Dear friends,

Let me at the outset thank you all for electing me for this coveted chair and I promise you that I will do my best to live up to your expectation

We had good time at Gulbarga. In spite of their shortcomings and limitations the local organizers managed to conduct the conference smoothly. The scientific deliberations were of high quality and the hospitality was excellent.
The executive committee of the state chapter took several decisions at its meeting and some of these were deliberated upon during the general body. It is time that we review our bylaws and make suitable amendments after considering the views expressed by our members. The amendments will be circulated well in advance so that members can give their feedback in time

The state chapter is facing a financial crunch at present. The fall in the interest rates, irregular payment of dues by the headquarters and mounting expenditure are the main reasons for this crisis. We have taken some measures to curtail expenditure and also identify additional source of income

I appeal to the office bearers of all the city branches to write to the secretary well in advance regarding academic activities to be held during the year. It is good to know that the membership is steadily raising but there is room for improvement. I hope during the year the number will cross the magic figure of 1000. This is possible if the office bearers and the heads of the departments of all teaching institutions take little more effort. As an incentive I promise to waive of 50% of registration fees for the annual conference at Bangalore for all new members recruited during the year and any member who introduces more than 5 life members will get free registration for the conference

In addition to the activities conducted by the city branches the state chapter also plans to organize scientific meeting at different parts of the state. The theme of this campaign will “TOWARDS SAFE SURGERY”. Under the present circumstances where there is high expectation from the patient increasing health awareness and consumer protection it is important that we review some of the measures that will make surgery safe both for the patient and for the surgeon. First such meeting will be held at Mangalore in March. Other cities like Hubli, Bellary, Mysore, Belgaum, Bijapur, etc will be covered during the year. All these programs will be sponsored and the association has no financial burden

The newsletter is an important tool of communication and I am happy to inform you that Dr Vijaya Kumar an eminent surgical oncologist for Kidwai Institute of Oncology Bangalore has agreed to take up the responsibility of bringing out the news letter in consultation with Hon Secretary Dr Soppimath. Adequate funds will be raised to see that the printing and postage of newsletter is taken care of. The website of our association also needs to be updated with information at regular intervals.

Some of the events that are likely to take place at Bangalore during the year are coloproctology skills course organized by ACRSI, annual conference of Indian Association of Endocrine Surgeons, CME & workshop on Thoracic & Vascular diseases. Our association will be co sponsoring some of these programs. Lastly I request all of you to register for the annual conference of ASI at Ludhiana. We are likely to bid for the annual conference for the year 2010 at Bangalore and your presence at the general body is vital in this regard

I look forward for an eventful year and if you have any suggestions to improve our association, feel free to communicate to any of the office bearers.

DR U VASUDEVA RAO MS FRCS FICS FAIS
CHAIRMAN

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