Female children die of neglect, if not infanticide'

January 19, 2013

Mangalore, Jan 19: Indian Medical Association (IMA) Mangalore branch conducted a Continuing Medical Education programme jointly with Mangalore OBG Society on 'Women's Health Matters' on Friday at IMA House, Attavar, Mangalore. The programme also included a Panel Discussion on the subject 'Build up the Fetus'.

Dr. Bharathi Rajshekar, Medical Director and OBG Consultant, Vatsalya Hospital, Hassan was the lead speaker of the Scientific Programme.

She observed that women's health is a neglected issue, pointing out that though female infanticide is banned, more female children die in India because of neglect. “Health of women and children should be the foundation of society,” she said.

Touching up on preventing cervical cancer, she said in the developed countries the incidence of cervical cancer has been drastically reduced due to compulsory screening and vaccination. She emphasized that cervical cancer is the only type of cancer for which vaccination is available and it should be actively promoted for curtailing the disease.

Regarding maternal mortality, she mooted the concept of establishing Obstetric ICUs where a team of specialists comprising Obstetricians, Intensivists and Neonatologists could exclusively attend to critical care issues concerning pregnancy and child birth.

The moderator of the Panel Discussion on 'Build up the Fetus' was Dr. Veena K.R. Bhagavan and the panelists were Dr. Bharathi Rajshekar, Dr. Roshan Maben, Dr. Rameela Shekhar and Latha Pai.

The session dealt with interesting aspects of pre-birth like: Can the unborn child hear and experience emotion? Is the fetus influenced by happenings outside the womb? Can the budding life retain memory? What are the social and cultural aspects of pregnancy and pre-birth?

IMA President Dr. M. Manjunath Shenoy, IMA Secretary Dr. Nithish Bhandary and Dr. Vasanthi Shetty, President of Mangalore OBG Society were present.

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Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

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