Ajman, Sep.10: Thumbay Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Hospital, the biggest and most advanced hospital for physical therapy and rehabilitation in the region successfully conducted the ‘Conference on Innovations in Rehabilitation Practice’.

The programme was attended by renowned international speakers and experts who shared their insights and concepts on the latest and emerging trends in Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation.

His Excellency Humaid Al Qutami, Chairman of the Board and Director-General of the Dubai Health Authority was the chief guest of the conference held at Thumbay Medicity, Ajman on 10th September 2018. Dr. Thumbay Moideen, Founder President of Thumbay Group presided.

His Excellency Navdeep Singh Suri - Indian Ambassador to the UAE, His Excellency Mr. Liborio Stellino - Ambassador of Italy in the UAE, Her Excellency Ms. Valentina Setta - Consul General of Italy in UAE and Wasim Akram, former Pakistani cricketer attended the Conference as special dignitaries.

His Excellency Humaid Al Qutami presented special awards of honor and recognition to the following leading physical therapy and rehabilitation experts:

  •         Ms. Amal Al Shamlan - First UAE National physiotherapist, President of Emirates Physiotherapy Society
  •         Dr. Abdul Adheem Kamkar - Head of Dubai Police Health Center, Physiotherapy section
  •         Dr. Franco Molteni - Director Hospital Valduce Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Center, Costa Masnaga, Lecco, Italy
  •         Ms. Amina Al Saadi - Head of Rehabilitation Center, Zayed Higher Organization
  •         Dr. George John - Transform Fitness, Dubai
  •         Dr. Osama Kamel Ali Alalla - Specialist in Health and Physical Activities, Ministry of Education, Dubai
  •         Mr. U T Ifthikar Ali - Physiotherapist, India
  •         H.E. Marwan Bin Ghalaita - Chairman, UAE Football Association
  •         H.E. Ahmad Al Kamali - President, UAE Athletic Federation
  •         H.E. Saeed Mohammad Hareb - Secretary General, Dubai Sports Council
  •         Dr. Omar Abdul Aziz Al Haai - Secretary-General, UAE Higher Education Sports Federation
  •         H.E. Marwan Ahmed Alsawaleh - President, UAE Interschool Sports Association (UAESSA)
  •         Mr. Dave Richardson - Chief Executive, The International Cricket Council
  •         Mr. Khalid Al Zarouni - Vice Chairman, Emirates Cricket Board
  •         Mr. Shahzad Altaf - Ajman Cricket Council
  •         Mr. Strath Sherri - CEO, Dubai Tennis Academy

Accredited by the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention for 4.5 CME Hours, the Conference on Innovations in Rehabilitation Practice was hosted to mark the occasion of World Physiotherapy Day.

International speakers from Italy along with experts from the region delivered various talk on latest updates in the fields of physical therapy and rehabilitation, before the participants comprising of leading surgeons, physiotherapists and other medical professionals from the region.

Dr. Franco Molteni - Director Hospital Valduce Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Center, Italy and Mr. Riccardo Aggujaro - Project Manager, Thumbay Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Hospital were the scientific coordinators of the conference. Dr. Praveen Kumar K. – Dean of the College of Health Science, Gulf Medical University, was the scientific advisor.

The keynote talk on the topic ‘From Cell to Society’ was led by Dr. Franco Molteni  - Director, Hospital Valduce Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Center, Italy and Dr. P.K. Menon - COO and Director, Thumbay Labs, UAE.

Topics on which the other speakers shared comprehensive insights include:

  •        Human Behavior and Environment – by Dr. Silvia Aggujaro, Head of Neuropsychology Service, H.Valduce Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Center, Costa Masnaga, Lecco, Italy and Prof. Dr. Maddalena D Alfonso - Associate Professor in Building Technology, Politecnico of Milan University, Milan, Italy
  •         Educations in Rehabilitation at Gulf Medical University – by Prof. Hossam Hamdy - Chancellor, Gulf Medical University
  •         From Body Language To Well-Being – by Prof. Dr. Stefano Masiero - Professor and Chair of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Padua, Italy & Head of Rehabilitation Department, University Hospital of Padua, Italy
  •         Engineering E-Motion – by Dr. Stefano Mazzoleni - Rehabilitation Bioengineering Laboratory Volterra, Bio Robotics Institute, Italy
  •         Robotics Assisted Rehabilitation – by Dr. Adam Akram - Senior Physiotherapist, Zayed Higher Organization, UAE
  •         Role of the Industry in Rehabilitation Practice and Medicine

"His Excellency Humaid Al Qutami also inaugurated the Thumbay Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Hospital and toured its facilities."

 

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New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.

Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.

The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.

At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.

Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.

According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.

The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.

At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).

Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it

The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.

Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.

Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.

According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.

Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.

Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.

Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.

He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.

DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.

Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”