The Indian Army has played a significant role in the early development of our
branch. From 1947 to 1960, it was mostly British officers who practiced oral surgery.
In the late 1950s, Col. Madan came to the fore and he performed various surgeries
like Maxillofacial Trauma, Oral Malignancy, Orthognathic Surgery. Later,
Brig. S.C Anand carried the flag forward and trained numerous Oral and Maxillofacial
surgeons in the Army.
Formation of an Association is necessary for the progress of any specialty. It provides
the practitioners a platform to exchange thoughts and connect with each other as
well as a collective voice that can canvass the specific requirements of the specialty.
The Association was dominated by Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeons from Bombay, as
the two prime institutes, namely GDC & Nair, were located in that city. First
conference of the Association was held in 1968 in Bangalore. The second
was held in Bombay, but after a gap of 8 long years! Thereafter, the event has become
an annual fixture.
While the Association was growing, some doctors perceived a need for a mid-year
meeting aimed at specific target groups within the Association. The idea of a
mid-term conference was mooted by Dr Deepak Kulakrni in 1995-96. The
mid-term conference was intended for the PG students with a view to expose them
to the trends in the speciality and give them an opportunity to meet. The first
mid-term conference was successfully conducted at Pune in July 1996.
Dr. B Srinivasan was the President of the Association in that year.