users. This restriction would not apply to the internal lighting of the vehicle or direction indicators.

Revolving-cum flasher red lights will be used only by motor vehicles on emergency duties such as ambulance, fire brigades, vehicles of Delhi Police Control Room. Such lights will be on top at the middle of the roof.

Red light without flasher will be allowed to be erected in the front, and on top of the windscreen position of a saloon vehicle of the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of Delhi area and Chief of three Services, the Chief Justice of Supreme Court, the Chief Justice of Delhi High Court. Vehicles of the cabinet ministers, Lt Governor and Delhi Chief Minister will be permitted to use the blue light.

The police patrol vehicles, pilot vehicles and transport department vehicles will use for distinction a blue revolving-cum-flasher light placed in front and top of the windscreen position.

Besides, amber revolving or flashing light would be used on vehicles plying in national and international airports in the Capital, the DCP said.

IN PARLIAMENT
ASI objects to metro corridor
Our Correspondent

New Delhi, December 4
The Archaeological Survey of India has reportedly raised objections to the construction of underground metro rail corridor near Jantar Mantar, as it is apprehended that the vibrations caused by the construction now and the operation of the metro later will have adverse effects on the safety of the monument, the Lok Sabha was informed today.

The Minister of Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation, Mr Bandaru Dattatreya, also told the Lok Sabha that the alignment of the underground metro corridor, which was to be at a distance of 8.5 metre from Jantar Mantar, would now be distanced at 22.5 metre to save the monument.

Adequate measures like grouting of soil to increase its strength had been incorporated, he said added to reduce the level of vibrations during the construction, elastic track fittings with resilient rubber pads under the rail seat and state-of-the-art rolling stocks were also being used.

The House was also informed by Mr Dattatreya that the Union Government had sanctioned Rs 100 crore to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi for the construction and repair of 68 major roads in the Capital.

On militant threat in the Capital, the Minister of State for Home, Mr Vidyasagar Rao, informed the House that the Delhi Police had arrested 172 militants and 15 bomb blasts had rocked the Capital in the last four years. He added that the interrogation of the arrested people revealed that Pakistan’s ISI was behind the terrorist uprisings in India. It was, however, difficult to point out the exact number of terrorists operating in the Capital.

Referring to the cases of human rights violations by security personnel, Mr Rao said that during the last three years, 89 such cases had been reported in Delhi.

Whenever cases of human rights violations were reported to the National Human Rights Commission, it had proceeded under Section 19 of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 and after getting a report from the Central Government, had made suitable recommendations, he added.

On the raging controversy over the “tinkering with the syllabi’, the Minister of Human Resources Development, Science and Technology and Ocean Development, Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, said the draft of the History syllabus for senior secondary classes had been placed before the Committee of Courses for consideration by the CBSE. The committee had accepted the syllabus in principle and made certain observations, which had been duly forwarded, to the NCERT, he added.

Explaining the reasons for the rewriting of textbooks for schools, the Minister of State for Human Resources Development, Prof Rita Verma, said curriculum development was an ongoing process and the earlier curriculum was more than 12 years’ old.