Representatives from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Society for Burn Injuries (ISBI) will participate in the three-day Asia Pacific Burns Congress, to be hosted at the hospital from January 17-20.

In the blue print of the programme sent to the Health Ministry for consideration, the ISBI has recommended a central registry for burn injuries.

“Diseases like TB and HIV are given priority because there are numbers backing them. Similarly, we need real time data to focus on the epidemic of burn injuries in our country,” Dr Rajeev Ahuja, secretary, ISBI, said.

Specialists have suggested that a ‘Burns Protection Act’ be established to focus on research on cost-effective treatment modalities.

During the three-day academic and interactive session, experts will discuss various prevention programmes. “Burn injuries primarily occur among the poor. It’s mainly a problem in the developing world. Lack of infrastructure and trained professionals, unavailability of affordable drugs or equipment are the reasons for high cases of burn injuries in developing countries,” Dr Ahuja said.

The medical fraternity says lack of political support at the national level has ensured that the problem remains unaddressed.