Now buy mobile apps from retail stores

Smartphone users can now walk into a retail store and buy their mobile applications offline.

Mobile retail company Onward Mobility has started selling mobile applications at retail stores in over 100 cities including Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.

At the stores, users can buy and install applications through USB drive or Bluetooth.

The model plans to capitalise on the ever-growing market of mobile applications. Industry reports suggest that the overall market for mobility software and applications in Asia-Pacific is expected to grow at a CAGR of 35% from 2011 to 2015.

Arun Menon, CEO of Onward Mobility said, "The response has been fantastic as we have sold more than 1,00,000 apps in the last six to seven months. The do-it-yourself concept hasn't gained momentum in India as many are still handicapped in terms of technology. You have to push the need to the retail counter and its customers." Till now the company has launched only six-seven apps across 100 cities and plans to go pan India soon.

Planet M is also planning to launch offline app stores in September. "Our formal launch will be done by September end during Navratri. The main idea is to give customers the taste of apps," said Sanjay Karwa, CEO of Planet M. Planet M has more than 200 stores across 32 cities in India. "With this kind of reach, we can become the go-to offline store for apps," added Karwa.\

4 September in The Sunday Guardian.

Stamp issued to remember freedom fighter Pt. Santanam

After 50 years of struggle Madhuri Santanam Sondhi, daughter of noted freedom fighter Pandit K. Santanam (1885-1949) was able to release a commemorative stamp to honour her father's fight for India's independence. She has been trying to get a postage stamp issued since Pt Santanam's 75th birth anniversary in 1959.

The function held on Thursday at the India International Centre, New Delhi was inaugurated by Congress MP Mani Shankar Aiyar and Radhika Doraiswamy, secretary to the government in the Department of Posts. The opening speech was given by Pt Satanam's grandson Professor Shivaji L. Sondhi.

"The Department of Post has always honoured men and women who have fought for the country. These stamps will be sold at the national and international levels," said Radhika Doraiswamy.

Pt Santanam, originally from Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu, settled in Lahore after returning from England where he had gone to study law at Kings College, Cambridge and became a barrister in 1910.

"He took up the defence of those implicated in the aftermath of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. During that period nobody was allowed to travel outside Amritsar under Martial Law then in effect, but my father managed to slip out and brought the atrocities taking place in Punjab to the notice of the Viceroy's Executive Council. After resigning from his legal practice he built a strong political foundation under Lala Lajpat Rai. He was considered as Lalaji's right hand. He even assisted Gandhiji in drafting the enquiry report by becoming an integral part of the Congress Punjab Enquiry Committee and was involved in the non-cooperation movement," said Madhuri Sondhi.

"We need to keep alive the memory of fighters responsible for the economic and political prosperity of our country. Pt Satanam had formed a company in 1924 named Laxmi Insurance under Lala Lajpat Rai's guidance. To accommodate the employees they built Laxmi Mansions. This building still stands tall in Lahore, Pakistan and interestingly there have been no efforts to change the name or demolish it," said Mani Shankar Aiyar.

Pt Santanam was arrested on 2 December 1921 along with Lala Lajpat Rai. He held several posts in the Congress Committee and also took part in the Salt Satyagrah Movement. He lived for two years after Independence and helped refugees as the member of the Advisory Committee to the Ministry of Relief and Rehabilitation.

28 August in The Sunday Guardian.

‘Brand image influences fresh job seekers’

The brand image of a company and the opinions of seniors are key factors that influence students during campus placements, shows the "Firstnaukri.com Employer Preference" survey.

The survey undertaken by Firstnaukri.com, a job search network for college students and recent graduates, questioned 4,500-plus engineering and graduate students about their employer preferences and the basis on which they decide to appear for interview for a company during placements. Most respondents ranked brand image of the company as their first choice and growth prospect in the company as their next preferred option, followed by job profile.

Deepali Singh, business head of Firstnaukri.com said, "It is interesting to note that students hardly have any information about career opportunities or work culture in organisations. This is the reason why students rely heavily on feedback from seniors and friends. Organisations need to spread awareness about the same, so that students can make well informed decisions during their campus placements." When the students were questioned about the biggest influencer during campus interviews, 35% respondents said seniors. Approximately 22% of them said parents and 19% opted for batchmates.

21 August in The Sunday Guardian.

Didi celebrates Tagore death, Delhi bemused

The national capital did not pay much attention to Rabindranath Tagore’s 70th death anniversary on Monday, 8 August, but in Kolkata, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made up for that by “celebrating” the poet’s death. She launched a year-long programme on that day to mark his 150th birth anniversary. Tagore’s birthday was on 9 May, but the Left Front government was in power in West Bengal at the time.

Trinamool Congress MPs’ plea for a holiday in both Houses of Parliament was turned down by Speaker Meira Kumar, who said that Parliament did not have a tradition of commemorating death anniversaries. “The Speaker has asked us to celebrate Tagore’s birth anniversary. We are discussing how to organise it in Parliament by month-end,” Trinamool Congress’ Saugata Roy, Minister of State for Urban Development, told The Sunday Guardian.

The Central government organised two functions in the national capital to remember the poet. The Ministry of Culture organised a programme of music and poetry at the Sangeet Natak Akademi.

It was inaugurated by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Culture Minister Kumari Selja and Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi. The ministry also organised a seminar, “Remembering Rabindranath Tagore” at the Lalit Kala Akademi, to highlight the diverse aspects of Tagore’s vision, creativity, and contribution.

The Geetanjali Troupe, a non government cultural organisation, staged a dance drama, Shrabandhara, at the Sriram Centre Auditorium, leaving a group of students wondering what the function was all about. “Oh, I didn’t know it is Tagore’s death anniversary,” said one student sitting outside the auditorium.

S.N. Banerjee, one of the organisers, said, “Delhi has not forgotten Tagore. But it is not appropriate to ‘celebrate’ someone’s death. For the first time in history grand celebrations were held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan for his birth anniversary in May. That was our biggest achievement.”

The Sriram Centre function presented odes written by Tagore dedicated to the monsoons.

In Kolkata, Mamata Banerjee took to the streets with thousands of schoolchildren, singing Rabindrasangeet. She urged Finance Minister Amit Mitra to sing a song when she saw him humming with the crowd and asked Higher Education Minister Bratya Basu to announce another holiday the next day for schoolchildren who had braved the rain to participate in the street celebrations.

In the evening, cultural luminaries were invited for a musical soiree at the Netaji Indoor Stadium.

All this was a clear departure from the sombre mood of earlier years. But then the Chief Minister had promised that she would celebrate the poet’s birthday on Baishey Srabon (22 Sravan, 8 August), the day he passed away in 1941.

The national capital did not pay much attention to Rabindranath Tagore's 70th death anniversary on Monday, 8 August, but in Kolkata, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made up for that by "celebrating" the poet's death. She launched a year-long programme on that day to mark his 150th birth anniversary. Tagore's birthday was on 9 May, but the Left Front government was in power in West Bengal at the time.

Trinamool Congress MPs' plea for a holiday in both Houses of Parliament was turned down by Speaker Meira Kumar, who said that Parliament did not have a tradition of commemorating death anniversaries. "The Speaker has asked us to celebrate Tagore's birth anniversary. We are discussing how to organise it in Parliament by month-end," Trinamool Congress' Saugata Roy, Minister of State for Urban Development, told The Sunday Guardian.

The Central government organised two functions in the national capital to remember the poet. The Ministry of Culture organised a programme of music and poetry at the Sangeet Natak Akademi.

It was inaugurated by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Culture Minister Kumari Selja and Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi. The ministry also organised a seminar, "Remembering Rabindranath Tagore" at the Lalit Kala Akademi, to highlight the diverse aspects of Tagore's vision, creativity, and contribution.

The Geetanjali Troupe, a non government cultural organisation, staged a dance drama, Shrabandhara, at the Sriram Centre Auditorium, leaving a group of students wondering what the function was all about. "Oh, I didn't know it is Tagore's death anniversary," said one student sitting outside the auditorium.

S.N. Banerjee, one of the organisers, said, "Delhi has not forgotten Tagore. But it is not appropriate to 'celebrate' someone's death. For the first time in history grand celebrations were held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan for his birth anniversary in May. That was our biggest achievement."

The Sriram Centre function presented odes written by Tagore dedicated to the monsoons.

In Kolkata, Mamata Banerjee took to the streets with thousands of schoolchildren, singing Rabindrasangeet. She urged Finance Minister Amit Mitra to sing a song when she saw him humming with the crowd and asked Higher Education Minister Bratya Basu to announce another holiday the next day for schoolchildren who had braved the rain to participate in the street celebrations.

In the evening, cultural luminaries were invited for a musical soiree at the Netaji Indoor Stadium.

All this was a clear departure from the sombre mood of earlier years. But then the Chief Minister had promised that she would celebrate the poet's birthday on Baishey Srabon (22 Sravan, 8 August), the day he passed away in 1941.

Shared by-line with Susenjit Guha on 14 August in The Sunday Guardian.

Cell phone addiction leads to orthopaedic problems

Doctors say that with the excessive use of smart phones, people are likely to get carpal tunnel syndrome — fibromyalgia, also known as the De Quervains disease. The early signs of this disease can be thumb and finger soreness and formation of calluses and numbness. Constant texting or browsing not only affects the patient's wrists and thumbs, but also strains the neck and shoulder area.

"Your condition can get as bad as having a cervical disc prolapsed with neurological deficit. There is a significant growth in the number of patients getting affected by this disease. There has been a 100% rise in the last five years. These patients mostly belong to the younger age group between 15-30 years, and this has become a common phenomenon in the metros because of easy access to several smart phones," said Dr I.P.S. Oberoi, senior orthopaedic consultant with Artemis Health Institute, New Delhi.

According to psychologists, cell phone addiction is mostly prevalent among the unsociable, unconventional and non-confident groups, and young individuals in particular. Then there are people who try to create a professional image of high efficiency with the help of a cell phone. "People start getting irritated more often and concentration level decreases. Depression is the most common and persistent problem among cell phone addicts. This addiction can also lead to brain tumour as revealed by studies," said Dr R. Chandra, a psychiatrist.

Dr Rajesh Verma, consultant orthopaedic with Gurgaon's Artemis Health Institute, who sees at least 30 cell phone addicts every month, advises regular exercise. "A few precautions and exercises can help your hands in the long run, like taking breaks from the phone every few hours or the use of Bluetooth while working and while driving, or even phones with larger keypads and other convenient phone accessories. Make sure that you exercise the affected muscle groups including both stretching and strengthening ones. Gentle massage and physio modalities also help," he said.

14 August in The Sunday Guardian.

Lose weight under knife, without scars

Scar-less weight loss surgery has become popular amongst the age group of 15-40 years recently. Scar-less surgery or single incision surgery is a technique by where the scar gets concealed in the umbilicus (naval).

Doctors say that women in the age-group of 20-30 years are keener to get this surgery done. "This surgery has gained popularity among young adults especially women. Over the past two years we have treated almost 50-70 patients for scar-less weight loss surgery. This surgery started in Ahmedabad two years ago, but has become popular in the northern areas recently," said Dr Mahendra Narwaria, bariatric surgeon at Artemis Health Institute, Gurgaon.

23-year-old Shipra (name changed), who got this surgery done a week ago from Artemis Gurgaon, shared her experience with The Sunday Guardian. She was 89 kg when her surgery was done and after the surgery she has lost close to 10 kg. "Now I can attain my goal of weighing between 50-60 kg. I had lost all hope earlier after trying almost everything. But nothing worked because I have been suffering from polycystic ovary syndrome (a condition in which there is an imbalance of a woman's female sex hormones) which added more weight. This made me extremely lethargic when I finally decided that I had to get a surgery done," said Shipra. She will be on a liquid diet for a month post her surgery.

Doctors believe that lately weight-loss surgeries have become essential. "Obesity has become a global epidemic and more so in the adolescent population. More than 40% of children in India are obese. Within the first month of the surgery more than half of the unwanted fat is reduced and after three months the body loses almost all of the unwanted fat. Personality change is the most immediate after effect as people become more confident after shedding the extra weight," said Dr J.P.S. Beed, a bariatric surgeon with Nova Medical Centres, New Delhi.

"Risks from the surgical process are negligible and subject to the clinical condition of the patient. But if a procedure is not performed well or a patient continues to take soft calories, then 10-15% weight gain can be expected. This will need diet modifications or under severe conditions another surgery," said Dr K. Lakshmi, senior consultant and laparoscopic bariatric surgeon of Global Hospitals.

Doctors add that patients can resume work 10 days to two weeks post surgery. "The duration of the ­surgery varies from five to ten hours and the cost ranges from Rs 4-5 lakhs. There are no ­complications as such but for the first two or three days we recommend ­taking multivitamins in case of ­deficiency," added Dr ­Mahendra ­Narwaria.

7 August in The Sunday Guardian.

Indian tourists are new holidaying superstars

Indian tourists are going abroad in droves. The percentage of tourists travelling to Europe, the United States and the Mediterranean countries has grown by almost 25% this year, compared to 2009-10.

Statistics provided by the Ministry of Tourism show that Indian tourism in Egypt has grown at the rate of 30% year-on-year, with 1,14,000 tourists visiting the country from January this year in spite of the unrest.

Singapore receives nearly 5,00,000 Indian tourists a year. Spain saw around 75,000 visitors from India last year, and is expecting almost double the number this year after the success of the movie Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, shot in Spain. The most popular places so far have been Barcelona and Madrid where Indians prefer to stay for eight-nine days.

New Zealand statistics show that almost 30,000 Indian travellers visited the country until May 2011, almost 13% more than last year.

According to the UN's Madrid-based World Tourism Organisation by 2020, over 50 million Indians will be travelling abroad each year.

"Bollywood has always been an ideal tool to promote a new foreign destination among Indians. Hong Kong, Australia, the Netherlands and British tourism boards in association with Indian movie development councils are working on strategies to attract Indian film producers to promote tourism," said an official from the Ministry of Tourism. "India is considered to be a goldmine. 'Have money, will travel' is the new mantra among the new generation. Frequently visited areas are Thailand, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Macao, Hong Kong and even China. Thailand is a short holiday destination which costs up to Rs 20,000 per person," said Rajji Rai, president of the Travel Agents Association of India. He added that economically well off Indians have started looking at places such as France and Kenya as well.

"Some domestic destinations, such as Kerala and Goa, have been sidelined because they are equally expensive. Italy, Switzerland, South Africa and Belgium are some newfound holiday places. Bollywood plays an important role in making Indians choose their holiday spot," said Rai.

Travel portals too believe that international travel is on an upswing. "Our outbound bookings have seen a growth of almost 20% over last year. The reason for the demand is manifold, but mainly it is the influence of the media in terms of movies, TV serials, print medium and also easily available travel deals. Holidays are no longer a rich man's prerogative. With the increase of affordable travel packages, low cost airlines, middle class families are also beginning to travel abroad," said Neelu Singh, COO of Ezeego1.com, a travel portal.

"The growth has been very encouraging and it is estimated that 11 million Indians are going to travel abroad by 2011. We have seen a growth of about 50% over last year, triggered by the economic well being of Indians," said Manoj Gursahani, founder and MD of Vamoosevacations.com.

31 July in The Sunday Guardian.

Canola oil is the new healthy cooking medium

Canola oil is the new favourite medium of cooking for chefs, in both five star hotels and street side eateries. Canola oil, a byproduct of mustard oil, reduces the risk of coronary heart diseases better than other oils, say neurologists.

"Canola oil has the best ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6 as compared to all cooking oils. Eating around 1-1/2 tablespoons (19 grams) of canola oil every day can reduce the risk of coronary heart disease," said Ravinderpal Singh Kohli, director of Jivo Wellness, a promoter and marketer of canola oil. Canola oil has the lowest percentage of saturated fats as compared to all other common oils such as coconut, groundnut, olive oil, soybean, sunflower, sesame, safflower and other hydrogenated vanaspati oils.

The oil has a premium of 20% over other oils. Five litres of canola oil will cost Rs 790, which makes it Rs 123 per litre. "Kolkata and the Northeast have seen a drastic shift from mustard to canola oil. As per market figures, almost 70% of people residing in these places have shifted to canola oil. We can help change around the health charts with canola oil because other oils have high Omega-6 concentration, which leads to coronary heart diseases and depression," Kohli added.

Doctors say that of all vegetable oils, canola oil has an excellent fatty acid profile. The content of unhealthy saturated fat is minimal and it is a rich source of healthy fat derived from different acids. "The oil has cardio protective properties that help reduce cholesterol and control diabetes. There have been cases where people have applied canola oil on their skin allergies and seen immediate healing. It also reduces aggression and irritable behaviour among children," said Dr Neelam Kaur, consultant and dean, faculty of health sciences, Akal University, Himachal Pradesh.

Canola oil is formed after mustard/rapeseeds are hybridised to reduce the levels of toxic erucic acid. Mustard oil contains 42% of erucic acid — reported to raise liver and heart lipid levels. Cases of dropsy have been reported in epidemic form due to adulteration of mustard oil with argemone oil. In case of canola oil, no cases of dropsy have been reported so far.

"Earlier we were using olive oil in each Gourmet but now we use canola oil. We are getting a good response from customers. Canola oil makes cooking easier as this is the only edible oil which has the highest smoke point of 450°F, ideal for deep frying. This results in lower oil retention in fried food," said chef Nataloni from Flavors of Italy in New Delhi.

31 July in The Sunday Guardian.

Doctors use new therapy to cure brain stroke

Indian doctors have started using "Bridging Thrombolysis" therapy to treat complex brain stroke patients, who otherwise can't be treated with conventional therapies. Thrombolysis is the breakdown (lysis) of blood clots by pharmacological means, also referred to as clot-busting.

The use of Thrombolysis came to light when Uday Singh, 50, was admitted to a hospital on 15 June after he suffered a brain stroke which normally leads to a partial paralysis. When he didn't respond to conventional method of treatment, the interventional cardiology team performed a different kind of operation "Bridging Thrombolysis" to clear the blocked arteries in the brain. Singh has now recovered completely. "I am leading a normal life again," said Singh. Dr Praveen Gupta, senior neurologist with Artemis Health Institute, Gurgaon who performed this operation believes that treatment of a stroke victim in the first three-five hours is most effective and improves the chances of reversing its effect on the brain.

"It is now one of the most common causes of disability with more than 70% of stroke survivors remaining vocationally impaired and approximately 3% requiring assistance with daily activities. There are risks involved with thrombolysis like bleeding in the brain tissues and 50-70% chances of paralysis only if the patient is not treated on time," added Dr Gupta.

Doctors say that awareness about strokes and its symptoms among physicians and commoners are essential.

"Patients do not realise that they are encountering a stroke and start eating self prescribed medicines. That is unsafe and finally when the patients come to us, after almost 10-16 hours, we lose the window in which we could have saved him from getting paralysed. Due to unhealthy lifestyle and health issues such as blood pressure, physical inactivity, smoking and high alcohol consumption strokes have become common," he said.

The cost for three types of thrombolysis, namely intra-venous, intra-arterial and mechanical, in the National Capital Region , range between Rs 50,000 to Rs 2,50,000.

24 July in The Sunday Guardian.

A floating club for Kolkata sky

Kolkata will soon have a floating skyclub hanging between two buildings at a height of 500 metres, a project which is being seen as a movement towards new age architectural aesthetics.

The Mobius principle will be applied to create the skyclub. A Mobius strip is like an infinite loop (imagine the figure eight like a spatial twist) with a "non-orientable" surface. This principle is used by architects to create "infinite space" as opposed to box like conventional structures. The skyclub's form will seem to be changing constantly, appearing sometimes solid, translucent or cloud-like from different angles. This 55,000 square feet floating club will have features like theatre, swimming pool, outdoor games such as badminton, tennis, basketball, etc., party halls, boardroom and many others.

Forum Projects, the real estate company building the skyclub for its maiden residential project Atmosphere, is calling it Deya.

"The luxury trend is at a nascent stage in India especially in Kolkata. The trend so far has been of villas and skyscrapers in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore," said Rahul Saraf, managing director, Forum Projects.

"We plan to have 1,200-1,500 square feet of terrace gardens. To ensure that the floating stretch remains intact, we will apply the cantilever mechanism. This means that the bridge will be built using cantilevers, structures that project horizontally into space, supported on only one end. Atmosphere will be completed by 2014," added Saraf.

Such luxury projects generally cost between Rs 550 cr and Rs 800 cr. "The area of the flats in our project will be between 6,000-8,000 square feet and the cost will be in the range of Rs 9-15 cr," said Saraf.

Other real estate developers believe that this is a positive step towards creating a separate category for luxury living, as super luxury apartments have a niche following. "People demand a complete range these days including swimming pool and garden. Such projects will boost luxury living. As far as architectural design is concerned, no technical difficulties can be expected because this is the era of advanced technology, which will help them build a unique structure," said Vishwa Sengupta, an architect with Ashiana Housing Limited, Mumbai.

"It is important for players to innovate and create new designs to lure buyers. But in the real estate sector duplication is very common, which might hamper the efforts of different companies and distract buyers," said Sneha Khullar an architect with Archi, a real estate company in Delhi.

17 July in The Sunday Guardian.

Real estate firms invest in retirement homes

Real estate developers are targeting the 60+age group for developing the American concept of retirement homes. 8.94% of the Indian population is above 60 years of age. The collapse of the traditional family support system and a growing number of nuclear families are said to be the reasons behind the success of these retirement homes. The occupancy rate is almost 90% in the retirement homes built by different players.

These housing colonies comprise individual houses and apartments with services provided to suit the needs of the aged. "The idea of a retirement home is to give the elderly a comfortable lifestyle after retirement. We offer an emergency care unit, state-of-the-art security and activity services. We also provide assistants for the elderly, who can help them walk, cook and perform other duties," said Ankur Gupta, joint managing director with Ashiana Housing Limited. Ashiana has two functional apartment blocks in Bhiwadi and Jaipur. The retirement homes in Bhiwadi range between Rs 18-22 lakh and the ones in Jaipur range between Rs 12-24 lakh. "The upcoming project in Lavasa, Mumbai will cost Rs 30-80 lakh," added Gupta. The living family should be above 55 years and relatives and other family members are allowed to stay for a brief period and only during holidays.

Other builders exploring this segment include Vivara Residences, Sobha Developers, Rakindo Group, Brigade Group, Paranjape Schemes and Riverdale Retirement Resorts Private Limited. Their projects are operational in Delhi, Pune, Bangalore, Chennai and Coimbatore.

Vivara Residences in Arpora, Goa, is expanding to Coorg (Karnataka), Kerala, Pondicherry, Shirdi, Rishikesh and Brindavan as well.

Vivara gives the benefit of refunding the full lease deposit amount it takes from the elderly. The resident will be required to pay a non-refundable monthly rent.

"There is a huge market for such homes and this trend will gain momentum in the next five years," said Heeron H.H. Fernandes of Vivara Residences.

10 July in The Sunday Guardian.

Vaginal rejuvenation surgery sees an increase of 20%

Vaginal rejuvenation procedures are becoming increasingly popular among women above the age of 25 years. Cosmetic surgeons say that there has been a 20% rise in the number of women undergoing anti ageing cosmetic surgeries such as vaginal tightening or vaginoplasty, hymenoplasty, de-hooding clitoris and rejuvenation in the last two years. This figure was provided by Dr Vipul Nanda, the head of plastic and reconstructive surgery at Artemis Health Institute, Gurgaon.

The most popular among these procedures are vaginal tightening and hymenoplasty, which is reconstruction of the hymen. These surgeries include giving fat injections into the labia majora which has thinned over the years, tightening of the muscles and restoring the vagina to its original shape for female sexual enhancement. Marriageable women who do not want to disclose to their husbands that have had affairs before are the ones undergoing hymenoplasty. The cost for such surgeries ranges between Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000.

"There are no fatal complications, but one has to be careful about the patient's health after the surgery. Slight bleeding and infection are common complications that women encounter. There are times when their expectations are unrealistic. We have to counsel them to make them understand the limitations and results that can be achieved," said Dr Nanda.

Some doctors believe that these surgeries do not have any side effects and are a necessity in the present world. "This is mainly a post pregnancy surgery. It is an extremely painful procedure and it is not meant for women below the age of 30 years. I get many patients in the age group of 23-26 years who are keen on this surgery because they are getting married and fear that their husbands will get to know of their previous affairs. But there are no risks or side effects whatsoever. The trend has mainly gained momentum in the age group of 30-32 years. On a yearly basis the demand for these surgeries grow by 10%," said Dr Amit Gupta, Consultant Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon, Gurgaon and Noida.

The three other private practitioners this newspaper spoke to, Dr Vinay Pathak, Dr Sheela Sharma and Dr Anup Dhir echoed their colleagues' words. All the surgeons said that lipo injection and rhinoplasty are two other cosmetic surgeries that have become popular among young women. Lipo injection is given for weight reduction and rhinoplasty is done to thin the nose.

3 July in The Sunday Guardian.