India going through epidemiological transition: Kovind
Vellore, May 4: President Ram Nath Kovind on Friday said India is going through an epidemiological transition and faces three challenges in disease control.
"First, India has to reduce maternal and infant mortality as well as communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, vector-borne diseases such as malaria, water-borne diseases such as cholera, diarrhoeal diseases and vaccine-preventable diseases like measles and tetanus."
Speaking on the centenary celebrations of the Medical Education programme of the Christian Medical College (CMC), Kovind pointed out that the country had to check the rise in non-communicable or lifestyle diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and many cancers.
"And finally, we need to develop systems to detect and cope with new and re-emerging infectious diseases like HIV, avian flu and H1N1 influenza," he said in Vellore, around 140 km from Chennai.
Kovind said this calls for interventions across the continuum of care-prevention of disease, promotion of good health practices and treatment and cure in case of an illness.
"The impact of a health problem is cross-cutting -- it affects a variety of sectors. The meeting of this challenge should also follow a multi-stakeholder approach. The government and civil society, private and public health care providers, charitable and economic institutions all have a role and a stake."
According to the President, the National Health Mission, the National Health Policy and the Ayushman Bharat insurance scheme were alive to this broad-based approach and ensure that nobody was deprived of healthcare due to the absence of financial or similar resources.
Kovind said the principles that must guide the philosophy of public health were equity and efficiency, quality and quantity, and access and affordability.
"Yes, it is also a business - but there is no greater business than saving a life. I am sure the CMC community will agree," he said.
He said there was an urgent need for reform in medical education to create room for more colleges and more medical graduates.
"In India, we have 1.47 million undergraduate engineering seats, but only 67,352 undergraduate medical seats. And about 20 per cent of those seats were added in the past four years."
Praising CMC for its reputation for excellence, Kovind said: "India's first re-constructive surgery on leprosy patients was carried out here, and so was the first successful open heart surgery and the first kidney transplant."
Recent research on the rotavirus vaccine, hepatitis, malnutrition, bio-engineering and stem cells underlines CMC's commitment to research that is relevant to India's health needs, he added.
The President is on a two-day visit to Tamil Nadu starting on Friday. On his arrival at the Chennai airport, Kovind was received by Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Chief Minister K. Palaniswami and others.
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Prime organiser of Messi event in Kolkata arrested over ‘mismanagement’ after stadium chaos
Kolkata (PTI): The police on Saturday arrested Satadru Datta, the prime organiser of the Lionel Messi football event at Salt Lake Stadium here, following widespread chaos at the venue, which prompted the Argentine World Cup-winning captain to leave the field early.
Taking suo motu cognisance of the stadium unrest, Datta was held by the Bidhannagar Police for “mismanagement” of the event from the Kolkata airport, where he had gone to see off Messi and his entourage on their way to Hyderabad.
"We are looking into whether there was any mismanagement from the organiser's side, which led to the chaos at the stadium. He has been detained, and the police have now brought the situation under control," West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar said at a press conference.
A senior police officer later confirmed that Dutta has been arrested. Till reports last received, the police were interrogating him and his manager inside one of the departure lounges of the airport.
The organiser has given in writing that he will refund the prices of tickets he sold to the disappointed spectators, Kumar said.
What was supposed to be a marquee football spectacle turned into widespread violence and disorder at the stadium after Messi’s brief and tightly ring-fenced appearance, his first at the venue since 2011, left large sections of the crowd frustrated, as they failed to catch a glimpse of their superstar despite having travelled from far and wide, paying hefty sums for tickets.
Police said they were also investigating how organisers allowed sale of bottled waters and beverages inside the stadium premises, which are banned items during such events.
Thousands of water bottles were used as missiles and lobbed inside the pitch by angry spectators, who also uprooted bucket seats from the gallery and used them as ammunition inside the field against the defending police and security personnel.
Spectators alleged that water bottles were being sold at a massive premium inside the stadium despite police disallowing such items from outside at the entry gates.
Police agreed there was an underlying tension in the galleries on account of Messi not showing his footballing skills on the field, which only got aggravated after a bunch of VIPs, including State Sports Minister Aroop Biswas and unidentified people, blocked the football icon’s view during the limited time he spent on the ground.
“We are on the job, and will ensure that whoever is responsible for what happened today at Salt Lake Stadium will be punished, and action will be taken against the authorities concerned,” said Jawed Shamim, ADG, Law and Order.
