About ISVS

Indian Society for Veterinary Surgery is one of the oldest veterinary societies and has its headquarter at Hisar. The idea of forming the organization of Veterinary Surgeons in the country was mooted in 1970 in one of the Summer Institutes in Surgery organized at Hisar under the leadership of Dr. R.P.S. Tyagi and Dr. J.M. Nigam, which was attended by eminent surgeons of that era viz. Dr. A. A. Khan (Bihar), Dr. Amresh Kumar (Uttar Pradesh), Dr. A.K. Bhargav (Rajasthan), Dr. S.J. Angelo (Uttar Pradesh), Dr. D.B. Mukherjee (West Bengal), Dr. D.S. Chauhan, (Rajasthan), Dr. Devendra Kumar (Uttar Pradesh), Dr. E. Rajendran (Tamil Nadu), Dr. Godfrey David (Tamil Nadu), Dr. H.N. Sharma (Assam), Dr. J. Mohanty (Orissa), Dr. M.B. Mantri (Maharashtra), Dr. M.L. Kudale, (Maharashtra), Dr. M.N. Mannari (Gujarat), Dr. M.R. Patel (Gujarat), Dr. P.E. Kulkarni (Maharashtra), Dr. P.O. George (Kerala), Dr. R.N. Kohli (Punjab), then Maj. R.N. Kakkar, Maj. R.N. Choudhary, Dr. R.N.L. Rao (Andhra Pradesh), Dr. S.S. Rathor (Rajasthan) and Dr. S.K. Pandey (Madhya Pradesh). The rules and regulations of the society were framed. The first Executive Committee was elected in October, 1977 and the birth of Indian Society of Veterinary Surgery took place, with Dr. R.P.S. Tyagi as President, Dr. M.N. Mannari, Vice President, Dr. J.M. Nigam, Secretary; Dr. I.S. Chandna, Treasurer; Dr. P.E. Kulkarni, Joint Secretary, Dr. Amresh Kumar, Editor and four Zonal Secretaries with its Head Quarters at Hisar (Haryana) and Editorial Office at Pantnagar (Uttar Pradesh). The society was registered by the Registrar of Societies, Haryana vide Registration Certificate No. 17 of 1978-79, dated 18th April 1978. The competition for Society’s insignia was organized and the Insignia designed by Mr. S.I. Choudhary of Pantnagar was adjudged the best and was thus adopted, which is now being used in all the correspondence and publications of the Society.

During its formative years Dr. J.M. Nigam, Executive Secretary played a very significant role and then Dr. A.P. Singh, as Executive Secretary, further strengthened the organization and played a pivotal role. Dr. S.K. Chawla has served the society as Treasurer for more than 25 years and has been instrumental in strengthening the financial position of the society. In order to propagate the aims and objectives of the society and disseminate the information on organization of professional activities in different regions and to brief the members about the recent developments in the field of Veterinary Surgery, the publication of an ISVS Newsletter was started in 1978 from Pantnagar. The first issue of the Newsletter was published in March, 1978 and it was circulated among all the members. In 1980, the first issue of Indian Journal of Veterinary Surgery was published from Pantnagar with Dr. Amresh Kumar as Chief Editor. In 1991, Dr. Gajraj Singh took the baton from him and remained its Chief Editor till 2014. In 2015, Dr. Amarpal took over from him and the ISVS Journal has been published uninterruptedly from 1980 till date. Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi had provided financial assistance for its publication.

The scope of the society was extended by initiation of some local chapters with the objectives of the organization of symposia, clinical camps, awareness programmes for the farmers. In the beginning, local chapters were started at Madras, Bhubneshwar, Pantnagar, IVRI Izatnagar but at present, only two local chapters of the society; one at Nasik (Maharashtra) and another at Trichur (Kerala) are extending the objectives of the society. The society is having its website, www.isvs.in, with comprehensive information about the members and activities of the society.

The society has been organizing its Annual Congress and National Symposia since 1977, first at Hisar, second at Pantnagar, third at Madras and fourth at Ranchi and so on from one corner of the country to another viz. Anand, Bidar, Bombay, Bikaner, Bhubneswar, Bangalore, Kolkata, Izatnagar, Guwahati, Jabalpur, Jammu, Ludhiana, Mathura, Nagpur, Namakkal, Navsari, Palampur, Parbhani, Pudducherry, Ranchi, Srinagar, Tirupati, Trichur. At some places the Annual Congress has been conducted twice or thrice as well. Heartiest congratulations to ever enthusiastic members of society for organizing symposia and other professional activities.

In the beginning years, the running of the organization was a very difficult task. The members used to collect the donations by organizing Animal Health Camps, distributing Society’s flags, ties, scooter/car stickers etc. The number of members of the society has increased from 60 in 1977 to 2442 life members in 2019.

Fellowship of the Society (FISVS) is the most prestigious award conferred by the Society to its Life Members in recognition to their outstanding achievements in the field of Veterinary Surgery and Radiology. ISVS also confers memorial awards and oration awards christened in the names of eminent veterinary surgeons viz., Dr. Ratan Singh Memorial Award, Dr. A.K. Bhargava Memorial Award, Dr. I.S. Chandna Memorial Award, Dr. R.P.S. Tyagi Oration Award, Dr. P.E. Kulkarni Oration Award, Dr. O. Ramakrishna Oration Award for their overall contributions in the field of Veterinary Surgery and Radiology. Other Awards conferred by the society are Young Surgeon Award, M.R. Patel Best Field Veterinarian Award, Best Clinician Award, Gold Medal and Appreciation Award for Best Presentations in Technical Sessions.

The society is doing yeoman service to the Veterinary Profession in general and Veterinary Surgery in particular. In order to further the objective of the society, it is proposed to organize surgical/diagnostic training on recent advances to the veterinarians at its Annual Congress and organize specialty groups in different areas of Veterinary Surgery and have its own Academy, which can inform and guide the members on recent developments. It will work as torch bearer of the society. The Academy would also publish the specialty bulletins on emerging topics from time to time for the benefit of the members of the society. Inter-disciplinary approach is the need of hour. Therefore, the interaction with the eminent medical professionals, biotechnologists, bioengineers etc. may also be arranged during the annual conference. The society will also undertake practical surgical training on diagnostics and other techniques for the field veterinary surgeons to improve their professional competence.