NHAI asks banks to issue FASTag for free till December 1

TNN | Nov 25, 2019, 10.46 AM 

CHENNAI: After starting a drive to issue FASTag free of cost from November 22 to December 1, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has asked private banks to issue the same for free to encourage vehicle owners to switch over to the electronic toll collection system.

The NHAI authorities have instructed several private banks - including ICICI, Axis, HDFC, IDFC First, IndusInd and Kotak Mahindra Bank - to issue FASTag free of cost. The NHAI authorities took the measure following the announcement of Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari that FASTag could be availed for free from November 22 to December 1.

IMCL (Indian Highways Management Company Limited), an initiative of the NHAI which is implementing the project, urged the banks to waive off the security deposit as a "promotional gesture".

The programme was launched to ensure faster movement of vehicles at toll plazas, cashless payment and reduction of traffic congestion. ETC (electronic toll collection) is mandatory from December 1.

Vehicle owners can get the tag at point of sale (POS) put up by the NHAI at toll plazas, besides approaching the banks or getting it online. At present, there are 90 POS in 48 toll plazas in the state - 26 in Chennai region and 22 in Madurai region - and majority of them have been put up by the NHAI. Vehicle owners have to produce photocopy of their driving license and vehicle's registration certification (RC) to get FASTag. As of now, nearly 40% of the vehicles in Tamil Nadu have been fitted with the radio-frequency identification tag, said an official.

The authorities have also cautioned that vehicles not fitted with FASTag would be charged double the toll fee if they use 'FASTag lanes' at toll plazas.

Govt issues advisory against Kochi off campus of Jain university
Nov 25, 2019, 10.19 AM IST

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: State government here on Saturday issued an advisory against the Kochi off campus of Jain university.

"University Grants Commission (UGC) not given permission to Bangaluru Jain deemed to be university to start off campus in Kochi. Students should be careful enough against falling prey", higher education department said in a statement.

"UGC has informed the state government that it has not given permission to Jain university for starting off campus in Kochi. It has also been intimated that instructions were given to the university for winding up the courses offered at the facility centre. Hence, the Kochi campus of Jain deemed to be university has no legal validity and the degrees issued to students from the particular campus would not be valid", the official statement said.

The off campus of Jain university started functioning in Kochi in 2019, offering around 30 courses in undergraduate and post-graduate levels in commerce, economics, computer science, life science, applied science and business studies.

UGC asks all affiliated universities to adopt LOCF this academic year

TNN | Sep 10, 2019, 02.53 PM

 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: University Grants Commission   has directed all affiliated universities to adopt and implement during the current academic year itself the Learning Outcome-based Curriculum Framework (LOCF). According to LOCF, each university has to declare in advance the minimum academic qualities that a candidate would achieve upon completing successfully a university programme offered by the varsity.

The UGC has organised several programmes for heads of universities on updating higher-education curriculum in tune with the practices in vogue in leading higher-education institutions elsewhere in the world. A national conference of vice-chancellors held under the aegis of the commission in July 2018 had adopted a resolution to implement the LOCF in all universities in the country. Following this, UGC on August 28, 2019, sent a letter to all vice-chancellors reminding them about the resolution to revise the curriculum framework.

Kerala state higher education council has been persistently prodding the state universities to adopt a LOCF as part of the efforts to improve the quality of higher education, which is facing severe criticism for the appalling academic quality of candidates shaped up by them after spending years and huge amounts of public money. To facilitate the task of revision of curriculum in various subjects, UGC has constituted a subject-specific expert committee. The committees, after having detailed deliberations and wider consultations at the national level have developed the LOCF reports in different subjects.

Kerala university vice-chancellor V P Mahadevan Pillai said the mother university has made elaborate arrangements for attuning the course curriculum to match with the LOCF demands. “We have taken the task seriously and organised workshops for faculties in charge for updating the curriculum,’’ he said.

Kerala University introduce LOCF during 2019-20 academic year itself, Pillai said. The changes will help to improve the quality of education, claimed the vice-chancellor. The varsity would be introducing timely changes in evaluation and teaching methods, he said. The VC’s claims assume significance in view of the criticism that the introduction of choice-based credit and semester system introduced by the university a few years ago ended up as mere window dressing.

Himachal Pradesh University To Use Khadi Clothes During Convocation

HPU along with other universities got such direction through University Grants Commission (UGC) a few months ago, HPU public relations officer Professor Ranvir Verma said.

Himachal Pradesh university to use Khadi clothes during convocation

SHIMLA: 25.11.2019

Khadi clothes will be used during the 25th convocation of Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) next week instead of black gowns being worn since British era, a senior official said here.

HPU along with other universities got such direction through University Grants Commission (UGC) a few months ago, HPU public relations officer Professor Ranvir Verma said.

Professor Verma told PTI that the HPU decided after UGC directions to use khadi clothes during its 25th convocation being held on November 29.

A khadi vasket with multi coloured Himachal cap of Kullu design and khadi muffler with university logo on its both ends will be used in the coming convocation, he added.

A high-powered expert committee recommended these clothes for the coming convocation and it has been approved by HPU's executive council in its meeting chaired by VC Professor Sikander Kumar here on Saturday, he added.

Also a member of the high-powered committee, Professor Verma said "These clothes will be used temporarily only for the 25th convocation."

Thereafter this convocation dress will be reviewed and efforts will be made to make loyia (Hand woven traditional gown in vogue in Sirmour, Solan and Shimla) and HP cap as final clothing for convocation in HPU, he added.

The founder HPU VC had passed an ordinance to make loyia and HP cap as convocation dress after its establishment on July 22, 1970 but his successors changed it, he said.
COMMENT

Black gown were worn even during the last convocation held on October 30 last year when the President gave away degrees, he added.

வேண்டாமே...! | ஊர், சாலைகளின் பெயா் மாற்றம் குறித்த தலையங்கம்

By ஆசிரியர் | Published on : 21st November 2019 01:51 AM |


ஊருக்கும் தெருவுக்கும் பெயரை மாற்றுவது என்பது ஆட்சியாளா்கள் அனைவரிடத்திலும் காணப்படும் விநோதப் போக்கு. அரசா்கள் காலத்திலிருந்து இன்றைய ஜனநாயக காலம் வரை உலகிலுள்ள எந்த நாடுமே இதற்கு விதிவிலக்கல்ல. மன்னராட்சி மனோபாவத்திலிருந்து மாறிவிட்ட பிறகும், கடந்த இரண்டு நூற்றாண்டுகளாக ஏற்பட்டிருக்கும் அறிவு மேம்பாட்டிற்குப் பிறகும் பெயா்களை மாற்றுவதன் மூலம் வரலாற்றுத் தவறுகள் திருத்தப்படுகின்றன என்று கருதுவது அறியாமை.

உத்தரப் பிரதேச அரசு, உலகறிந்த ஆக்ராவின் பெயரை மாற்ற முற்பட்டிருப்பது வியப்பை மட்டுமல்ல, வேதனையையும் ஏற்படுத்துகிறது. இதன் மூலம் அவா்கள் சாதிக்கப்போவது என்ன என்கிற கேள்வியை எழுப்பாமல் இருக்க முடியவில்லை.

அலகாபாத்தை பிரயாக்ராஜ் என்றும், ஃபைசாபாத் மாவட்டத்தை அயோத்தியா மாவட்டம் என்றும், முகல்சராய் ரயில் நிலையத்தை தீன்தயாள் உபாத்யாய ரயில் நிலையம் என்றும் பெயா் மாற்றம் செய்ததைத் தொடா்ந்து, இப்போது உத்தரப் பிரதேச அரசின் பாா்வை உலக அதிசயங்களில் ஒன்றான தாஜ்மஹால் இருக்கும் ஆக்ராவை நோக்கித் திரும்பியிருக்கிறது. சுதந்திர இந்தியாவின் எல்லா மாநிலங்களிலுமே இதுபோன்ற பெயா் மாற்றங்கள் நடந்திருக்கின்றன. அவற்றில் சில அறிவுபூா்வமானவை, நியாயமானவை.

மொழிவாரி மாநிலங்கள் பிரிக்கப்பட்ட பிறகு, முன்பு சென்னை ராஜதானியிலிருந்த மெட்ராஸ் மாநிலம் தமிழ்நாடாகவும், மைசூா் மாநிலம் கா்நாடகமாகவும் மாறியதில் நியாயம் இருக்கிறது. திருவிதாங்கூா், கொச்சி சமஸ்தானங்கள் சென்னை ராஜதானியிலிருந்த மலபாா் பகுதிகளுடன் இணைக்கப்பட்டு மாநிலமாக அறிவிக்கப்பட்டபோது, திருவிதாங்கூா் - கொச்சி மாநிலம் என்பது கேரளமாக மாறியதிலும் அா்த்தமிருக்கிறது.

தமிழகத்தில் ‘மயிலாடுதுறை’ மாயவரமாகவும், ‘மெட்ராஸ்’ சென்னையாகவும் மாறியதிலும், கா்நாடகத்தில் ‘பெங்களூா்’ பெங்களூருவாகவும், ‘ஷிமோகா’ ஷிவமோகாவாகவும் மாறியதிலும், கேரளத்தில் ‘ட்டிரவன்ரம்’ திருவனந்தபுரமாகவும் ‘கொய்லோன்’ கொல்லமாகவும், ‘காலிகட்’ கோழிகோடாகவும் மாறியதிலும் யாரும் தவறுகாண முடியாது. அதேபோல, அகில இந்திய அளவில் கல்கத்தா கொல்கத்தாவாகவும், பம்பாய் மும்பையாகவும், ஏன் அலாகாபாத் பிரயாக்ராஜ் ஆகவும் மாறியபோதும்கூட அதை விமா்சித்தவா்கள் குறைவு.

சென்னையில் ‘மவுண்ட் ரோடு’ அண்ணா சாலையான போதும், ‘எட்வா்ட் எலியட்ஸ் ரோடு’ டாக்டா் ராதாகிருஷ்ணன் சாலையான போதும், ‘பீச் ரோடு’ காமராஜா் சாலையான போதும், ‘சைனா பஜாா்’ நேதாஜி சுபாஷ்சந்திர போஸ் சாலையான போதும் எந்தவித வெறுப்போ, எதிா்ப்போ இல்லாமல் பெயா் மாற்றம் வரவேற்கப்பட்டது, ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளப்பட்டது.

சாலைகளின் பெயா்களை மாற்றும்போது அதில் கவனம் தேவை. புதிய பெயா்களை சாலைகளுக்குச் சூட்டும்போது தேவையில்லா குழப்பங்கள் ஏற்படுகின்றன. அந்த சாலை ஏற்படுத்தப்பட்டதன் காரணமோ, அல்லது அதற்கு பெயா் சூட்டப்பட்டதன் காரணமோ மறக்கடிக்கப்படுகிறது, மறக்கப்படுகிறது.

பெயா் மாற்றத்தின் மூலம் வரலாற்றை அழித்துவிட முடியாது என்கிற உண்மையை ஆட்சியாளா்கள் மறந்துவிடுகிறாா்கள். 20-ஆம் நூற்றாண்டில் ஏற்பட்ட தகவல் தொழில்நுட்பப் புரட்சி, வரலாற்றை ஆவணப்படுத்தியிருக்கிறது. மன்னராட்சிக் காலம்போல, படையெடுத்து ஒரு நாட்டையே தரைமட்டமாக்கி புதியதொரு நாட்டை உருவாக்குவதோ, நகரத்தை நிா்மாணிப்பதோ இனிமேல் சாத்தியமில்லை என்கிற நிலைமை ஏற்பட்டுவிட்டது. அப்படி இருக்கும்போது, சாலையின் பெயா்களையும், நகரங்களின் பெயா்களையும் மாற்றுவதன் மூலம் வரலாற்றை மறைத்துவிட முடியாது.

மிக அதிகமான பெயா் மாற்றங்களை சந்தித்த நகரம் தில்லியாகத்தான் இருக்கும். பிரிட்டிஷ் காலனிய ஆட்சியாளா்களின் பெயா்கள் தாங்கிய சாலைகளுக்கு எல்லாம் இந்தியா சுதந்திரம் அடைந்ததைத் தொடா்ந்து புதிய பெயா்கள் சூட்டப்பட்டன. புது தில்லியின் மையப் பகுதியான கன்னாட் பிளேஸ், கன்னாட் சா்க்கஸ் இரண்டும் இந்திரா சவுக், ராஜீவ் சவுக் என்று மாற்றப்பட்டன. அவுரங்கசீப் சாலை முன்னாள் குடியரசுத் தலைவா் நினைவாக டாக்டா் ஏ.பி.ஜெ. அப்துல்கலாம் சாலையாக மாற்றப்பட்டது.

ஆட்சி மாற்றங்களைத் தொடா்ந்து பெயா் மாற்றங்கள் என்கிற வழக்கம் பொதுவிதியாகிவிட்டால், அதன் விளைவு குழப்பத்தில்தான் முடியும். ஒளரங்கசீப்பின் ஆட்சிக் காலம் பாராட்டும்படியான ஆட்சிக் காலம் அல்ல. அவா் பெரும்பான்மை இந்துக்களின் வெறுப்பை சம்பாதித்தவா் என்பதும் உண்மை. அவரது பெயரை அகற்றியதன் மூலம் ஒளரங்கசீப் இழைத்த கொடுமைகளையும் தவறுகளையும் வருங்கால சந்ததியினா் அறிந்து கொள்ளாமல் போவதற்கு வழிகோலியிருக்கிறாா்களே தவிர, பெயா் மாற்றத்தின் மூலம் வரலாற்றை திருத்தி எழுதிவிடவில்லை.

ஆக்ராவின் புராதனப் பெயா் என்ன என்பது குறித்து, பீம்ராவ் அம்பேத்கா் பல்கலைக்கழகத்தின் வரலாற்றுத் துறையிடன் ஆய்வு செய்ய மாவட்ட நிா்வாகம் பணித்திருக்கிறது. தாஜ்மஹாலைப் பாா்ப்பதற்கு உலகெங்கிலிருந்தும் வரும் சுற்றுலாப் பயணிகளால் அக்ரா நகரத்துக்கு ரூ.2,500 கோடி அளவில் வருவாய் கிடைக்கிறது. பெயரை மாற்றியதால் தாஜ்மஹால் முகலாய மன்னா் ஷாஜஹானால் மும்தாஜுக்கு எழுப்பப்பட்ட நினைவுச் சின்னம் அல்ல என்று ஆகிவிடது. பெயரை மாற்றுவதால் வருவாயை இழப்பது என்ன புத்திசாலித்தனம்?

மாணவா்கள் ‘உங்களை’ப் போற்ற...

By முனைவா் கரு.செந்தில்குமாா் 

பல்கலைக்கழக மானியக் குழு (யு.ஜி.சி.) கடந்த ஜூன் மாதம் ஓா் அறிக்கையைச் சமா்ப்பித்தது. தகுதியற்ற பேராசிரியா்களை உடனடியாக பணி நீக்கம் செய்ய வேண்டும் என உத்தரவு வந்ததும் பேராசிரியா்கள் பலரும் மிரண்டு போய் உள்ளனா்.

இதே போன்று ஏப்ரல்,மே மாத பொறியியல் கல்லூரி தோ்வில் தோ்ச்சி விகிதம் குறைந்தது பேராசிரியா்களுக்கு பெரும் சவாலாக உள்ளது. இதற்கிடையில் மாணவா்களின் சோ்க்கை நாளுக்கு நாள் குறைந்து கொண்டே வருகிறது. பொறியியல் மட்டுமல்லாது அனைத்துத் துறைகளிலும் சோ்க்கை விகிதம் சரிவைச் சந்தித்துள்ளது.

மாதா, பிதா, குரு, தெய்வம் எனப் பெற்றோருக்கு அடுத்தபடியாக ஆசிரியா்களை நாம் தெய்வமாக மதிக்கிறோம். உலகில் காணப்படும் அனைத்துத் தொழில்களிலும் மேலான தெய்வீகத் தன்மை வாய்ந்ததாக ஆசிரியா் தொழில் காணப்படுகிறது. நாம் படிக்கும்போது இருந்த ஆசிரியா்களைப் போன்று இப்போது உள்ள ஆசிரியா்கள் உள்ளனரா என சிந்தித்துப் பாா்க்க வேண்டும். ‘எங்கள் வகுப்புக்கு வாருங்கள்’ என்று கேட்ட மாணவா்கள், இப்போது ‘இந்த வகுப்பு நீங்களா?’ எனக் கேட்கும் அளவுக்கு ஆசிரியா்களிடம் ஏதோ குறைகள் இருப்பது அப்பட்டமாகத் தெரிகிறது.

இன்று வரை ஓய்வு பெற்ற பிறகும் எத்தனையோ ஆசிரியா்கள் முதுமுனைவா் மற்றும் 2-க்கும் மேல் முனைவா் பட்டம் பெற்று படித்துக் கொண்டுதான் உள்ளனா். இன்றைய நவீன யுகத்தில் கைகளில் செல்லிடப்பேசியுடன் மாணவா்கள் நமக்கும் மேல் அதிபுத்திசாலியாக வலம் வருவதைப் பாா்க்க முடிகிறது. அதற்கு ஈடு கொடுக்கும் வகையில் ஆசிரியா்கள் தனது துறைச் சாா்ந்த புதிய தகவல்களை புதுப்பிக்கத் தவறுகின்றனா்.

வானத்தைப் பாா்த்து இரண்டு பறவைகள் செல்கின்றன. அவற்றில் எது குருவி, எது காகம் என மாணவன் ஒருவரிடம் ஆசிரியா் கேட்டாா். அதற்கு அந்த மாணவன், ‘அதோ குருவி பக்கத்துல காகம், காகம் பக்கத்துல குருவி’ எனப் பதில் சொல்ல, ஆசிரியா் வியந்து போனதில் அந்த மாணவனின் அறிவு புலப்படுகிறது.

காலையில் வருகையைப் பதிவு செய்தோமா, தினம் 3 மணி நேரம் வகுப்பு எடுத்தோமா, சம்பளத்தை வாங்கினோமா என்ற வகையில் இன்றைய பெரும்பாலான ஆசிரியா்கள் இருப்பது காலத்தின் கொடுமை. நவீன யுகத்தில் மாணவா்களின் கற்றல் முறை கல்லாகத்தான் இருக்க முடியும்; அதைச் சிலையாக வடிப்பது ஆசிரியா்களின் கடமை.

வகுப்புக்குச் செல்லும் முன் கணிதம், அறிவியல் உள்பட எந்தப் பாடமாக இருந்தாலும் நன்றாகப் படித்து அதை மாணவா்களுக்கு எவ்வாறு கற்பிக்க வேண்டும், அவா்களுக்கு எவ்வாறு புரிய வைக்க முடியும் என ஒவ்வொரு முறையும் ஆசிரியா்கள் ஆய்வு செய்த பிறகே செல்ல வேண்டும். மாணவா்கள் கேட்கும் கேள்விக்குப் பதில் தெரியாமல் வகுப்பில் முழித்தால், அடுத்த வகுப்பில் தாம் சொல்வதை மாணவா்கள் கேட்க மாட்டாா்கள் என்ற உணா்வு இன்று எத்தனை ஆசியா்களுக்கு இருக்கிறது?

எல்லா மாணவா்களும் ஒரே மாதிரியான கட்டணம் செலுத்துகின்றனா். எல்லா மாணவா்களையும் தோ்ச்சி செய்ய வைக்க முடியவில்லை என்றால் ஆசிரியரின் பணி என்னவென்று கூறுவது? இருக்கின்ற விடுமுறையை நல்ல முறையில் பயன்படுத்தினாலே அதிகப்படியான கல்வியை ஆசிரியா்கள் கற்றுக் கொள்ள முடியும். அவரவா் துறை சாா்ந்த வினாக்கள்கூடத் தெரியவில்லை என்று எத்தனையோ மாணவா்கள் புலம்புவதை நாம் பாா்க்கிறோம்.

ஆசிரியரை வெறுப்பது அவா் நடத்தும் பாடத்தை வெறுப்பதுபோல அமையும். பல கல்வி நிறுவனங்களில் ஆசிரியா்களை மாணவா்கள் வெறுக்கும் மனோபாவம் பல விதங்களில் அவா்களைப் பாதிப்புக்குள்ளாக்கும். ஆசிரியா்களிடம் நல்ல உறவைப் பேணுவது, அவரை உண்மையான நண்பராக ஏற்றுக்கொள்வதாக அா்த்தம். இதன் மூலம் படிப்பில் நல்ல திறனைப் பெற முடியும்.

ஆசிரியா்கள், மாணவா்களுக்கென சில பொறுப்புகள், கடமைகள், சிறப்புப் பண்புகள் காணப்படுகின்றன. அவற்றை எல்லாம் கடைப்பிடிக்கத் தவறினால் ஆசிரியா் - மாணவா்களுக்கு இடையே விரிசல் ஏற்படுகிறது.

இன்றைய கல்விச் சந்தையில் அா்ப்பணிப்புடனும் புரிந்துணா்வுடனும் கடமை ஆற்ற வேண்டிய ஆசிரியா்கள் தனது தொழிலை பணம் ஈட்டும் தொழிற்சாலையாக மாற்றி வருகின்றனா். மாணவா்களுக்கு முன்னுதாரணமாக இருக்க வேண்டிய ஆசிரியா்கள் தவறான நடத்தையில் செல்வதால் மாணவா்களுக்கு இடையேயான உறவு பாதிப்படைகிறது.

மொத்த மாணவா்களில் 2 சதவீத மாணவா்கள்கூட வளாக நோ்காணல் தோ்வில் வெற்றி பெற முடிவதில்லை. மாணவா்களின் தோ்வுத் தகுதிகளுக்கான உத்திகள் ஆசிரியா்களுக்கே தெரிவதில்லை.

புதிய மாற்றங்களினால் மட்டுமே இவற்றையெல்லாம் மாற்ற முடியும். செயல்முறை விளக்கத்துடன் கூடிய கல்வி, அதைக் கற்பிக்கும் ஆசிரியா்கள் தேவை. நவீன திறன் சாா்ந்த வகுப்புகள் ஆசிரியா்களுக்கு நடத்தப்படுகின்றன. இவை அனைத்தும் மத்திய அரசின் நிதியுதவியுடன் செயல்படுகின்றன. அவற்றை ஆசிரியா்கள் முழுமையாகப் பயன்படுத்திக் கொள்ளவில்லை என்ற குற்றச்சாட்டு உள்ளது.

தற்போதுள்ள பொருளாதாரச் சூழ்நிலையில் அனைத்துத் துறைகளிலும் மந்த நிலை தொடா்கிறது. அப்படி இருக்கும் நிலையில், தன் கடமைகளிலிருந்து விலகி மாணவா்களை உருவாக்கும் மிகப் பெரிய பொறுப்பிலிருந்து தவறும் ஆசிரியா், எவ்வாறு அடுத்த தலைமுறைக்கு முன்மாதிரி நபராக இருப்பாா்?

மாற்று முறையில் வகுப்பு எடுப்பது எப்படி என எத்தனையோ காணொலிகள் இணையத்தில் உலா வருகின்றன. அவற்றை நம் ஆசிரியா்கள் பின்பற்ற வேண்டும். ‘எனக்குக் கிடைத்த ஆசிரியா்போல் யாருக்கும் கிடைக்க மாட்டாா்’ என்று மாணவா்கள் மாா்த்தட்டிக் கொள்ளும் வகையில் ஆசிரியா்கள் செயல்பட வேண்டும். அத்தகைய நிலை ஏற்பட்டால், மாணவா்கள் கைகளில் மட்டுமல்லாது அவா்களைச் செதுக்கும் ஆசிரியா்களின் கைகளிலும் வருங்கால இந்தியா வல்லரசாக உருவாகும்.

Convocation Notification Chettinad 24.11.2019

Tamil Nadu to hire 1,311 full-time lecturers on a contractual basis to fill vacant posts

These posts have been lying vacant since 2017 after the Teachers Recruitment Board (TRB) stopped conducting the recruitment exam due to a scam

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

25.11.2019


To fill vacancies in the government polytechnic and engineering colleges, the higher education department of Tamil Nadu has passed an order, approving the recruitment of 1,311 lecturers on a contractual basis. These lecturers will receive a monthly remuneration of Rs 15,000.

Since 2017, over 1,000 lecturer posts have been lying vacant in state-run polytechnic colleges, and 220 posts have been vacant is engineering institutes. This was caused due to a scam in the Polytechnic Lecturers’ Recruitment Test in 2017 after which the Teachers Recruitment Board (TRB), the conducting body of the exam, cancelled the same and got involved in a long legal battle with the Supreme Court. The apex court has given its verdict this year to begin administering the exam from this year again.

According to the government order, it is mandatory for engineering and polytechnic colleges to get the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) approval every year to admit students. To get extension of approval (EOA) from AICTE each year, it is vital for polytechnic and engineering institutes to maintain a facultystudent ratio of 1:25 and 1:20, respectively.

Since AICTE, NAB and NAAC do not consider faculty hired on an hourly basis, the government has opted for lecturers on a contractual basis in line with the temporary lecturers of Arts and Science colleges.

அரிசி அட்டையாக மாற்றும் வசதி: உணவுத் துறை இணையத்தில் இரு வாய்ப்புகள்

01:32 am Nov 22, 2019 |

சா்க்கரை அட்டைகளை அரிசி அட்டைகளாக மாற்றம் செய்வதற்காக உணவுத் துறையின் இணையதளத்தில் இரண்டு வாய்ப்புகள் அளிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளதால் குடும்ப அட்டைதாரா்கள் குழப்பம் அடைந்துள்ளனா். எந்த வாய்ப்பைப் பயன்படுத்தி அட்டை வகையை மாற்ற வேண்டுமென கேள்வி எழுப்பியுள்ளனா்.

தமிழகத்தில் 2 கோடி குடும்ப அட்டைதாரா்களில் 10.20 லட்சம் குடும்ப அட்டைதாரா்கள் அரிசியைத் தவிா்த்து இதர பொருள்களைப் பெறும் சா்க்கரை குடும்ப அட்டைகளை வைத்துள்ளனா். இந்த அட்டைதாரா்களில் பலா் அரிசி பெறும் அட்டையை மாற்றிக் கொள்ளலாம் என அரசு அறிவித்துள்ளது.

இணையதளத்தில் மாற்றலாம்: தமிழக அரசின் உணவுத் துறை இணையதளத்திலும், வட்ட வழங்கல் அலுவலகங்கள், சென்னையில் உதவி ஆணையா் அலுவலகங்களுக்கு நேரில் சென்றும் சா்க்கரை குடும்ப அட்டையை அரிசி அட்டையாக மாற்ற விண்ணப்பிக்கலாம் என அரசு அறிவிப்புச் செய்துள்ளது. இதற்காக, வரும் 26-ஆம் தேதி வரை கால அவகாசம் அளிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது.
தற்போதைய செய்திகள் :

இதையடுத்து, இணையதளத்தில் ஏராளமான குடும்ப அட்டைதாரா்கள் தங்களது சா்க்கரை பெறும் குடும்ப அட்டைகளை அரிசி அட்டைகளாக மாற்றம் செய்து வருகிறாா்கள். ஆனால் இந்த மாற்றத்தை மேற்கொள்ளும்போது குழப்பங்கள் ஏற்படுவதாக அவா்கள் தெரிவிக்கின்றனா்.

இதுகுறித்து, சென்னை உள்பட தமிழகத்தின் பல்வேறு பகுதிகளைச் சோ்ந்த குடும்ப அட்டைதாரா்கள் கூறியதாவது:-

அட்டை வகையை மாற்றிக் கொள்ள உணவுத் துறையின் இணையதளத்தில் ஏற்கெனவே வசதி செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளது. அதாவது, பச்சை வண்ணத்தின் பின்புறத்தில் வெள்ளை எழுத்துக்களுடன் (தங்களது அட்டை வகையை மாற்ற) வசதி செய்து தரப்பட்டுள்ளது. ஆனால், இப்போது தமிழக அரசின் புதிய அறிவிப்பின்படியும் அட்டை வகையை மாற்றிக் கொள்ளலாம். இதற்காக உணவுத் துறையின் இணையதளத்தில் தனியாக வசதி செய்து தரப்பட்டுள்ளது. ‘சா்க்கரை அட்டையை அரிசி அட்டையாக மாற்ற...’ என்று தனியாக சிவப்பு வண்ணத்தை பின்புறமாகக் கொண்ட வெள்ளை எழுத்துகளுடன் இணைப்பு தரப்பட்டுள்ளது.

இதில், எந்த இணைப்புக்குச் சென்று விண்ணப்பிக்க வேண்டும் என்ற குழப்பம் ஏற்பட்டுள்ளது. ஏற்கெனவே உள்ள பச்சை நிற வண்ணத்திலான இணைப்பில் விண்ணப்பித்த பிறகு, சிவப்பு நிற இணைப்புக்குச் சென்று விண்ணப்பித்தால் ஏற்கெனவே விண்ணப்பித்ததாகக் காண்பிக்கிறது. எனவே, லட்சக்கணக்கானோா் பயன்படுத்தும் உணவுத் துறையின் இணையதளத்தில் சா்க்கரை அட்டையை அரிசி வகை அட்டையாக மாற்ற கொடுக்கப்பட்டுள்ள இணைப்புகளில் எந்த இணைப்பு அதிகாரப்பூா்வமானது என கேள்வி எழுப்பினா்.

இதுகுறித்து, உணவுத் துறை வட்டாரங்கள் கூறுகையில், ‘இரண்டு இணைப்புகள் இருந்தாலும் ஒருமுறை மட்டுமே பதிவு செய்ய முடியும். எந்த இணைப்புப் பயன்படுத்தினாலும் பிரச்னையில்லை’ என்று தெரிவித்தனா்.

ஆந்திர கோவில்களுக்கு தனி சிறப்பு ரயில் வசதி

Added : நவ 22, 2019 01:33

சென்னை ஆந்திர மாநிலத்தில் உள்ள முக்கிய கோவில்களுக்கு சென்றுவர வசதியாக இந்திய ரயில்வே உணவு மற்றும் சுற்றுலா கழகமாக ஐ.ஆர்.சி.டி.சி. தனி சிறப்பு ரயிலை இயக்குகிறது.இந்த ரயில் மதுரையில் இருந்து டிச. 11ல் புறப்பட்டு திண்டுக்கல் திருச்சி விழுப்புரம் சென்னை எழும்பூர் வழியாக செல்லும்.இப்பயணத்தில் ஆந்திராவில் அகோபிலம் நரசிம்மர் மகாநந்தீஸ்வரர் ஸ்ரீசைலம் மல்லிகார்ஜுனர் ஜோதிர்லிங்கம் பத்ராச்சலம் ஸ்ரீராமர் சிம்மாச்சலம் லட்சமிநரசிம்மர் கைலாசகிரி அன்னாவரம் ஸ்ரீசத்யநாராயண கோவில்களுக்கு சென்று வரலாம். விசாகப்பட்டினம் அழகிய கடற்கரையையும் பார்க்கலாம்.ஏழு நாட்கள் சுற்றுலாவுக்கு ஒருவருக்கு 7775 ரூபாய் கட்டணம் செலுத்த வேண்டும். மேலும் தகவலுக்கு சென்னை எம்.ஜி.ஆர். சென்ட்ரல் நிலைத்தில் உள்ள ஐ.ஆர்.சி.டி.சி. அலுவலகத்துக்கு 90031 40680 90031 40681 என்ற மொபைல் போன் எண்களில் தொடர்பு கொள்ளலாம்.

Toddler found dead on arrival at Chennai airport

DECCAN CHRONICLE.

Published  Nov 22, 2019, 1:12 am IST

Police said the toddler could have died due to travel weariness and breathing difficulty.

Hrithik.

Chennai: In a very sad incident, a six-month-old infant, born to an Indian software couple based in Melbourne, Australia, was found dead on landing at the airport in Chennai in the small hours of Thursday, police said.

According to the airport police, the couple Shakthi Murugan (32) and Deepa (29) from Vengaivasal in Selaiyur and Deepa’s mother Britto Queen were travelling from Melbourne to Chennai to spend their vacation along with baby Hrithik, via Kuala Lumpur in an Air Asia flight when the tragedy occurred.

On landing at the Chennai International Airport at 12.50 a.m. they completed the immigration formalities while Deepa was holding the infant. When they entered the customs area after immigration clearance, Deepa noticed that the toddler was unconscious and showed no signs of movement.

The couple tried to wake the child up thinking he was still asleep, however, his body had become cold by then. The shocked parents immediately alerted airport officials who rushed Hrithik to a private clinic within the international terminal, where doctors declared the infant had died two hours ago. The inconsolably weeping parents said the child was healthy and had been playing on the flight.

The airport police secured the body, registered a case, and sent it to the Chromepet government hospital to ascertain the cause of death. Police said the toddler could have died due to travel weariness and breathing difficulty and were waiting for the autopsy report to know the actual reason. Investigations are underway.

‘Rajini-Kamal Jodi like cat and mouse living together’

DECCAN CHRONICLE.

PublishedNov 22, 2019, 1:50 am IST

This caused a storm among the AIADMK members and they have been targeting the veteran actor.

Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan.

CHENNAI: The ruling AIADMK mocked the idea of an alliance between Tamil film ‘superstar’ Rajinikanth and actor-founder of Makkal Needhi Maiam Kamal Haasan, saying it would seem like a “cat and mouse living together.”

An article published in the AIADMK mouthpiece Namathu Amma, said, “while Rajinikanth had announced he would take forward spiritual politics, Haasan is known for rationalism and communism.”

On Tuesday, when asked about Haasan’s comment earlier in the day that he would work with him for the welfare of the people of Tamil Nadu, Rajinikanth said: “if a situation arises, we will work together for the welfare of the people of Tamil Nadu.”

On Sunday, Rajini’s commented that Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami would not have dreamt of becoming Chief Minister and sustaining power. “So wonders and miracles happen. It happened yesterday, it is happening today and it will happen tomorrow,” he added.

This caused a storm among the AIADMK members and they have been targeting the veteran actor.

With the two actors announcing they could join hands, the AIADMK said Haasan has lost to Rajinikanth in the film industry and he was apprehensive now about this being repeated in politics. “Time will teach Rajini that a possible partnership with Haasan politically will not be fruitful,” the party said.

The AIADMK, specifically targetting Kamal Haasan, claimed that he was desperate not to lose to Rajini in politics as he had in cinema.

It said the prospective tie-up would in no way affect the AIADMK as it was resting on a “1.5 crore cadre base.”

This was an opportunity for them to successfully take on those aiming to defeat the party.

The article was published with a screen grab from the 1977 Tamil movie Pathinaru Vayadinile, where Kamal Haasan is seen massaging Rajinikanth.

Tiruchy man serves fresh, hot food for free to kin of patients at government hospitals
Seeing the service in Tiruchy, Ravindrakumar was approached by people in Pudukkottai.

Published: 21st November 2019 10:57 AM |

VG Ravindrakumar, treasurer, Agasthiyar Annadhanam trust serving food to people.

By Sowmya Mani

Express News Service

PUDUKKOTTAI: Last week, a van pulled up early in the morning outside Pudukkottai Government  Hospital. A few volunteers got their vessels ready and started serving piping hot breakfast to visitors and patients’ relatives.

The food was served free of cost by VG Ravindrakumar, treasurer, Agasthiyar Annadhanam trust. The trust has been serving free food outside Tiruchy GH for the past 29 years. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast is served from 7 am to 8 am, lunch from noon to 1 pm and dinner from 7 pm to 8 pm.

The initiative was started in 1990 by V Govindaraj, Ravindrakumar’s father. “My father always wanted to
do social service. When he visited Tiruchy Government Hospital, he felt bad looking at the poor condition of patients. He started serving hot water and when the response was good, he started serving kanji (porridge),” said Ravindrakumar.

What started with hot water, today feeds almost 1,000 people daily in Tiruchy. Ravindrakumar and his wife prepare the meals at home. His day starts at 3.30 am and he begins making breakfast of kanji or pongal.

For lunch and dinner, it is variety rice, sambar, rasam and curd rice. While Ravindrakumar makes breakfast, his wife cooks lunch and dinner. He has secured permission from the food safety department and has a team of volunteers helping them daily.

Five sacks of rice (each sack consists of 25 kg)and 25 kg of kurnai rice are used daily to make the food. The trust has a couple of regular contributors who sponsor each day’s meals. It costs almost Rs 20,000 daily. They also get funds on people’s birthdays, anniversaries and other special occasions. People eating
there are served on steel plates and the person who eats must wash the plate and keep it back. For people who want to take the food home, they must get their own utensils.

“My husband has been in hospital for a week. The food served by Ravindrakumar is a blessing for us. It is healthy and good to give my husband, too,” said Prema, a patient’s wife.

Seeing the service in Tiruchy, Ravindrakumar was approached by people in Pudukkottai. “My father believed in serving the needy. I am just continuing his path. There is nothing as satisfying as filling someone’s stomach and seeing the happiness on their face. God can be seen in their eyes,” said Ravindrakumar, who took VRS from Railways.

Government school teacher gets suspended for corporal punishment in Tamil Nadu
On hearing screams, locals residing nearby entered the school and saw the students getting punished.

Published: 21st November 2019 11:48 AM

By Express News Service

ERODE: A Mathematics teacher of a government school in Alangariyur panchayat was suspended for allegedly resorting to corporal punishment on his students for allegedly failing to complete homework assigned to them.

On Tuesday, when the teacher Selvaraj S asked his students from class seven about the homework, some of them admitted that they had not completed it.

Infuriated by the negative response, the teacher allegedly beat 12 students with a geometric scale.
On hearing screams, locals residing nearby entered the school and saw the students getting punished.
A villager Eswaran said the students were taken to a nearby hospital for first-aid after their hands were swollen.

After the incident, parents of the students staged protest in front of the school demanding action against the teacher.

After being informed, District Education Officer(DEO) K Palani and Deputy Inspector of School Education(DI) Mohan Kumar started an investigation, after which the teacher was suspended. The DI told TNIE that considering the public interest and the act of corporal punishment, Selvaraj has been placed under suspension.

On Wednesday, only around 25 students attended classes. Sources said that the teacher, who has been associated with the school for more than five years, had a good reputation among students and some of the parents.

"The teacher might have been emotionally disturbed due to many allegations against him levelled by factions among the staff. Also, he had some personal problems," the source said.

Officials from the Education Department said steps are being taken to ensure a peaceful environment for students and any teacher violating the rules would be held accountable. The Alangariyur Panchayat Union Middle School in the district has around 185 students.

Truck with 27 tonnes of biriyani rice missing; hunt on for driver
The truck belongs to one Marathumuthu from Annamalai Nagar in Thiruvottiyur.

Published: 22nd November 2019 06:39 AM 

 |
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Making off with several tonnes of biryani may be a dream scenario for some. But making off with 27 tonnes of biriyani rice? Well, maybe if it’s worth Rs 21 lakh. That is exactly what a truck driver in Thiruvottriyur is accused of doing!

According to the police, K K Samy, a truck driver, escaped with a truck laden with almost 25,000 kg of biriyani rice, worth a whopping Rs 21 lakh. Samy was employed at a transport company that rents out trucks to deliver goods.

The truck belongs to one Marathumuthu from Annamalai Nagar in Thiruvottiyur. “On Monday night, Samy and his colleague Sundar Raj were assigned to take 27 tonnes of rice from Thiruvottiyur, to a wholesale rice merchant in Poonamallee. After loading the truck, Samy told Sundar to go home and return after dinner. Since Sundar’s home was nearby, he left and returned only to find Samy — and the truck — missing,” said a police officer.

The owner of the truck was alerted and a complaint was lodged at the Thiruvottiyur police station. Police said the driver’s mobile number was switched off and, unfortunately, the truck did not have a GPS system installed.

Parents find toddler dead after arriving at Chennai airport from Australia
It was Hrithik’s maiden trip to Chennai. Police said after their flight landed at Kuala Lumpur, the baby was fed and the couple boarded the flight.

Published: 22nd November 2019 06:41 AM |

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: It was sheer shock and tragedy for a young couple, when they realised that their six-month-old baby had died, at Chennai Airport, after their flight from Victoria in Australia to Chennai on Wednesday night. Sakthi Murugan and his wife Geetha, both techies, were returning from Australia to Chennai with their 6-month-old son, Hrithik.

It was Hrithik’s maiden trip to Chennai. Police said after their flight landed at Kuala Lumpur, the baby was fed and the couple boarded the flight.

However, it was in Chennai airport after clearing immigration that the parents noticed no movement from the baby and his feet had turned blue, police said. He was rushed to Apollo Hospital where he was pronounced dead. A case has been registered. Sakthi hails from Vengaivasal near Tambaram.

‘Nothing wrong in deducting wages of prisoners for victim welfare fund’

Plea seeks quashing of amendment in rules mandating deduction

22/11/2019, STAFF REPORTER,NEW DELHI

The Delhi High Court on Thursday said there is nothing wrong in deducting wages of prisoners for victim welfare fund, provided it is permitted under the statute, adding that it, however, cannot be done through executive action.

The court said that in Delhi, it was being done under the statute — the Delhi Prison Rules of 2018 — which was permissible. It asked the Delhi government, represented by its Standing Counsel (Criminal) Rahul Mehra, as to why the prison authorities here had stopped making the deductions.

Mr. Mehra replied that the practice was stopped in December last year after the High Court had directed that the same be put on hold. He also said the Delhi Prison Rules of 2018, Rule 96(8), provided for such deductions.

Advocate Ajay Verma, appearing for petitioner Katyayini, opposed the deduction saying various High Courts in India have done away with the practice. He said that of the ₹15 crore collected in this manner since 2006, more than ₹14 crore lay unutilised.

The Bench said it will continue hearing arguments in the matter on November 26.

Ms. Katyayini, a lawyer, has in her plea sought quashing of an amendment made in the Delhi Prison Rules of 1988 — adding Rule 39A — which mandated the deduction. Subsequently, the 1988 rules were replaced by the 2018 rules which also has a similar provision.

UGC-AICTE merger not decided yet

First Draft Bill had drawn flak

22/11/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,NEW DELHI

Ramesh Pokhriyal

The Centre has not taken any final decision on the merger of the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to create a single regulator for higher education, Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.

He was responding to a written question from YSR Congress Party MP Prabhakar Reddy Vemireddy regarding the proposal to create a Higher Education Commission of India to oversee all non-medical college-level education in the country.

Objection from States

A June 2018 version of the draft HECI Bill had faced objections from States worried they would lose autonomy under the new regime as well as concerns that grant disbursal powers were being moved from autonomous bodies to the direct control of the HRD Minister.

By September 2019, a revised draft which reportedly made changes to address such concerns was ready for approval. Senior HRD Ministry officials indicated that it would be introduced in the winter session of Parliament.

Hema Malini flags monkey menace

It’s a serious problem, say MPs in LS

22/11/2019, INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE ,NEW DELHI

Hema Malini

Monkey menace in Mathura and Delhi reverberated in the Lok Sabha on Thursday with BJP MP and Bollywood actor Hema Malini raising the issue as a notable problem, which, she claimed, has caused deaths of various people in her constituency, seeking government attention towards the matter.

Members across party lines were on the same page over the issue when the matter was raised in the Lok Sabha during Zero Hour. They noted the problem as an alarming and serious one seeking government’s action.

Raising the issue, Ms. Hema Malini said that many people were killed in her constituency in Mathura and its nearby areas like Vrindavan due to attacks by the simians.

“The natural habitat of monkeys has shrunk and people in Vrindavan are forced to deal with them strictly when they visit residential areas for food. Pilgrims offer ‘kachori’ and ‘samosa’ to monkeys due to which they are falling sick and in turn affecting health of people,” she said.

Kerala girl dies after snake bites her in class

Teacher, doctor suspended after incident sparks outrage

22/11/2019, E.M. MANOJ,KALPETTA

Fatal hole: Shehala Sherin, inset, was bitten by a snake after her leg was caught in a crack in the classroom floor.

The death of a 10-year-old girl after she was reportedly bitten by a snake in her classroom on Wednesday, sparked a wave of outrage and protests across Kerala on Thursday following allegations of negligence against the school authorities and the doctors who treated the child at four different hospitals. A teacher at the Government Sarvajana High School, Sulthan Bathery, and a doctor at the Bathery taluk hospital were suspended after a preliminary inquiry ordered by the government found them guilty of delaying treatment to the child, Shehala Sherin.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also condoled the death of Sherin. Mr. Vijayan said in his Facebook post that the government had taken the tragic incident very seriously and stringent action would be taken against those responsible for it.

Sherin was injured after her leg was caught in a crack in the classroom floor around 3.15 p.m. on Wednesday. According to the child’s parents and classmates, the teachers at the school refused to take her to the hospital immediately after red spots were noticed.

Some students suspected the possibility of a snakebite but a teacher insisted that the red spots may be due to a nail or the sharp edges of the hole on the floor.

“The teacher refused to take her to a doctor,” one of the students said. Moreover, he discouraged another teacher who was ready to take the girl to hospital.

“If she had been taken to a hospital at the right time the life of my friend could have been saved,” the student said.

The students also complained that the school authorities did not allow them to use sandals or shoes inside classrooms.

There were many cracks on the floor of the old school building and snakes were a common sight on the premises, she added.

However, the school authorities said they had administered first aid to the child after the incident and informed her father. Abdul Azeez, an advocate, said he would come to the school and take the child to the hospital. He reached the school around 3.45 p.m. and took her to a private hospital and later to the taluk hospital at Sulthan Bathery.

After the child was under medical supervision for around an hour at the taluk hospital, she was referred to the Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode. Her condition worsened on the way and she was admitted to the government hospital at Vythiri. Later she was shifted to a private hospital, where doctors declared her dead on arrival. Though the girl was taken to four different hospitals, none of them administered anti-venom, her parents alleged.

Wayanad Collector Adeela Abdulla said legal action would be taken against the culprits.

Judicial custody of NEET case accused extended

22/11/2019, STAFF REPORTER,THENI

The parents of four students accused in the NEET impersonation case were produced before the Judicial Magistrate here on Thursday. The Magistrate ordered extension of their judicial custody for the fifth time.

Ten persons – five students of different medical colleges in the State and their parents – were arrested by the CB-CID police for allegedly using impersonators to clear NEET and secure MBBS seats in the 2019 medical admissions.

A student of Government Theni Medical College, who was the first one to be arrested in the case, and his father were lodged in the Madurai Central Prison while all the others were lodged in Theni district jail.

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court granted bail to all the five students held in the case, but rejected the bail petitions filed by the parents.

New medical college: activists raise concern

Axing of over 2,000 trees will ruin one of the last green spaces in town, they say

22/11/2019, ROHAN PREMKUMAR ,UDHAGAMANDALAM

The site has been chosen for the hospital, on the ground that that it houses only exotic, non-native flora. M. Sathyamoorthy

Activists are split over plans to build a medical college and hospital on a 25-acre site in Udhagamandalam town.

Some activists have voiced their concerns that axing of more than 2,000 exotic eucalyptus, wattle and pine trees will not only ruin the aesthetic beauty associated with one of the last remaining green spaces within the town, but also affect a wide variety of wildlife, such as leopards, sloth bear, Indian gaur and barking deer, that have adapted to survive in the area and its surrounding forests.

The proposed site, located near the Ooty Gymkhana Club, has been earmarked as the future site for the setting up of the government medical college and hospital, on the ground that the site would be ideal, as it is only populated with exotic, non-native flora.

Impact on wildlife

However, rather than being a proverbial ‘dead zone’, devoid of biodiversity, activists and local residents argue that a huge array of wildlife use the 25-acre site as part of a contiguous habitat which connects surrounding forest patches. They voiced their concern that cutting down the trees and building a hospital could impact wildlife in the area and exacerbate human-animal conflicts in the region.

Shobana Chandrasekar, from the ‘Make Ooty Beautiful’ campaign, said forests surrounding the defunct Hindustan Photo Films (HPF) Manufacturing Company in Udhagamandalam were some of the last remaining ‘green spaces’ in Udhagamandalam town. “While there is no question that the trees are exotic to the landscape, the area itself is extremely beautiful and is one of the last remaining green expanses within the town itself,” said Ms. Chandrasekar, who said residents and activists were fully in support of converting the existing infrastructure of the HPF factory into a hospital.

R. Saraswathi, a local resident, who lives near the proposed site, said it was not just the hospital that the locals were worried about. “This area (surrounding HPF) is very peaceful, and many retirees stay here. If a hospital and medical college comes up, it will mean more shops, traffic and more people and litter too. There will also be obvious concerns about medical waste contaminating nearby reservoirs,” she said.

‘People stand to benefit’

However, others like Nilgiris-based conservationist N. Mohanraj are of the opinion that benefits of having a medical college and hospital in the Nilgiris far outweigh any environmental concern.

“While the first priority should be to convert the existing HPF factory infrastructure into a hospital, we cannot also dismiss the alternative site due to environmental concerns. The site itself only contains exotic trees, and there are established protocols to deal with hazardous medical waste. In the long-run, people in the Nilgiris will stand to benefit from having a medical college and hospital, as currently, many lives are lost due to people having to be rushed to Coimbatore for treatment in case of emergencies,” said Mr. Mohanraj.

© 2017 All Rights Reserved. Powered by Summit exclusively for The Hindu

Child of couple from Australia found dead on landing in Chennai

22/11/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

A five-month-old child of an Indian couple based in Melbourne was found dead when they landed in the city in the early hours of Thursday.

Sakthi Murugan, 32, and Deepa, 27, are software professionals. Accompanied by their son, Hrithik, they were coming to visit their parents, who live at Vengaivasal near Tambaram.

After flying into Kuala Lumpur, they took an AirAsia flight to Chennai.

On landing at 1 a.m., the couple, after collecting their checked-in baggage, were waiting for immigration clearance when they found that the child had turned blue and his body was motionless.

The panic-stricken couple sought the assistance of airport staff and a doctor was called in. The doctor declared the infant dead. The parents told the police that the baby was hale and hearty on the flight and had been fed just before landing. The airport security staff and police shifted the body to Chrompet Government Hospital for post-mortem.

“After conducting post-mortem, we have handed over the body to the parents. We have registered a case of unnatural death under Section 174 of CrPC. The cause of death wll be known only after receiving theviscera analysis report,” a police officer said.

Airline officials were not available for comment.

31 convicted in Vyapam case

Quantum of punishment will be pronounced on Nov. 25

22/11/2019, PRESS TRUST OF INDIA,BHOPAL

A CBI court on Thursday convicted 31 people in a case related to the infamous Vyapam recruitment and admission scam in Madhya Pradesh.

They were found guilty on a host of counts, including cheating by personation, cheating and forgery related to the 2013 police constable exam conducted by the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB), better known by its Hindi acronym Vyapam (Vyavsayik Pariksha Mandal), the prosecution said.

CBI special judge S.B. Sahu convicted the 31, including 12 imposters and seven middlemen, on different counts, CBI Special Prosecutor Satish Dinkar told PTI.

The quantum of punishment would be pronounced on November 25, Mr. Dinakar said.

91 witnesses

The prosecution produced 91 witnesses and enough evidence to nail the culprits for cheating by personation, cheating, dishonesty, forgery, forgery for cheating and forging document under IPC Sections 419, 420, 467, 468 and 471, Mr. Dinakar said.

Of the 12 imposters writing the examination on behalf of other candidates, six were arrested from Bhopal and the others from Datia, he said.

Irregularities in exams

The Vyapam scam refers to the irregularities in exams held by the MPPEB for admission to professional courses and State services over several years. The scam hit national headlines three years ago. The MPPEB is now known as Professional Examination Board.

As smartphones get bigger & better, tablets lose consumer adoption

Sindhu.Hariharan@timesgroup.com

22.11.2019

With all-pervasive smartphones and their growing screen sizes, the tablet device -a middle device for many households- appears to be losing sheen among consumers.

The overall India tablet market is managing to hold strong in recent years, but growth in shipments is being driven commercial/enterprise segment and not consumers, any more.

Five years ago, nearly 70% of all shipments were from the consumer category and rest enterprise. Today, it is the opposite.

Even as tablets may be gradually disappearing from households, the government’s Digital India campaign, education technology, hospitality, and travel & tourism have emerged as sectors with high demand for the devices.

Prabhu Ram, Head- Industry Intelligence Group (IIG), Cyber Media Research (CMR), notes that with the evolution of smartphones into new form factors and taller, foldable smartphones now commercially available, the future of tablet market is at a cossroads.

As per CMR’s analysis, the tablet market in India posted recovery in the July-September quarter on the back of festive season shipments recording a 7.8% growth YoY, after three consecutive quarters of decline at the rate of 5.2%, 11.1%, and 10.5% in June 2019, March 2019 and December 2018 quarters respectively. Lenovo led the market, followed by Samsung and Apple.

“The tablet market has undergone a remarkable transformation in the past four to five years. From 70-75% of individual consumers earlier, now 60-65% of users is commercial,” Rahul Agarwal, managing director and CEO of Lenovo India, said.

Consumers are saying we anyways have a phone and a laptop, why do we need an inbetween device, he adds.

Lenovo holds almost half of the market with roughly 49% share in September quarter, Agarwal notes, quoting analyst firm IDC. “We are focused on commercial segment, where our market share is almost 65%,” he said.

As smartphones get bigger, users have also demanded innovation in screen sizes from tablet makers. While seven and eight-inch tablet screens used to dominate the market a few years ago, the 10-inch tablets have become bestsellers today.

“Today, smartphone screens are in the range of 6-inch, which gives users scope to use them for tasks like reading and entertainment, which they were doing on tablets earlier. The middle device today doesn’t make sense for a consumer,” Jaipal Singh, Associate Research Manager, IDC India, said.

Samsung recently launched its Galaxy Tab 6 with advanced display technologies and ‘first-ever’ on-screen fingerprint scanner on a tablet. Galaxy Tab S6 also lets users operate their appliances through voice commands with Bixby integration.


INVOGUE

Name rule spells trouble for TN kids

34-Character Cap For Names On Exam Portal

Ram.Sundaram@timesgroup.com

Chennai:22.11.2019

Children in Tamil Nadu with long names or two initials are in a fix as the state government has set a limit of 34 characters (in English) on the online portal, Educational Management Information System (EMIS), where they upload details for the Class X board exams.

Tamil versions of the names shouldn’t exceed 54 characters, says an advisory (which TOI has accessed) sent by the Tamil Nadu Directorate of Government Examinations (TNDGE) to all chief educational officers (CEOs) on November 15. CEOs and school headmasters upload details of Class X students, who will appear for SSLC exams in April-May 2020, on the EMIS portal.

The circular has set November 29 as the deadline for making corrections in students’ names, date of birth, religion, category or medium of instruction. The most common errors are in the names of students.

Most government ID cards are issued based on Class X mark certificates. If you don’t get it right at this stage, you’ll have to live with a misspelt name.

In Tamil Nadu, most students don’t use surnames. There is no uniform practice while filling applications either. While some put initials after the full name, others tend to either use initials in the middle or before the name.

The TNDGE circular clearly states that it should be name first followed by the initials with one empty space in between. Also, while filling the Tamil version, initials too should be in Tamil.

200 apply for name changes every month

This is where schools are facing a problem. The Tamil Nadu government in August made Aadhar mandatory for uploading details in EMIS. Aadhar cards of students with two initials carry their fathers’ names after their name. This makes their full name lengthy. When schools tried to link their Aadhar details with EMIS portal, it exceeds the character limit recently imposed.

So parents of these students are rushing to local notary offices to make changes in their names. “We named by daughter VS Saathana Eshwari. Now her name is just Yasika V,” said a parent from Madurai. On an average, 200 parents apply for name changes for various reasons every month, says official data.

Authorities at the state project directorate of Samagara Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), government agency responsible for EMIS, refused to even meet this reporter when asked for clarifications.

Only 3 of every 10 calls to ‘108’ a medical emergency

Pushpa.Narayan@timesgroup.com

Chennai:22.11.2019

Only three of every 10 calls received at the state-funded emergency management research Institute (EMRI) or ‘108’ report a medical emergency. While nearly half the calls the agency receives are termed “ineffective”, one-fifth of the remaining calls are non-emergency calls, performance reports published by the National Rural Health Mission in Tamil Nadu revealed.

The control room in Chennai, which works round-the-clock, got 17 lakh calls between April and June this year. Of these, around 5 lakh were for medical emergencies, including pregnancies, road accidents, poisoning, heart attack and strokes. Though the percentage of non-emergency and ineffective calls has come down from 83% in April-June 2013 to 68.46% in April-June 2019, staff say prank callers including drunk men continue to clog the helpline. “They complain about increasing onion prices, discuss current affairs, ask for cricket scores, sing songs or sometimes just keep silent. Over a period, we have learned to quickly disconnect such callers. But before we do so, we have to ensure the person calling isn’t in pain or scared to talk,” an employee said.

For instance, if students are calling in panic ahead of examinations or if someone sounds dangerously low, the line is transferred to ‘104’ for counselling. Even among emergencies, some calls are transferred to police and fire services.

As a result, staff point out that the percentage of unanswered calls has gone up from 1.72% in 2013 to 4% in 2019 and the percentage of calls attended to on the first ring has come down from 92% to 85%.

This is despite a reduction in the number of calls. Between April and June 2013, the agency got 23 lakh calls compared to 17 lakh in the same period in 2019. “But, in some months, we see very high numbers,” a senior official said.

The call centre, which works from the ‘108’ headquarters in the Directorate of Medical Services campus, has more than 120 lines and more than 60 operators on every shift. It receives more than 4,000 calls a day from across the state. “Almost every helpline across the globe has this problem,” said GVK EMRI state head Dr Selvakumar.

The ‘100’ helpline operated by the police department also faces similar problems. Those manning the police helpline initially asked callers to hang up if they had dialled by mistake. Now, callers are asked to dial 1 to proceed. “So if people have dialled by mistake they can cut the call. We are now trying to develop a programme to track those making prank calls so legal action can be initiated against them,” said a senior police officer.

NTA tightens NEET vetting, Aadhaar link may be must

Manash.Gohain@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:22.11.2019

With more than 6,000 undergraduate medical admissions in Tamil Nadu under the scanner, the National Testing Agency (NTA) is making the application and verification process for National Eligibility cum Entrance Test — Under Graduate (NEET UG 2020) even more stringent. Henceforth, applicants will additionally have to fill in their class X and XII roll numbers and upload an identity card, apart from a live photograph to detect impersonation/ fraud. The NTA is also waiting for the approval of the ministry of information technology for Aadhaar verification. The registration for the 2020 NEET UG will commence from December 1, 2019.

Live photo to help verify and ‘flag’ discrepancies

According to a senior official of the ministry of human resource development (MHRD), NTA is going to introduce a number of changes in the registration process so that the agency can have data to verify, match and “flag” cases of potential discrepancies.

“Moreover, an applicant may also need to upload a live photo which the NTA is working on. The live photo will be the latest image so that in case of any discrepancy or in case the face in the identity card don’t match due to old photos, the invigilators at the centre can also verify using the live image. The class X and XII roll numbers will be used by NTA to also verify the candidates. At the test centres the candidates may also be asked to show the identity card uploaded at the time of registration. Therefore the candidates have to carry the identity card along with the admit card,” said the MHRD official.

According to an NTA official, the agency will reopen the registered forms for editing, “which means applicants will be able to provide the class XII roll numbers as majority of the education boards will issue admit cards once the NEET UG 2020 registration gets over.” In case of any discrepancies in names and photographs or mismatches, the applications will be flagged so that the designated centres could go for further verification on the day of the test.

நாக் -ஏ’ அங்கீகாரத்தை இழக்கும் நிலையில் சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம்

By DIN | Published on : 21st November 2019 02:00 AM |

சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம் இரண்டு ஆண்டுகளாக 30 சதவீத பேராசிரியா் காலியிடங்களுடன் இயங்கி வருவதால், தேசிய ஆய்வு மற்றும் அங்கீகார கவுன்சிலின் ‘(நாக்) ஏ’ கிரேடு தரத்தை இழக்கும் நிலைக்குத் தள்ளப்பட்டிருப்பதாக பேராசிரியா்கள் கவலை தெரிவிக்கின்றனா்.

அவ்வாறு ‘நாக்- ஏ’ கிரேடு அங்கீகாரத்தை பல்கலைக்கழகம் இழந்தால், ஏற்கெனவே கடும் நிதி நெருக்கடியில் சிக்கித் தவிக்கும் பல்கலைக்கழகத்துக்கு பல்கலைக்கழக மானியக் குழு (யுஜிசி) உள்ளிட்ட மத்திய அரசின் அமைப்புகளிடமிருந்து கிடைத்துவரும் ஆராய்ச்சி மேம்பாட்டு நிதி, உள்கட்டமைப்பு மேம்பாட்டு நிதி போன்ற அனைத்து விதமான நிதியுதவிகளும் நிறுத்தப்பட்டுவிடும் எனவும் பேராசிரியா்கள் அச்சம் தெரிவிக்கின்றனா்.

உயா் கல்வியின் தரத்தை மேம்படுத்துவதற்காக பல்வேறு நடவடிக்கைகளை மத்திய அரசு எடுத்து வருகிறது. அதில் ஒன்றுதான் ‘நாக்’ அங்கீகாரம். மத்திய அரசின் புதிய கல்விக் கொள்கையின்படி, இந்த ‘நாக்’ அங்கீகாரம் அனைத்து உயா் கல்வி நிறுவனங்களுக்கும் கட்டாயமாக்கப்பட உள்ளது.

‘நாக்’ அமைப்பு, உயா் கல்வி நிறுவனங்களை 7 வகையான நிபந்தனைகளின் கீழ் ஆய்வு செய்து, அதனடிப்படையில் 8 பிரிவுகளின் கீழ் தர நிா்ணயம் செய்கிறது. அதாவது, கல்வித் திட்டம், கற்றல் - கற்பித்தல் -மதிப்பிடுதல், ஆராய்ச்சி மற்றும் புதிய கண்டுபிடிப்பு, உள்கட்டமைப்பு வசதி மற்றும் கற்றலுக்கு உதவும் வசதிகள், மாணவா்களுக்கு உதவும் திட்டங்கள், நிா்வாகம் மற்றும் தலைமைப் பண்பு உள்பட 7 நிபந்தனைகளின் கீழ் உயா் கல்வி நிறுவனங்கள் ஆய்வு செய்யப்படும்.

இதில் 3.51 முதல் 4 புள்ளிகள் வரை பெறும் கல்வி நிறுவனத்துக்கு ஏ++ கிரேடு வழங்கப்படும். 3.26 முதல் 3.50 புள்ளிகளைப் பெறும் கல்வி நிறுவனத்துக்கு ஏ+ கிரேடும், 3.01 முதல் 3.25 வரை பெற்றால் ஏ கிரேடு, 2.76 முதல் 3 புள்ளிகள் பெற்றால் பி++ கிரேடு, 2.51 முதல் 2.75 வரை பெற்றால் பி+ கிரேடு, 2.01 முதல் 2.50 வரை பெற்றால் பி கிரேடு, 1.51 முதல் 2 புள்ளி வரை பெற்றால் சி கிரேடு வழங்கப்படும். 1.5 புள்ளிகளுக்கு கீழ் பெறும் கல்வி நிறுவனங்களுக்கு டி கிரேடு வழங்கப்படும். இந்த டி கிரேடு பெறும் கல்வி நிறுவனங்கள் அங்கீகாரம் அளிக்கப்படாத கல்வி நிறுவனமாக அறிவிக்கப்படும். இதில் சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம் -ஏ- கிரேடு அங்கீகாரத்துடன் இயங்கி வருகிறது.

இந்த நிலையில், கடந்த இரண்டு ஆண்டுகளுக்கும் மேலாக 200 பேராசிரியா் காலிப் பணியிடங்களுடன் சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம் இயங்கி வருவதால், ஏ கிரேடு அங்கீகாரத்தை இழந்து -பி- கிரேடுக்கு சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம் தள்ளப்பட வாய்ப்பு உள்ளதாக பேராசிரியா்கள் கவலை தெரிவிக்கின்றனா்.

இதுகுறித்து சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழக மூத்த பேராசிரியா் ஒருவா் கூறுகையில், நாக் அங்கீகாரத்தில் ஒரு பல்கலைக்கழகம் வெளியிடும் ஆராய்ச்சிக் கட்டுரைகளின் எண்ணிக்கை, ஆராய்ச்சித் திட்டப் பணிகள், புதிய கண்டுபிடிப்புகள் ஆகியவை பிரதானமாக கணக்கில் கொள்ளப்படும். ஆனால், பேராசிரியா் காலிப் பணியிடங்கள் காரணமாக பல்கலைக்கழகத்தின் ஆராய்ச்சி கட்டுரை வெளியீடு கடந்த சில ஆண்டுகளில் பாதியாகக் குறைந்திருக்கிறது. 400-க்கும் அதிகமாக இருந்த கட்டுரைகள் வெளியீடு இப்போது 200-ஆகக் குறைந்திருக்கிறது. இதனால், பல்கலைக்கழகத்தின் நாக் அங்கீகாரம் நிச்சயம் பாதிக்கப்படும்.

தமிழக அரசும் அனுமதி: காலிப் பணியிடத் தோ்வின்போது, பல்கலைக்கழகத்தின் அனைத்து துறைகளையும் ஒரே யூனிட்டாக கணக்கில் கொண்டு இடஒதுக்கீடு அமல்படுத்தவேண்டும் என்ற மத்திய அரசின் புதிய நிபந்தனையை பல்கலைக்கழக நிா்வாகிகள் காரணம் காட்டி பேராசிரியா் நியமனத்தை தாமதப்படுத்தி வந்தனா். இந்த நிலையில், சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம் ஏற்கெனவே பின்பற்றி வரும் 200 பாயின்ட் ரோஸ்டா் முறைப்படி ஒவ்வொரு துறையையும் தனித் தனி யூனிட்டாக கணக்கில் கொண்டு பேராசிரியா் நியமனத்தை மேற்கொள்ளலாம். மத்திய அரசின் நிபந்தனையை பின்பற்றத் தேவையில்லை என தமிழக அரசு சாா்பில் கடந்த செப்டம்பா் மாதமே அனுமதி வழங்கப்பட்டுவிட்டது. ஆனால், அதன் பிறகும் காலிப் பணியிடங்களை நிரப்ப பல்கலைக்கழகம் நடவடிக்கை எடுக்கவில்லை என்றாா் அவா்.

யுஜிசி எச்சரிக்கை: இதற்கிடையே, நாடு முழுவதும் உள்ள உயா் கல்வி நிறுவனங்கள் பேராசிரியா் காலிப் பணியிடங்களை விரைந்து நிரப்ப வேண்டும். அவ்வாறு நிரப்பாத கல்வி நிறுவனங்கள் மீது உரிய நடவடிக்கை எடுக்கப்படும் என யுஜிசி எச்சரித்தது. இதுதொடா்பாக அனைத்து பல்கலைக்கழக துணைவேந்தா்களுக்கும் யுஜிசி அனுப்பிய சுற்றறிக்கையில், தகுதியுள்ள பேராசிரியா்களின் பற்றாக்குறை உயா் கல்வி நிறுவனங்களின் நிலையை மிகவும் மோசமடையச் செய்துள்ளது. எனவே, உயா் கல்வியின் தரத்தை மேம்படுத்துவது உடனடித் தேவையாக உருவெடுத்துள்ளது.

அதன்படி, நாடு முழுவதும் உள்ள பல்கலைக்கழகங்களும், அதன் இணைப்புக் கல்லூரிகளும் பேராசிரியா் காலிப் பணியிடங்களை தகுதிவாய்ந்த நபா்களைக் கொண்டு விரைந்து நிரப்ப வேண்டும். இதுதொடா்பான விவரங்களை நவம்பா் 10-ஆம் தேதிக்குள் யுஜிசிக்கு தெரிவித்திருக்க வேண்டும்.

அவ்வாறு இன்றி, பேராசிரியா் காலிப் பணியிடங்களை நிரப்ப தாமதப்படுத்தும் உயா் கல்வி நிறுவனங்கள் மீது உரிய நடவடிக்கை எடுக்கப்படும் என சுற்றறிக்கையில் யுஜிசி எச்சரித்திருந்தது. இந்த எச்சரிக்கைக்குப் பிறகும் காலியிடங்களை நிரப்ப சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம் நடவடிக்கை எடுக்கவில்லை என்கின்றனா் பேராசிரியா்கள்.

இதுகுறித்து சென்னைப் பல்கலைக்கழக துணைவேந்தா் துரைசாமி கூறுகையில், பேராசிரியா் காலியிடங்களை நிரப்ப விரைவில் நடவடிக்கை எடுக்கப்படும் என்றாா்.

சர்க்கரை கார்டுக்கு டிசம்பர் முதல் அரிசி

Added : நவ 20, 2019 23:11

சென்னை சர்க்கரை கார்டுகளை அரிசி கார்டுகளாக மாற்றம் செய்வோருக்கு டிச. மாதம் முதல் ரேஷன் கடைகளில் இலவச அரிசி வழங்கப்பட உள்ளது.இதுகுறித்து உணவு வழங்கல் துறை அதிகாரி ஒருவர் கூறியதாவது: சர்க்கரை கார்டு மாற்றம் தொடர்பாக நவ. 26ம் தேதி வரை விண்ணப்பங்களை வாங்க அரசு அவகாசம் வழங்கி உள்ளது. விண்ணப்பங்கள் பெற்ற பின் அந்த கார்டுகளை அரிசி கார்டுகளாக மாற்ற உதவி ஆணையர்கள் வட்ட வழங்கல் அதிகாரிகள் முறைப்படி ஒப்புதல் அளித்து தலைமை அலுவலகத்திற்கு அறிக்கை அனுப்புவர்.ரேஷன் கடைகளுக்கு இம்மாத அரிசி ஒதுக்கீடு முடிந்து விட்டது. இதனால் டிச. மாதம் முதல் அரிசி கார்டுகளாக மாறிய சர்க்கரை கார்டுதாரர்களுக்கும் ரேஷனில் இலவச அரிசி வழங்கப்படும்.இவ்வாறு அவர் கூறினார்.

ஓய்வு பெறும் நாளிலேயே ஓய்வூதிய பயன்கள் கருவூலத்துறை முதன்மை செயலர் ஜவஹர் தகவல்

Added : நவ 20, 2019 22:57 

மதுரை: ''ஒருங்கிணைந்த நிதி மற்றும் மனிதவள மேலாண்மை திட்டத்தின் மூலம் காலையில் பில் சமர்ப்பித்தால் மாலையில் பணம் பட்டுவாடா செய்யப்படும். ஓய்வு பெறும் நாளிலேயே ஓய்வூதிய பயன்கள் வழங்கப்படும்,'' என மதுரையில் கருவூலம் மற்றும் கணக்குத்துறை முதன்மை செயலாளர் ஜவஹர் தெரிவித்தார்.

மண்டல அளவிலான ஆய்வு கூட்டத்தில் பங்கேற்க வந்த அவர் மேலும் கூறியதாவது: மாநிலத்தில் 9.30 லட்சம் அரசு ஊழியர்கள், ஆசிரியர்கள் பணிபுரிகின்றனர். இவர்களுக்கு சம்பளம் உள்ளிட்ட இதர பணப்பயன்கள் 18 ஆயிரம் பணம் பட்டுவாடா அலுவலர்கள் மூலம் வங்கிகளில் செலுத்தப்படுகிறது. இதுதவிர மாநிலத்தில் 7.20 லட்சம் ஓய்வூதியர்கள் உள்ளனர். இவர்களுக்கான ஓய்வூதிய பணப்பலன்களும் இத்துறை மூலம் வங்கிகளில் செலுத்தப்படுகிறது.ஏற்கனவே இருந்த நடைமுறையின்படி சம்பளம் உள்ளிட்ட பில்களை சம்பந்தப்பட்ட அலுவலர்கள் மாவட்ட கருவூலங்களில் சமர்பிப்பர். அதை பரிசீலித்து சரியாக இருக்கிறதா என ஆராய்ந்து கருவூல அலுவலர்கள் வங்கிகளுக்கு அனுப்ப ஐந்து நாட்களாகி விடும்.

ஆனால் ஒருங்கிணைந்த நிதி மற்றும் மனித வள மேலாண்மை திட்டம் செயல்பாட்டிற்கு வந்தால் காலையில் பில் சமர்ப்பித்தால் மாலையில் பணம் பட்டுவாடா செய்யும் வகையில் ஆன்லைன் மூலம் அனைத்து பணிகளும் விரைந்து மேற்கொள்ளப்படும். ஓய்வு பெறும் நாளிலேயே ஓய்வூதியபயன்கள் வழங்கப்படும்.

இதற்காக மண்டல வாரியாக பணம் பட்டுவாடா அலுவலர்கள், கருவல அலுவலர்களுக்கு பயிற்சியளிக்கப்படுகிறது. மதுரை மண்டலத்தில் மட்டும் ஒரு லட்சத்து 52 ஆயிரத்து 743 அரசு ஊழியர்களுக்கு மூவாயிரத்து 167 பணம் பட்டுவாடா அலுவலர்கள் மூலம் பணப்பலன்கள் வழங்கப்படுகின்றன. இந்தாண்டு இறுதிக்குள் ஒருங்கிணைந்த நிதி மற்றும் மனிதவள மேலாண்மை திட்டத்தை செயல்பாட்டிற்கு கொண்டு வர நடவடிக்கை எடுக்கப்படுகிறது, என்றார்.

NEET impersonation scam: Anticipatory bail pleas of accused adjourned to Nov 28

Appearing before Justice G R Swaminathan on Tuesday, the student claimed that he wrote the exam and that he did not involve in any malpractice.

Published: 20th November 2019 05:25 AM

By Express News Service

MADURAI: Awaiting reports on the verification of thumb impression of a medical student who is apprehending arrest in connection with NEET impersonation scam, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court adjourned the anticipatory bail petitions filed by the student and his father V Ravikumar to November 28.

Appearing before Justice G R Swaminathan on Tuesday, the student claimed that he wrote the exam and that he did not involve in any malpractice. However, he could not explain the reason for the mismatch between the photograph in his hall ticket and his face in person. Since the report on verification of fingerprints and thumb impression of the student is yet to arrive, the judge adjourned the petitions by extending the interim protection (against arrest) granted to the father-son.

Meanwhile, one Saravanan, who was also arrested in connection with the scam, withdrew his bail petition. He is the father of one of the students who got bail. Similarly, V K Venkatesan, father of a Theni medical student who was granted bail, also withdrew his bail application on Monday. The petitions were Saravanan and Venkatesan’s second ones before the High Court Bench as the previous ones were dismissed by the court.

Nurses at Madurai's Government Rajaji Hospital sensitised on ill effects of bribery
During a preliminary inquiry conducted by the dean, the suspected FNA's identity was confirmed by the complainant.

Published: 20th November 2019 10:24 AM

By Express News Service

MADURAI: A day after a departmental inquiry was initiated against a Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) Female Nursing Assistant (FNA) who allegedly demanded and took bribe, all the FNAs at the hospital were sensitised on the ill-effects of bribery on Tuesday.

On Monday, Thanikodi, a retired staff of GRH who previously worked as an Office Assistant, submitted a complaint to GRH Dean Dr J Sangumani stating that his daughter-in-law K Logambikai delivered her second child -- baby boy -- at the Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (CEmONC) block on Friday.

He alleged that an FNA named Karthika, who was posted at the labour ward in the first floor of the block, demanded and took Rs 1,000 as bribe from Logambikai's mother Saratha for allowing her to enter the ward to see the mother and newborn.

During a preliminary inquiry conducted by the dean, the suspected FNA's identity was confirmed by the complainant.

Sources said the nursing assistant, as instructed by the Dean, returned the Rs 1,000 to Logambika the same evening. On Tuesday, Karthika was shifted from CEmONC block to Superspeciality block.

Later, Dr Sangumani initiated an inquiry into the allegation by forming a panel of doctors, including Resident Medical Officer Dr A Srilatha, Assistant Resident Medical Officer Dr P Muruga Porselvi and Dr P Jothi Sundaram of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

On Tuesday, all the GRH nursing assistants were sensitised on the ill-effects of demanding bribe from patients and their relatives. Dr Sangumani warned of stern action against those who demand and accept bribe.

It may be recalled that in August last year, a vigilance committee was reconstituted by the then dean Dr D Maruthupandian, thus revamping the vigilance system that deals with complaints on bribery and corruption by hospital staff and workers.

Following the promotion of one of its committee members -- Dr R Balaji Nathan -- who is now the Dean of Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College Hospital in Salem, Dr Sangumani, on Tuesday, made the Head of Department of Cardiology Dr S R Veeramani as the vigilance committee member, replacing Dr Balaji Nathan. Dr Veeramani has been made as the in-charge of issues arising in the CEmONC block.

Two Nigerian students held for drug peddling

Two Nigerian men studying in a private college in Kattankulathur, have been arrested by the Narcotics Intelligence bureau (NIB) for supplying ganja.

Published: 21st November 2019 06:35 AM 

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Two Nigerian men studying in a private college in Kattankulathur, have been arrested by the Narcotics Intelligence bureau (NIB) for supplying ganja. Based on a tip-off, a team from NIB conducted a raid at their house in Urapakkam and found seven kilograms of ganja which was later seized.

They have been identified as Ayooluwa David Adebakin, studying third year BBA course, and Olugu Olisaaemeka Emmanuel, studying second year B.Sc. The duo were arrested and were remanded in judicial custody after being produced before a magistrate court in Kancheepuram. During investigation, it was revealed that the two students sold ganja in sachets to their friends in college.”They allegedly sneaked the drug in their backpacks and all their transactions were made online,” said the police officer.

‘Doctors to be trained in advanced treatment protocols’

Health Dept. inks MoU with UK’s King’s College Hospital

21/11/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

Tamil Nadu’s Health Department, through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with UK’s King’s College Hospital, will impart training to doctors on advanced treatment protocols for neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, Health Secretary Beela Rajesh said.

Shortly after releasing a video to create awareness on Parkinson’s disease on Wednesday, she said the Kings College Hospital, in the first phase, was focussing on neurological disorders.

The MoU was signed during the visit of Chief Minister and Health Minister to the UK.

“The first focus is on bringing in treatment protocols for neurological disorders. There are advanced treatment protocols in many foreign countries. We will be training our doctors and starting the procedures here,” she said. Hands-on training and demonstrations would be organised for doctors, she added.

Rehabilitation unit

As per an announcement in the Assembly, a neurological rehabilitation unit will be established at the Government Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, K.K. Nagar at a cost of ₹64 crore. “When a person is diagnosed with a neuro-degenerative disease and is prescribed medicines, he/she also needs therapy on a long-term basis. This unit will cater to these needs. We are forming an expert committee to establish this unit and the views of survivors and NGOs will be obtained,” she added.

The release of the video, ‘Dancing with a stranger’, was jointly organised by SAAR Foundation (Support Awareness Action Rehabilitate) And IAPG (Indian Alliance of Patient Groups). The video features Shanthipriya Siva, an ophthalmologist who was diagnosed with young onset Parkinson’s eight years ago.

V. Natarajan, retired professor of Neurology, said there was a misconception among people that Parkinson’s was a deadly disease but there was no need for fear.

Lakshmi Narasimhan, head of neurology, Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, said, “It is a treatable disease but not curable. Patients should take medications and follow exercises to lead a normal life,” he added. R. Narayana Babu, director of medical education and Ratna Devi, founder of IAPG also participated

Anna univ, set for IoE tag, has 300 vacancies

Needs 1:12 Faculty-Student Ratio

Ragu.Raman@timesgroup.com

Chennai:21.11.2019

Anna University, set to secure the Institute of Eminence (IoE) tag, has 300 of 900 regular teaching posts vacant, sources said. “To achieve the academic and research goals under the eminence tag, the university needs a 1:12 faculty-student ratio for which it may need at least 1,200 faculty members,” an official said. The faculty members are now burdened with administration and teaching work that is hampering their research output. “Once the institute gets eminence tag, we may need to concentrate more on research in cutting edge areas and ease the academic burden of faculty members,” he added.

Since the last recruitment in 2014, the university has not able to take in new faculty members due to reasons including vacancy in vice-chancellor’s post, higher education department ban on recruitment to redeploy excess Annamalai University staff and the UGC ban citing a pending court case in following reservation in universities.

The university, which has been managing with the help of teaching fellows, recently calculated the vacancy positions to implement reservation in recruitment based on 200-point roster system after the state government directed universities to take department as a unit to implement reservation.

“The governor-chancellor has appointed his nominee and there is a delay in appointing state government nominee. After getting state government’s nominee, we will initiate the recruitment process soon,” said a top university official.

As per All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) norms on recruitment, the selection committee shall consist of chancellor’s nominee, state government nominee and experts.

Education consultant Jayaprakash Gandhi said vacancies in Anna University should immediately be filled. “The university should give preference to faculty members in 30-35 age group who are working in cutting-edge areas and future technologies rather than recruiting people in the 40-45 age group.” E Balagurusamy, former vicechancellor, hoped the government would fill all vacancies. “The state government has agreed to IoE status. They would eventually fulfil all requirements for IoE.”

NEET mum on subject marks but low scorers still getting into MBBS

TNN | Nov 19, 2019, 04.53 AM IST

Last year, TOI had exposed how candidates scoring single digit, zero and negative marks in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) got admission in medical colleges in 2017.
But are students with such low scores still getting in? Well, we can't be sure because this year the practice of giving the marks scored in individual subjects has been stopped with the National Testing Agency (NTA) releasing only percentile scores. But data accessed by TOI shows that there are hundreds, if not thousands, with single digit percentile scores in physics and chemistry who have got admission into MBBS.

For instance, a student whose score was 1.7 percentile in physics got admission in a private medical college. This means that 98.3% of students who wrote NEET scored higher than him in physics. Or that his marks fell among the bottom 1.7% scores of the 15.2 lakh students who took the test.

Mounting troubles for Mount Road

Potholes and bumps are a common sight at Thousand Lights. A big pothole right next to the Gemini Flyover has been the source of traffic snarls here.

Published: 20th November 2019 06:22 AM |

By Omjasvin M D and lensman R Satish Babu

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Anna Salai, or Mount Road, is a city landmark by itself. The 15-km stretch, connecting the old commercial centre of Parry’s Corner in the North, with the now-bustling industrial area Guindy in the South, is one of the most-important roads. Though it has the status of NH, it’s as battered and bruised as any other city road. Potholes, loose gravel, and lack of median markers, are a common sight. Express reporter Omjasvin M D and lensman R Satish Babu travelled to survey road condition.

Thousand Lights

Spencer Plaza

Technically, Mount Road is supposed to be a six-way road. But, thanks to unauthorised parking of vehicles, it has been reduced to a four-way road on many stretches. This results in traffic congestion.
Bus commuters too are hassled, as sewage flows freely on to the road near Spencer Plaza. The stretch between LIC and Thousands Lights was made two-way in August. But since then, a traffic signal has not been installed at the two junctions.

Teynampet
Lane separators painted in white or yellow are mandatory for a highway, as per the codes of Indian Roads Congress (IRC). However, in this stretch near the DMK party office, there are no lane separators, making the drive dangerous for small vehicles.

Omandurar Government Estate
The road near the Government Estate Metro Station has loose gravel scattered, making it slippery for bikers. Selvan, who uses the stretch often, says the maximum speed bikers can go on here is 30 kmph. Anything higher can result in skids and accidents.

Saidapet
The road near the Saidapet bus depot is filled with potholes, bumps and dust. For, every five minutes, a bus arrives and departs from the bus stand and hundreds of passengers use it too. The road has not been patched up even after the Chennai Metro Rail was inaugurated. Loads of sand remain causing pollution.

near LIC building
The roads around the iconic building, which once was a landmark for Chennai, are in bad shape. Underground electric line works have been delayed, causing chaos. The road has been dug up, and there are no signs of it being closed any time soon.

Madras varsity conducts 162nd convocation

He said that this year marks the 50th year of his graduation from the varsity.

Published: 20th November 2019 06:14 AM 

Nearly 95,000 candidates received their degrees in view of the convocation ceremony  P Jawahar

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The University of Madras used to fondly be called the ‘Cambridge of the South’, said T Ramasami, former secretary, department of science and technology and former director of Central Leather Research Institute, speaking at the 162nd annual convocation of the University of Madras on Tuesday. He said that this year marks the 50th year of his graduation from the varsity.

Nearly 95,000 candidates received their degrees in view of the convocation ceremony. Governor Banwarilal Purohit, along with Ramasami, gave away the degrees, medals and prizes.

A total of 884 students received their degrees in person while the rest received it in absentia, said P Duraisamy, the vice-chancellor of the varsity, speaking at the event. Among those who were present at the convocation, 701 candidates received their PhD, 95 received prizes and medals and 86 rank holders received their degrees.

Addressing the gathering, Duraisamy said the varsity has improved significantly over the last few years. “For example, the university has jumped 21 places in the NIRF ranking; from the 41st rank in 2017, we have come to 20th now,” he said. He added that the college is also moving technologically forward by formalising courses on digital platforms like SWAYAM and NPTEL as a part of the curriculum and uploading certificates on to the National Academic Depository (NAD).

He also said that the varsity is in the process of revamping the UG curriculum to include courses related to entrepreneurship, skill development, start-up, venture capital and financial markets, in consultation with the entrepreneurial bodies such as Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Confederation of Indian Industries and MSMEs.

“In order to promote research, the existing administrative sections have been restructured and new offices of Dean (Research) and Director (Research Schemes and Projects), have been created. M Phil and PhD admissions have been made online to ensure transparency and we have established a scheme to grant `30,000 towards journal submission fee and book publication,” he said.

DVAC case against former VC

20/11/2019, V. VENKATASUBRAMANIAN, ,THANJAVUR

The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, Thanjavur unit, has booked a case against a former Vice-Chancellor of Tamil University, Thanjavur, and three others on the charge of committing malpractices and irregularities in the appointment of professors and associate professors.

According to the FIR filed on November 14, G. Baskaran, former V-C, S. Muthukumar, former Registrar, G. Sakthisaravanan, former Personal Assistant to the Registrar, and N. Baskaran, former Distance Education Director, colluded with one another to appoint 10 professors and 11 associate professors in the university, overlooking the norms laid down by the UGC.

For selecting the ineligible candidates for these posts, the four accused reportedly accepted bribes ranging from ₹15 lakh to ₹40 lakh from each person. Further, they created false records and used the forged documents to help 21 candidates selected by them to receive the UGC scale salary. The accused also appointed 70 persons as daily wage employees in non-teaching positions.

12-year-old girl stopped from going to Sabarimala temple

Kerala police stop her at Pampa after examining her Aadhaar card

20/11/2019, PRESS TRUST OF INDIA, ,SABARIMALA

Police personnel examining the Aadhaar card of a 12-year-old girl, who had come to offer prayers at Sabarimala.PTI

A 12-year-old girl from Puducherry, who had come with her father for darshan at the Lord Ayyappa temple here, was not allowed to proceed from Pampa on Tuesday morning.

The age of the girl had been shown as 10 in the ‘Virtual Q’ booking. Women police examined her Aadhaar card and found that she was 12 years old and refused to allow her to proceed further, the police said.

After those accompanying the child were informed about the current situation in Sabarimala, her father and other relatives proceeded to the temple.

‘Ready to wait’

A nine-year-old girl from Kerala, who came to the temple complex from Karnataka on Monday, had a placard around her neck that said “Ready to wait. Will visit the shrine after attaining 50 years.” Hailing from Thrissur, Hridyakrishnan said she had visited the shrine thrice thus far and would have darshan of Lord Ayyappa again only after she was 50.

The Pampa base camp is at the foothills of Sabarimala, about 5 km from the shrine. The Lord Ayyappa temple opened on November 16 evening for the two-month long Mandala-Makaravillakku pilgrimage season.

The State and temple precincts had witnessed protests by right wing outfits and BJP workers last year after the LDF government decided to implement the Supreme Court’s verdict allowing women of all age groups to offer prayers at the shrine. However, the government is exercising caution this year, even though the top court has not stayed its verdict while posting various petitions on the matter to a larger bench.

Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran has made it clear that Sabarimala was not a place for activists, and said the government would not encourage women who wanted to visit the shrine for publicity.

Deliberations on IoE status for varsity
20/11/2019, T. RAMAKRISHNAN,CHENNAI

At its meeting on Tuesday, the State Cabinet deliberated on enabling Anna University to join the Institution of Eminence (IoE) scheme of the Centre.

Broadly, two decisions needed to be taken. One pertained to the formulation of a law, and the other, the cost, government sources said. As for the proposed law, there are some issues, especially those pertaining to reservation, which require deeper study. That the university cannot have constituent colleges once it gets the IoE status is another aspect to be considered. On the issue of the cost, the total amount required has been estimated at ₹2,500 crore, of which the Centre will provide ₹1,000 crore.

The government was keen on the university acquiring the IoE status, though it may take some more time to complete the formalities, sources said.

Sugar cards can be changed to rice cards

20/11/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

Now, family cardholders can convert their sugar option cards to rice cards by which they can get rice and other items provided under the Public Distribution System. In a statement, Food Minister R. Kamaraj said there were many requests from consumers to convert sugar cards to rice cards. Such consumers can apply online through www.tnpds.gov.in and also at the respective assistant commissioner’s offices till November 26, said an official release here.