14 May 2010
Bangalore, India

Eminent surgeons from the city and from England had a field day on Thursday at the congress of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS). Dressed in their traditional red gowns, surgeons with outstanding performance were awarded with Royal College fellowships and fellowships by election. Surgeons also discussed the role of India as an emerging player in surgical healthcare.
Governor H R Bharadwaj raised concerns about the dubious practices that go on in the medical sector and said that there needs to be an immediate external check on that. “What improvements are we talking about in a country where the Medical Council of India (MCI) chief is arrested for corruption? The medical sector is ill–organized. There is lack of discipline and ethics, while your English counterparts are very strong and have strong federal regulations,” he told the surgeons. He said that most medical practices were aimed at profit and were not reaching the poor. Talking about the hospitals in Karnataka, he suggested, “I will not like any dilution of values in Karnataka.”
Eminent surgeons Dr Devi Shetty, Dr S Vittal, Dr Sharan Patil, Dr Mahesh Reddy, Dr Prasad Srivastava and many others were awarded fellowships by the Royal College of Surgeons of England.
President of RCS, John Black said: “India is a sleeping giant both economically and socially. The surgeons from England have a lot to share and learn from here.”