Baby born mid-air gets a birth certificate

Baby born mid-air gets a birth certificate

Yeshika.Budhwar@timesgroup.com

Jaipur:13.04.2021

The baby boy born mid-air on the Bengaluru-Jaipur Indigo flight on March 17 was finally issued a birth certificate on Monday.

After TOI highlighted that the parents had been running from pillar to post to get the document, government officials got in touch with the airline which then sent a confirmation email about the child being born on board. The Jaipur municipal corporation was then contacted and it issued a birth certificate. Speaking exclusively to TOI, 27-day-old Lakshit’s father, Bhairu Singh, said, “After our son’s birth, I was being passed from one government office to another and all the officials seemed confused as he was born on a flight. I am really happy that finally the birth certificate has been issued and it is a weight off my shoulders. If the media had not highlighted the issue, I would probably have still been struggling.” Bhairu and his wife Lalita had boarded the flight at around 5.45 am at Bengaluru and landed at Jaipur airport at about 8 am on March 17 with their newborn baby.

“First I went to the sarpanch who asked me to go to the government hospital. But the staff there claimed that they could not issue the birth certificate because the baby was not born there and my wife only went to the government hospital for post-natal treatment. After the normal delivery mid-air, we were taken to a private hospital in Jaipur but the expenses were too high due to which we came home to our village in Beawar,” the father said.

After reading about the couple’s plight in TOI, Mahendra Pratap Singh, deputy secretary, Rajasthan state commission for protection of child rights, wrote to Indigo airlines and got a reply confirming the birth within a day. “I wanted to help the couple. Once the airline replied, I shared the details with the municipal corporation in Jaipur and fortunately they issued the birth certificate at the earliest,” said the deputy secretary.

After TOI highlighted that the parents had been running from pillar to post to get the document, govt officials got in touch with the airline

OCIs move Supreme Court, seek dual citizenship rights

OCIs move Supreme Court, seek dual citizenship rights

SC Seeks Response From Centre

Dhananjay.Mahapatra@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:13.04.2021

As many as 80 Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs), most of them residing in their homeland, on Monday requested the Supreme Court to direct the government to end treating them as second class citizens, allow them to freely express their views and dissent against government and confer on them all the rights enjoyed by an Indian citizen.

Appearing for the OCIs, 57 of whom are residents of Bengaluru, senior advocate R Venkataramani told a bench of Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian that though they contribute a lot to India through payment of taxes and through their profession, they live in the fear of losing their OCI status because of arbitrary power conferred on government to cancel their status. The bench sought the Centre's response.

The petitioners said the statutes and policy decisions of the Indian government severely curtailed "the basic rights of OCIs and gave the government unbridled and uncanalized discretionary powers to terminate their citizenship. This subjects OCIs to a constant state of hardship, fear and uncertainty. Further, this wholly defeats the very purpose of the OCI scheme which was unequivocally to grant dual citizenship. "

The petitioners led by Bengaluru-based medicine expert Radhika Thappeta said section 7D of the Citizenship Act allows the Union Government to cancel the registration of OCIs and prohibit them from residing in India over the violation of any law or for showing disaffection to the Constitution of India. "Section 7D(b) of the Act allows the government to cancel a person’s OCI registration if they show disaffection to the Constitution of India and Section 7D(da) allows cancellation of OCI registration for the violation of any law. Both these provisions under Section 7D are arbitrary and have a chilling effect on the freedom of expression of OCIs," they said.

While the MHA notification of November 15, 2019 allowed OCIs to practice the professions of doctors, architects, advocates and chartered accountants as per the relevant laws, there are a whole list of other provisions that are arbitrarily left out of such a list without sufficient reasons, they complained.

"By limiting the number of professions that OCIs can have parity with NRIs in pursuing, several OCIs practicing other non-enumerated professions are hindered from meaningfully participating in and contributing to their professional streams in India. Although several OCIs reside and pay taxes in India, such persons are unable to meaningfully voice their grievance with local government authorities over civic infrastructure out of fear that their overseas citizenship may be cancelled for expressing their right to peacefully raise public grievances," they said.

Even while OCIs work and reside permanently in India, they are often disentitled to seek information from state authorities under the Right to Information Act, the petitioners said.

They said, the November 2019 MHA notification granted adoption rights to OCIs on par with NRIs. "However, where an OCI or NRI living abroad adopts a child from India following the inter-country adoption regulations, then the host foreign country often automatically grants foreign citizenship to the adopted child who has at least one parent as a citizen of that host country. As per Section 9(1) of the Citizenship Act, this results in the child automatically losing his or her Indian citizenship without granting any opportunity to the child to retain his or her Indian citizenship on attaining majority," the petitioners said.

Petitioners told SC that though they contribute a lot to India through payment of taxes and through their profession, they live in the fear of losing their OCI status because of arbitrary power conferred on government to cancel their status

In-laws post video of woman’s suicide online as proof of innocence

In-laws post video of woman’s suicide online as proof of innocence

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Muzaffarnagar: 13.04.2021 

As a woman, 25, hanged herself to death, her in-laws lined up outside to shoot a video through the window and then shared it on social media to “absolve” themselves of murder. Her parents have alleged they had been hounding her for dowry, which led to her death. The woman’s father-in-law and mother-in-law have been arrested while her husband and her brother-in-law, also booked, are on the run.

The woman, Komal, lived in Muzaffarnagar's Datiyana village with her husband, Ashish, and in-laws. On Sunday, as she prepared to hang herself, her in-laws waited outside. In the video, she can be seen tying a noose around a beam lining the asbestos roof. She gasps once as she ties the blue stole around her neck, tightens it and tests the grip so it doesn’t give way. After one last check, she lets go and hangs herself as a man’s voice says, “Apne aap latak rahi hai (she hanged herself on her own).” The man’s voice is presumably that of her father-in-law. On Monday, they shared the video on social media, hoping it would go viral. It did.

While confirming the video had been shot from outside the room where she hanged herself, SP (city) Arpit Vijayvargiya said, “They had tried to stop her from killing herself.” Her parents, however, had a different story to tell. Komal and Ashish got married in September 2019. “I had given Rs 5 lakh and a bike to his family at the time. But his father Devendra, mother Savita and brother Sachin were not happy. About six months ago, they beat up Komal and drove her out of the house. The elders of the village sent her back,” her father Anil Kumar wrote in the complaint to the police. “Two months ago, they started demanding Rs 1.2 lakh. They said they would get Ashish married to someone else if she could not come up with the dowry. All four of them got together and killed my daughter.”

An FIR was lodged on Sunday, a day before the video went viral, against Ashish, his brother and his parents under sections 304B (dowry death), 498A (cruelty to married woman) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC and under sections 3 (giving or taking dowry) and 4 (demanding dowry) of The Dowry Prohibition Act.

“His parents have been arrested and will be produced before the magistrate.” Ashish and his brother Sachin are on the run, SHO Yashpal Singh said.

The woman’s father-in-law and mother-in-law have been arrested while her husband & her brother-in-law, also booked, are on the run. The woman's parents have alleged they had been hounding her for dowry, which led to her death

Now, virus settling deep down in lungs

Now, virus settling deep down in lungs

Condition Making Diagnosis Tough: Delhi Docs

DurgeshNandan.Jha@timesgroup.com

New Delhi: 13.04.2021 

The novel coronavirus variant that is causing the current wave of Covid-19 is not just highly infectious but also stealthy.

City hospitals say there are getting cases where a patient has typical symptoms of the disease but tests negative for the viral infection, sometimes twice or thrice even through RT-PCR, considered the gold standard for Covid testing. “We have received many such patients in the past few days. They had fever, cough, shortness of breath and the CT scan of the lungs showed lighter-coloured or gray patches. It is referred to as patchy ground glass opacity in medical terms. The condition is one of the defining characteristics of Covid-19,” Dr Aashish Chaudhry, managing director of Aakash Healthcare, said.

He added that some of the patients underwent bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), a diagnostic method in which a flexible scope is passed through the mouth or nose into the lungs with a measured amount of fluid introduced and then collected for examination, which confirmed the diagnosis.

“All such persons who tested negative through conventional Covid-19 testing methods but had disease symptoms came positive in the lavage test,” Dr Chaudhry said.

What could be causing this? Dr Pratibha Kale, associate professor of clinical microbiology at Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences, said, “It is possible that in these patients the virus didn’t colonise the nasal or throat cavity because of which swab samples taken from these areas didn’t yield a positive result.” The virus, she added, attached itself to the ACE receptors — a protein found on the surface of many cell types — in the lungs and “that’s why when the fluid samples from the organ were analysed, it confirmed Covid-19 diagnosis”.

Dr Vivek Nangia, the chief of pulmonology division at Max Healthcare, said nearly 15-20% of the Covid-19 patients suffered from this problem. “They are highly symptomatic of the disease, but test negative. This is a serious problem because such patients can continue to spread the infection if they are admitted in non-Covid areas. Also, it can delay the treatment,” he added.

The pulmonologist said the symptoms in Covid patients also varied significantly in the current wave compared to previous outbreaks caused by SARS-CoV-2. “A significant mutation in the virus cannot be ruled out. It is the most plausible explanation for the changes being witnessed,” he said.

Dr Arup Basu, senior consultant in the chest medicine department of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, said nose running, cold and conjunctivitis like symptoms were also being seen in Covid-19 patients this time, which were not present earlier. “Many patients do not have cough or breathlessness and the result of the CT scan of their lungs is also normal. However, they have persistently high fever for eight to nine days that necessitates hospitalisation,” he said.

SCARY FINDINGS

Docs protesting VIP culture write to Modi

Docs protesting VIP culture write to Modi

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

13.04.2021

The doctors’ association Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) has written to the Prime minister complaining against “the VIP culture in government hospitals” whereby government doctors were called to the homes of politicians to provide testing and treatment.

The letter pointed out that there were no facilities for doctors working on the frontline when they tested positive, while “priority is being given to all the so-called politicians and their party workers who have actually held rallies and increased the spread of the virus”.

“Central government hospitals have VIP counters for testing, allowing all party workers of politicians and ministries to get themselves tested but doctors have no separate counters for testing,” stated the letter. It added that even when the VIP counter was available for testing, a majority of politicians called doctors to their residence though there was no legal order from the medical superintendent to do so. This “informal” arrangement of using doctors working in government institutions in this manner was reducing and wasting the limited manpower available, said the FAIMS letter.

It concluded stating that as doctors they strongly opposed “this VIP culture being awarded (sic) to politicians, bureaucrats, party workers etc.” and sought the PM’s intervention in the matter.

Airlines can’t serve meals if flight time is less than 2 hrs

Airlines can’t serve meals if flight time is less than 2 hrs

Saurabh.Sinha@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:13.04.2021

The gover nment has directed airlines to serve or sell inflight meals only on those domestic flights that have a duration of over two hours, in wake of the sharp surge in Covid cases in India. The new guildelines will come to effect on April 15.

There are so far no restrictions on inflight meals on international flights. There have been fears that passengers taking off masks to eat can lead to Covid spread. While this can’t be avoided on medium or long hauls, the restriction has been imposed on domestic flights of up to two-hour duration.

A senior aviation ministry official said: “We had (last year) issued guidelines for inflight meals and they have worked well. However, as an abundant precaution, additional provisions are being made. For domestic flights, an order is issued to consider inflight meal when flight duration is two hours or more.” The inflight meal SOP also calls for staggering them “among adjacent seats, as far as possible”.

The number of domestic passengers has been falling during the current spike in cases. The restriction on inflight meals will be yet another hit for low-cost carriers. “In the past few days with numbers rising, people on short flights preferred to stay firmly masked up. Fear is again in the air with aircraft occupancy falling to an average of less than 100 passengers,” said a worried airline official.

Negative report delayed, techie misses flight

Negative report delayed, techie misses flight

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru:13.04.2021

A 27-year-old data scientist claimed he could not fly to Lisbon, Portugal, because a government facility in Marathahalli did not issue a Covid negative certificate in time. As a result, airline staff refused to allow him to board the flight.

Abhishek Gupta said he has now obtained a test report from a private laboratory and is scheduled to fly out on Tuesday.

Gupta said he was stopped from boarding an Air France flight to Paris from KIA on Sunday because he did not possess a negative certificate. The airline was only complying with guidelines issued by the state health and family welfare department.

Gupta, from West Bengal, had come to Bengaluru from Lisbon last October after his parents were admitted to Manipal Hospitals for treatment. When his parents were discharged and returned home healthy, Gupta decided to fly to Portugal via Paris early on Sunday.

“I took an RT-PCR test on Thursday at a government facility in Marathahalli and was promised the result online by Saturday morning,” Gupta said. “I trusted them and reached the place by Saturday noon, but nothing was ready and the response from staff was far from welcoming. I was forced to go to a hospital in Bellandur to get my results but there I was directed to the Marathahalli clinic.”

Gupta claimed that he contacted Air France’s customer care number only to be told that he doesn’t require a Covid negative certificate for the Bengaluruto-Paris leg of the journey. “But when I reached KIA on Saturday night, airline representatives refused to let me board even though I said my test results will come anytime on my email. The Air France website said I would be fined in Portugal if I did not have the certificate and I was ready to pay.”

He had to leave the airport and return home as the Covid report didn’t arrive even 48 hours after the test was taken. “Thorough inefficiency of government health staff cost me my trip,” Gupta said. “I received the test result, which was negative, on my mail on Sunday afternoon, but it was too late then.”

Govt, CBSE do a rethink on boards dates

Govt, CBSE do a rethink on boards dates

Manash.Gohain@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:13.04.2021

The fresh surge in the Covid pandemic has resulted in the possible rescheduling of Board exams being discussed, with the current plans for the Class X and XII exams to get under way from May 4.

The ministry of education and CBSE officials are considering whether the exams need to be deferred as students and schools are wondering over the feasibility of conducting the exams just 20 days away. Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad has postponed the Board exams, which was scheduled to start from April 24, due to panchayat elections and surge in Covid-19 cases.

“Cases are rising exponentially. Teachers are contracting corona, students and families are down with Covid-19. There is a sense of paranoia. Is CBSE holding the exams just for sake of a formality? It is advisable to review the dates as it is impossible to conduct the exams safely across the country for over 30 lakh students,” said the principal of a private school in Delhi.

Students and parents are also writing to MoE and CBSE as well as taking to the social media requesting for deferring or cancelling the exams. According to a senior MoE official, rescheduling the exams has come up though no decision has been taken so far. “This has been discussed with CBSE officials. The ministry is monitoring the situation,” said the official.

The official, however, said there are no plans to cancel the Boards altogether or make the exams online at present. “The only point of discussion are the dates. There are still around three weeks left and developments, including increase in the number of Covid infections and containment zones, are being discussed,” the official added.

Maha defers boards to May-end & June

The HSC (Std XII) and SSC (Std X) board examinations in Maharashtra have been postponed to May-end and June, respectively, due to rising Covid cases, the state’s school education minister Varsha Gaikwad said on Monday. Also, the state will write to other boards to reconsider their exam dates.The decision has not gone down well with students preparing for engineering and medical entrance exams. Gaikwad made the announcement after meeting CM Uddhav Thackeray. TNN

‘Covaxin, Covishield both work against UK strain’

‘Covaxin, Covishield both work against UK strain’

Officials: No Indian Variant Of Virus Yet

Sushmi.Dey@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:13.04.2021

Both Covaxin and Covishield — the two vaccines against Covid in use in India — are effective against the UK variant, which is one the two prevailing mutations found in the country, senior officials said. Officials said so far there has been no Indian variant as only a double mutation has been found in Maharashtra. It requires multiple mutations for a new variant to be recognised as such and to make a discernible impact.

So far, three “imported variants” — UK, South Africa and Brazilian — have been detected in India. During genome sequencing of samples, the total number of cases with these variants of the Covid-19 virus adds up to 948 till Monday evening.

The presence of UK and South African variants is more in samples sequences in India, whereas very few samples have tested positive for the Brazilian variant.

“Covaxin is effective against both UK and Brazilian variant, Covishield is effective against the UK variant but we are awaiting its efficacy data against Brazilian strain. The South African variant could not be cultured so far,” an official told TOI. Even as there have been concerns about double mutations being the cause of spread in Maharashtra and whether it can be an Indian strain, officials said data so far does not support such a conclusion.

ICMR researchers continue to study if the double mutations are causing faster transmission of the infection, an official said.

“The virus may continue to mutate and generate new variants. It is normal process but it takes multiple mutations to bring forth a new variant. While variants have a role in being more infectious, the remedy or measures to combat it remain same,” the official said.

When many go maskless, some are doubling down on staying safe

When many go maskless, some are doubling down on staying safe

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

13.04.2021

Did you look twice at the man with two masks on at the neighbourhood market? And later found a few more like him? As the second Covid-19 wave lashes the country, many are going for the double-mask approach to keep the virus away, with experts saying it’s “advisable” and an “established way to stop transmission”.

“One can wear a surgical mask and a cloth mask or two cloth masks. However, with N95 masks, doubling is not needed,” says Dr Rommel Tickoo, director, internal medicine department at Delhi’s Max Saket. “A double mask is advisable when a person is going to crowded places where social distancing is not possible,” he says.

Many masks don’t fit perfectly on the face. Wearing double masks reduces the risk of droplets from an infected person escaping through the sides while breathing in and out, say experts. The double-masking recommendation is based on a study conducted by the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC conducted studies to assess two ways of improving the fit of medical procedure masks — fitting a cloth mask over a medical procedure mask, and knotting the ear loops of a medical procedure mask and then tucking in and flattening the extra material close to the face.

‘Double mask gives more fool-proof protection’

Each modification substantially improved source control and reduced wearer exposure, it found.

“Double masking and knotting are some of the established ways to stop transmission as it ensures a tight fit. While people may feel it impedes breathing, its regular use could ease the discomforts,” said Maharashtra Covid taskforce member Dr Shashank Joshi.

Joshi recommends using a medical three-ply mask covered by a cloth mask or viseversa for maximum protection. “Double masking can prove to be effective in crowded places, rooms where there is lack of proper ventilation or places where social distancing can be a challenge such as a local train compartment,” added Joshi added.

Wearing a double mask provides a more fool-proof protection, according to Rahul Jain, internal medicine consultant at Belle Vue Clinic in Kolkata. Often, the mask gets displaced or is not properly fitted around the nose and mouth. This may happen if the string gets loose. A second mask ensures that the cover remains firmly in place,” said Jain.

However, some experts feel double-masking cannot be standard strategy. “The theory of double mask has been discussed, propagated by some as a better filter to prevent the leaks. However, this cannot be recommended as a standard strategy. One good mask wellworn is good enough to offer protection,” Dr Ravindra Mehta, chief of pulmonary, critical care and interventional pulmonology, Apollo Speciality Hospitals, Bengaluru.

(With inputs from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Chennai)

Suggest Giving Priority, Leave, Med Aid To Those Who Took Vax

Offer perks for taking jab, experts tell govt

Suggest Giving Priority, Leave, Med Aid To Those Who Took Vax

Pushpa.Narayan@timesgroup.com

Chennai:13.04.2021

The new goal is administering at least 2 lakh doses of the vaccine daily, nearly doubling the number administered so far on the best days, health secretary J Radhakrishnan announced last week, but hesitancy about the vaccine remains a hurdle.

Aware that getting as many people as possible vaccinated will be critical to containing the pandemic and allowing a return to a more normal way of life, public health analysts, virologists and infectious diseases experts offer three ways to beat hesitancy.

Create awareness, improve accessibility

Right messages about vaccines should stare out of billboards and blare out through public address systems, says former director of public health Dr K Kolandaisamy. Since many people want to avoid hospitals and crowded places, vaccination camps should be held in schools, anganwadi centres, meeting halls or open grounds of residential complexes, parks and workplaces. The government should update its web pages on where the vaccine will be available every day. VHNs too will be able to effectively do door-to-door canvassing in parts of the state. If people avoid vaccines because they want to wait for one brand, they should be told that the efficacy levels of both the vaccines are good.

Offer privileges to those vaccinated

Those who have taken at least one dose of the vaccine, and others who have taken the second dose at the right interval, says infectious diseases expert Dr Subramanian Swaminathan, should get privileges in entry to places of worship, tourist spots, or while booking movie tickets. They should, however, follow pandemic protocols. It should be announced that vaccine certificates will be required for all international travel. Though people can be infected even after two doses of the vaccine, they will not have severe disease. While natural immunity comes with the infection, vaccines can trigger antibodies – which can fight the virus – without risk of morbidity or mortality.

No vaccine, no compensation for severe disease/death

While vaccination is voluntary, public health experts say the government must tell healthcare providers and frontline staff that there will be no paid medical leave, reimbursement for severe treatment at private hospitals in case of severe Covid symptoms if they skip taking the vaccine. They should also not be compensated with cash in case they die of the viral infection. There is adequate scientific evidence that the vaccines offer up to 80% protection against the infection and prevent severe disease. The most informed people cannot have hesitancy.

Tamil Nadu has adequate vax doses, says EPS

Tamil Nadu has adequate vax doses, says EPS

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:13.04.2021

Asserting that adequate doses of Covid vaccine are available in Tamil Nadu, chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday called upon government staff to get vaccinated within two weeks. The management of industries, government offices, workplaces, markets and residential complexes should contact Greater Chennai Corporation/district administration to arrange for Covid vaccination that can be administered at their premises, the chief minister said.

During a review meeting with the heads of departments at the Secretariat, the chief minister said the public should get vaccinated at nearby hospitals.

Employers need to ensure staff get vaccinated: CM

Palaniswami said, “The management of industries, restaurants and markets should arrange for vaccination for their employees. If the management requests government hospitals, the government is ready to vaccinate the workers at their premises. We have adequate doses of vaccines.” He urged people to avoid crowding in public places, wear masks, maintain social distance and follow the government’s standard operating procedures.

In a slew of directions to department heads, Palaniswami said all eligible people should get vaccinated and the administrative machinery should reassure people about the necessity to take the vaccination. “The vaccination is done at primary health centres, government hospitals, mini clinics and private hospitals. The state administered 37.8 lakh vaccine doses until Sunday to health staff, frontline workers, election staff and people above 45 years,” an official release said, quoting the chief minister. The state has received 54.85 lakh doses of vaccine from the Centre until Sunday.

The chief minister said the administration should conduct 90,000 RT-PCR tests a day, besides increased and aggressive testing in affected areas, and the results should come out in 24 hours. Tracing of a minimum 25-30 contacts of infected persons should be expedited and they should undergo RT-PCR tests. “Fever camps should be set up across the state and those with symptoms of cold and fever should be diagnosed and treated,” the release said. The state government has set up 8.92 lakh fever camps so far and treated 14.47 lakh people with symptoms of fever. As many as 1,309 containment zones were identified as on April 10 and intensive monitoring measures were taken.

The areas where there are three or more affected people must be declared a micro-containment zone and preventive measures taken against the spread of infection. The infected persons should be either taken to Covid care centres or exclusive Covid hospitals as per protocol, the release said.

Don’t pick between helmet & mask: Cops

Don’t pick between helmet & mask: Cops

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:13.04.2021

Just a day after the state government put in place new restrictions to contain Covid-19, several road-users across Chennai were seen arguing with the traffic police about the need to wear a mask while wearing helmets.

From April 8 to 11, as per city police statistics, 2,351 cases were registered against people not wearing masks and a fine of ₹4.44 lakh collected. On Sunday alone, 892 cases were registered against violators who were fined ₹1.62 lakh. During the April 8-11 period, police registered 1,500 cases and collected a fine of ₹59,500 for failing to maintain social distancing norms, with 196 special teams headed by an inspector enforcing norms.

Ahead of an awareness campaign in T Nagar on Tuesday, commissioner Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal asked all inspectors to enforce the norms strictly. “Many people know about the importance of wearing face masks, but ignore it. We are conducting a series of campaigns, especially in residential areas and market places, roping in the traffic police, Amma patrol, law and order and other wings,” he said.

Across the state from April 8 to 11, police registered 1,30,531 cases and collected ₹2.52 crore in fines including registering 46,062 cases and collecting ₹89.61 in fines on Sunday alone. In the north zone, comprising 12 districts, 27,910 cases were registered and ₹48.53 lakh collected in fines, while in the central zone, 22,524 cases were registered and ₹44.11 lakh in fines collected. In the west zone, 21,739 cases were registered and ₹43.40 lakh in fines collected, while in the south zone, 43,019 cases were registered and ₹85.74 lakh in fines collected.

MASK UP OR PAY UP: Greater Chennai police collected fine of ₹1.62 lakh from people not wearing mask in public places

3-member panel to run Anna univ till new VC found

3-member panel to run Anna univ till new VC found

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:13.04.2021 

A three-member convener committee headed by higher education secretary Apoorva will run Anna University in the absence of the vice-chancellor.

IT secretary Hans Raj Verma and Ranjani Parthasarathy from College of Engineering, Guindy, will be the other members of the committee. After professor M K Surappa completed his three-year tenure as VC on Sunday, there was a lack of clarity on who will head the university until his replacement is found.

Apoorva convened a special syndicate meeting on Monday. The syndicate resolved to form a convener committee headed by Apoorva for exercising the powers and performing the duties of vice-chancellor till a new V-C is appointed.

Professors from the university said the outgoing vicechancellor was asked to vacate the university in two days. "The head of the convener committee has given the direction to the university authorities. It is not fair giving him the shortest time to vacate when the new VC is yet to be appointed. They should give him at least a few weeks' time to vacate in view of the raging pandemic in both Tamil Nadu and Karnataka," they said.

Meanwhile, a three-member vice-chancellor search committee headed by Jawaharlal Nehru University vicechancellor M Jagadish Kumar has been formed. "The search committee meeting is yet to take place. The committee will need at least five weeks' time to shortlist a panel of names for the vice-chancellor post," a source said.

Surprise for city residents, light rain in the morning

Surprise for city residents, light rain in the morning

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:13/04/2021

Residents in soime parts of the city woke up on Monday morning to surprise light spells of rain.

While IMD has not forecast rainfall over the city for the next few days, weather bloggers said wind convergence closer to coastal areas may continue to bring isolated light showers over a few areas in the morning. For southe TN, IMD said a cyclonic circulation could bring heavy rain and thunderstorms over the next four days.

For the next 48 hours, Chennai and its suburbs will have partly cloudy skies with maximum and minimum temperatures around 35 degrees C and 26 degrees C.

While the last few days had seen near normal day and night temperatures in the city, localities in west Chennai such as Koyambedu, Anna Nagar, Valasaravakkam, Virugambakkam and Porur recorded light spells on Monday. Both Nungambakkam and Meenambakkam stations, however, recorded zero rainfall.

While a persistent strong easterly is keeping a check on day temperatures in the day, meteorologists said an early morning convergence of opposing winds closer to coastal areas brought drizzles over a few localities.

The IMD has forecast light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning over a few places in Western Ghat districts along with south and central parts of the state till April 16. Heavy rainfall is also likely over Coimbatore, Theni and Nilgiris. This is due to a cyclonic circulation over south Tamil Nadu and neighbourhood.

“Chennai may receive spells in the morning for the next two weeks due to convergence close to the coast. But it is more like drizzles or very light rainfall that may not last more than a few minutes,” said blogger Pradeep John.

Localities in west Chennai such as Koyambedu, Anna Nagar, Valasaravakkam, Virugambakkam and Porur recorded light spells on Monday

After vibration, Air India pilots skip Kozhikode table-top runway, land in Kochi with 188 on board

After vibration, Air India pilots skip Kozhikode table-top runway, land in Kochi with 188 on board

Saurabh.Sinha@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:13.04.2021

A “vibration” during takeoff at Riyadh led two pilots in the cockpit of an Air India Express flight to Kerala’s Kozhikode choose Kochi as a “safer” landing option over the destination airport’s tricky table-top runway, where a Boeing 737-800 of the same airline had overshot the strip and crashlanded last August killing killing 19 passengers and both the pilots.

Just before IX-1322 became airborne late on Saturday with 188 people, Captain Yazad Bachaa and first officer Nishad Arawandakar had experienced a “small jolt...a wobble” that indicated trouble with the landing gear or tyres.

Since all flight parameters were otherwise normal, they decided to continue flying, though with one crucial change — diverting the flight to Kochi to avoid landing on the table-top runway at Kozhikode with a possible snag. The flight landed safely in Kochi early on Sunday.

AI Express arranged another aircraft hours later to fly the passengers to Kozhikode. “We are proud of the way the pilots handled the situation,” airline sources said.

While touchdown was uneventful, tyre fragments were strewn across the runway. The rubber portion of the right tyre in the main landing gear had completely disintegrated. Once it was confirmed there was no fire, the 180 passengers, six-member cabin crew and the two pilots deplaned using a stepladder.

After reaching cruising altitude of 35,000 ft following take-off, the pilots had contacted Riyadh air traffic control and asked them to check if tyre pieces had been found on the runway. Officials confirmed shortly afterwards that there were some fragments, though they couldn’t say if they were from the AI Express Boeing 737-800.

Making best use of “crew resource management”, the pilot-in-command called two special passengers to the cockpit – the captain and co-pilot who had flown the same aircraft on its journey from India to Saudi Arabia. The four pilots brainstormed and worked out likely scenarios involving tyre trouble. It was then that Captain Bachaa decided to divert to Kochi because of its longer runway and clear weather.

RISK PRONE: In August 2020, an AI Express Boeing 737-800 overshot the Kozhikode runway and crashlanded killing 21 people

பணியாளர் தேர்வு குளறுபடி அதிகாரிகள் மீது நடவடிக்கை?

பணியாளர் தேர்வு குளறுபடி அதிகாரிகள் மீது நடவடிக்கை?

Added : ஏப் 11, 2021 23:44

சென்னை: சி.எம்.டி.ஏ.,வில், உதவியாளர், தட்டச்சர் பணிக்கு நேரடியாக, 131 பேர் தேர்வு செய்யப்பட்டதில், குளறுபடிகள் நடந்ததா என, துறை ரீதியான ஆய்வு நடந்து வருகிறது.

சென்னை பெருநகர் வளர்ச்சி குழுமமான, சி.எம்.டி.ஏ.,வில் உதவியாளர், தட்டச்சர் உள்ளிட்ட பணியிடங்கள் நீண்ட காலமாக காலியாக இருந்தன. இவற்றை நேரடி தேர்வு வாயிலாக நிரப்ப, சி.எம்.டி.ஏ., அதிகாரிகள் நடவடிக்கை எடுத்தனர்.இதில், 131 இடங்களுக்கான நபர்களை தேர்வு செய்யும் பணிகள் நடந்தன. எழுத்துத் தேர்வு, நேர்முக தேர்வு நடைமுறைகள் பிப்., 24ல் முடிக்கப்பட்டன. அதன்பின், தேர்வான பணியாளர்கள் குறித்தும், அவர்களின் மதிப்பெண் குறித்தும், இடஒதுக்கீடு முறை பற்றியும், எவ்வித அறிவிப்பும் வெளியிடப்படவில்லை.

தேர்வான நபர்களை தனிப்பட்ட முறையில் அழைத்து, பணி ஆணைகள் வழங்கியதாக புகார்கள் எழுந்தன. இதனால், பாதிக்கப்பட்ட விண்ணப்பதாரர்கள் சிலர், உயர் நீதிமன்றத்தில் வழக்கு தொடர்ந்து உள்ளனர். இதனால், சி.எம்.டி.ஏ.,வுக்கு சிக்கல் ஏற்பட்டுள்ளது.இது குறித்து, பாதிக்கப்பட்ட விண்ணப்பதாரர்கள் கூறியதாவது: பணியாளர்கள் தேர்வு தொடர்பான கோப்புகளை, துறை ரீதியான ஆய்வுக்கு, அதிகாரிகள் உட்படுத்தி உள்ளனர்.

நிர்வாக பிரிவு அதிகாரிகள் சிலர் மீது நடவடிக்கை எடுக்க வாய்ப்புள்ளது.மேலும், பணியாளர் தேர்வு விஷயத்தில், நிர்வாக பிரிவை வழி நடத்தியவர்கள், முடிவுகள் எடுக்கும் நிலையில் இருந்த அதிகாரிகள் மீதும், உரிய நடவடிக்கை எடுக்க வேண்டும்.இவ்வாறு அவர்கள் கூறினர்.

முக கவசம் அணியாதவர்கள் வங்கிகளுக்கு செல்ல முடியாது

முக கவசம் அணியாதவர்கள் வங்கிகளுக்கு செல்ல முடியாது

Added : ஏப் 12, 2021 04:46

சென்னை : 'முக கவசம் அணியாத வாடிக்கையாளர்களை, வங்கிகளுக்குள் அனுமதிக்கக் கூடாது' என, அனைத்து வங்கிகளுக்கும், தமிழக மாநில வங்கியாளர்கள் குழுமம் சுற்றறிக்கை அனுப்பி உள்ளது.

அந்த சுற்றறிக்கை விபரம்: கொரோனா தொற்று பரவல் தொடர்பாக, தளர்வுகள் மற்றும் கட்டுப்பாடுகளுடன் கூடிய ஊரடங்கை, ஏப்ரல், 30 வரை, தமிழக அரசு அறிவித்துள்ளது.மேலும், வங்கிகளில் பின்பற்ற வேண்டிய, வழிமுறைகள் குறித்தும், தமிழக அரசு அதிகாரிகள் உடன் ஆலோசனை நடத்தப்பட்டது. இதன்படி, வாடிக்கையாளர்கள் முக கவசம்அணியாமல், வங்கிகளுக்குள் வர அனுமதிக்கக்கூடாது.

முக கவசம் அணித்து வரும் வாடிக்கையாளர்களும், வங்கியை விட்டு செல்லும் வரை, வாய் மற்றும் மூக்கை மூடும் வகையில் அணிது இருக்க வேண்டும். ஒவ்வொருவருக்கும்,உடல் வெப்ப பரிசோதனை மேற்கொள்ள வேண்டும். தொடுதல் இல்லாத வகையில், கிருமிநாசினி திரவம் மற்றும் கை கழுவும் திரவங்களை வங்கி நுழைவாயிலும், வளாகத்தின் பொது இடத்திலும் வைக்க வேண்டும்.

வங்கியில் அதிககூட்டம் கூடுவதை தடுக்க, உரிய நடவடிக்கை எடுக்க வேண்டும்.அலுவலக, 'லிப்டு'களை, இரண்டு அல்லது நான்கு நபர்களுக்கு மேல் பயன்படுத்தக் கூடாது.வங்கி ஊழியர்கள் மற்றும் வாடிக்கையாளர்கள் இடையே, தனி மனித இடைவெளியை கண்டிப்பாக பின்பற்ற வேண்டும்.

வங்கி கிளைகளில், அவ்வப்போது கிருமி நாசினி தெளிக்க வேண்டும்.அரசு விதிகளின் படி,கொரோனா தடுப்பூசி போடுவதற்கானஅனைத்து நடவடிக்கைகளையும், வங்கி நிர்வாகம் மேற்கொள்ள வேண்டும்.இவ்வாறு, அதில் கூறப்பட்டுள்ளது.

Migrants stream back to MP from Delhi & Maha; woman delivers in bus

Migrants stream back to MP from Delhi & Maha; woman delivers in bus

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

12.04.2021

Bhopal/Barwani/Khargone: Covid exodus 2.0 has begun. Migrant workers are again streaming back to Madhya Pradesh from lockeddown areas of Maharashtra and Delhi, where fears of a lockdown are growing.

One of them, 27-year-old Munia Bai, delivered a baby in a bus on Sunday while on her way to her home in MP’s Chhattarpur district. When she went into labour, the driver sped to a community health centre in Naugaon town of the district.

She was returning with her husband Harishankar Rajak, and 15 other people from Jharahata village of Panna, neighbouring Chattarpur.

Harishankar said: “We came back before lockdown could hold us back. I knew my wife was in advanced stage of pregnancy but we wanted to reach home before the Nav Durga festival.”

Ghasi Ahirwar, who works at a construction site in Delhi said, “Hungry and thirsty, we travelled for four days last year to reach home. This time, we left Delhi before they could lock down the capital. Coronavirus has spread so rapidly there that lockdown may be announced any time.”

Another labourer, Ratiram Ahirwar, said, “Nav Durga Puja is around the corner. We thought we should go home and pray to the goddess before Delhi is locked down again.”

Last year about 7.3 lakh labourers and over 5 lakh of their family members had returned to Madhya Pradesh during the lockdown. Most of them belong to Bundelkhand— Chattarpur, Tikamgarh, Panna, Damoh and Sagar districts.

Migrants are also fleeing the locked down areas of Maharashtra and returning to the homes on the bordering districts, especially Barwani, Khandwa and Khargone.

Hundreds of workers, including those headed for Bihar and UP, are turning up at Bijasan on the MP-Maharashtra border by bus. Since MP has banned interstate us travel, they get off at Bijasan, spend the night there and look for other transport.

Farid, who works as a welder in Pune, said that he was returning to Barabanki, UP, along with 17 colleagues because there was no work due to the lockdown. Another labourer, Sandeep Jaiswal, said he ran out of ration and has no option but to return home.

COVID EXODUS 2.0: Migrant workers queue up for Covid testing upon reaching Patna on Sunday. (R) Migrants leave for native places from Surat on Sunday

Gennova to get ₹100cr from govt for Covid jabs

Pune-based Gennova Biopharma, developing India’s first indigenous messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine against Covid-19, will receive government funding of ₹100 crore, making it the first such large project to be funded under the ‘Mission Covid Suraksha’. The company will receive up to Rs 100 crore under the Covid Suraksha scheme, upon successful completion of Phase 1 clinical studies, sources told TOI.

A total of Rs 900 crore has been earmarked for Covid-19 vaccine development to be implemented by BIRAC (Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council) under the Department of Biotechnology. Last year, over six vaccine candidates under development by domestic drug companies including Zydus Cadila and Gennova, were provided seed funds for around ₹15-₹20 crore each. TNN

I give you the absolute freedom to choose me as your supreme leader

STORYBOARD

I give you the absolute freedom to choose me as your supreme leader

ARUN RAM

12.04.2021

On Saturday, four days after the Tamil Nadu assembly election, the Madras high court made some interesting observations on a public interest litigation seeking an instruction to political parties to conduct their internal elections before the assembly election. “The petitioner’s sentiment has to be respected as it revealed the highest regard for democratic principles,” the court said, disposing of the petition which was now infructuous since the election had been conducted.

Nothing may come out of such petitions, but they come as occasional reminders of how autocratic our political parties are; they hold a mirror to the reality that the parties that wax eloquent about democracy do not practise it internally. And this is not to say that only those parties accused of practising dynasty politics (and there are plenty of them) are autocratic. In fact, the Congress, which still cannot think beyond the Nehru-Gandhi family for leadership, has a much more liberal intra-party democracy than the BJP. But members of the Congress have used this liberty to foster factionalism that has systematically eaten the innards of the organisation.

The BJP, on the other hand, takes pride in not promoting dynastic succession (though close to 15% of its MPs since 2009 come from BJP families) but its leadership is often handpicked by the RSS or a handful of seniors in the party. The same is the case with virtually every party, where the lowerlevel units and cadres have no say in the selection of the leadership. The communist parties in the 1980s and 1990s conducted internal polls to select committees, but it turned out to be a farce as often the incumbents introduced ‘official panels’ and those comrades who voted for someone outside the panel were shown the door.

In Tamil Nadu, the DMK, AIADMK, PMK, VCK, MDMK, DMDK and all those katchis and kazhagams were born and grew around personalities and most of them have a strong dynastic culture. The MNM, that came three years ago with the promise of change, has anointed founder Kamal Haasan as the ‘supreme leader’ and ‘perennial president’. It is only incidental and by force of circumstances that the AIADMK of late ceased to be entirely unipolar.

A leader who commands respect and shows conviction and direction is not just a prerequisite for a robust party, but also an inspiration for the public, but the problem is we often confuse a strong leader with an autocrat (an autocrat is always strong, but all strong leaders need not be autocrats). While hearing the recent petition, the Madras high court alluded to the US presidential form of leadership, but was silent on the fact that the US president is all-powerful once he attains the post, but the process has several layers of democratic checks and balances. The US and Germany have laws that mandate secret ballots for internal party elections.

It was not the first time the Madras high court had heard a plea for internal democracy in parties. In November 2019, the high court dismissed (as withdrawn) a writ petition from an AIADMK member who sought party polls. The court said it could not entertain the case and asked the litigant to file a civil suit if he so wished. The Election Commission of India said the law did not permit it to interfere with the internal affairs of a political party.

In an earlier column on dynasty politics, I argued that selecting a political progeny is the internal matter of a party; this one is to argue that the internal matter does not follow the democratic process. Am I complaining? If this is how the political circus is conducted, pass the popcorn, please.

arun.ram@timesgroup.com

toi_arunram

There is no anti-incumbency. I had set up teams of 10 members each to canvas 100 voters and get them to booth on polling day — K P Anbalagan, TN HIGHER EDUCATION MINISTER POKER FACE We have enough masks after the result

TNPSC to conduct exams online

TNPSC to conduct exams online

Chennai:12.04.2021

The Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) will conduct the departmental examinations, which are held twice a year, through online mode from June this year. "To streamline the conduct of departmental examinations, the TNPSC is introducing online examinations from June 2021," the commission said in a release. While the objective-type tests will be held online, the descriptive tests will continue in the existing model of written examination. The computerbased online test will be conducted from June 22 to 26. The descriptive-type written test will be conducted from June 27 onwards. TNN

Weekend curbs fail as crowds flock to city beaches maskless

Weekend curbs fail as crowds flock to city beaches maskless

Sands, Service Lane Off Limits, Walkers Crowd Pavement

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:12,04.2021

It would be comical if it weren’t so dangerous. The government shut the Marina beach to keep crowds, and thus Covid, away. So morning walkers crowded the pavement along Kamarajar Salai (see photograph). Normally, the crowds would have been divided between the pavement and the service road along the beach and social distancing would have been better observed.

Policemen were posted at MRTS stations and other approach roads to the Marina to dissuade people from going to the beach. But Sunday crowds were in no mood to listen.

Some enterprising souls ventured on to the sands claiming they were there to buy fish. Cops in beach buggies and on horseback chased them away.

Even those who came to the Namma Chennai selfie point in groups were asked to leave.

Similar scenes were witnessed at other beaches in the city including Elliots at Besant Nagar and Thiruvanmiyur. If they were not allowed on the sands, people crowded where they could. Social distancing was no one’s concern.

As the positive cases rose, the state government banned entry of public in all the beaches in Chennai, Chengalpet and Tiruvallur districts on all weekends, and on all government holidays to prevent spread of the second wave.

Barricades have been erected and police pickets posted in all the beaches to prevent public entry. As many as 250 policemen were posted for security both on sands and service road to avoid people from gathering at the Marina.

“We barricaded the stretches from Napier bridge to Srinivasapuram. The beaches on Sunday had additional deployment. We kept making announcements through the public address system to keep people from gathering at the beaches,” said deputy commissioner, East, V Balakrishnan.

“I came to my sister’s home in Vysarpadi, so I decided to see Marina beach with my family. I did not know the new restrictions until the police stopped me,” says Mariappan, a resident of Villupuram.

Residents complained that they were being kept away from beaches at a time when the summer heat is intensifying. But no one appeared worried about crowding in the midst of a pandemic. Frustrated policemen and policewomen were left to chase after people who really should know better.

IGNORANCE IS NOT BLISS: Additional police personnel were posted at the city beaches on Sunday, but walkers and other beachgoers feigned innocence and said they weren’t aware of the new ban to visit beaches. Most weren’t wearing masks either, one year since it was made mandatory

V-C completes tenure; no clarity on his successor

V-C completes tenure; no clarity on his successor

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:12.04.2021

M K Surappa on Sunday completed an eventful three-year tenure as vice-chancellor of Anna University. With no syndicate committee formed to run the routine affairs of the state’s premier technical university in the absence of a head, the state governmentisexpectedtomakealternate arrangements on Monday.

“The government may form a committee to run the routine affairs of the university till the new vice-chancellor is appointed,” an official said.

However, sources said an extension of the tenure for Surappa till the new V-C is appointed also cannot be ruled out.

The governor's office also sought a list of senior professors from the university, which set off rumours that a senior professor would be appointed as an officiating vice-chancellor. However, university officials said there is no provision in the university rules to appoint an officiating vice-chancellor.

Faculty members from the university were expecting that Surappa would get an extension on his last working day. However, no communication was sent to the university till Sunday evening.

A three member vice-chancellor search committee headed by JNU vice-chancellor M Jagadish Kumar has been formed to select the new vicechancellor to Anna University. Madras University former vice-chancellor S P Thyagarajan, former IAS officer Sheela Rani Chungath are the other two members of the committee.

There will be a briefing meeting with the chancellor and a nodal officer will be appointed. Through the nodal officer an advertisement would be given. Giving them around up to 30 days.

“The search committee meeting isyettotakeplace.The committee will need at least five weeks time to shortlist a panel of names for V-C post,” a source said.

As per practice, the nodal officer of thesearchcommittee will give advertisements inviting applications. After that the committee will shortlist ten candidates and conduct an interview before recommending three names to the governor.

During his three year tenure, professor Surappa took several measures to improve transparency in administration and bettered the quality of engineering education.

Pvt colleges seek easing of norms for new courses

Pvt colleges seek easing of norms for new courses

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:12.04.2021

Private engineering colleges in Tamil Nadu have petitioned the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to relax the 50% admissions norm to start new courses. In its approval process handbook for 2021-22, the AICTE stated that new courses will be allowed only in case of more than 50% over all enrollment in the last year.

Consortium of Self-Financing Professional, Arts and Science Colleges in Tamil Nadu has got the interim stay against the new regulation at the Madras high court. The last date to apply for new courses with AICTE is April  13.

With just two days left for applying to new courses, the consortium sent representation to the AICTE to give relaxation as per the court order.

“Most students are aspiring for admission only to employment oriented or emerging areas like artificial intelligence, machine learning, data science, cyber security among others. The existing traditional courses do not have demand and they are not attracting students. Due to the poor admission in traditional engineering courses, most of the colleges can't satisfy the new condition imposed in the approval process handbook,” P Selvaraj, secretary of the consortium said in his representation to the AICTE.

He further said the present situation compels the colleges to apply for additional courses in emerging areas for their survival and effective utilisation of infrastructure facilities.

“Without other options, for the benefit of our member institutions, the consortium resorted to legal course and got the interim stay order against the new rule. We request the AICTE to grant exemption from the new condition imposed in APH 2021-22 to our member institutions and to give permission to apply on the web portal for new courses,” Selvaraj said in the representation.

Due to poor admissions, as many as 109 technical institutions, including 88 engineering colleges, in Tamil Nadu have stopped admitting new students in the last three years as running these institutions is no longer feasible for them.

The present situation compels institutions to apply for additional courses in emerging areas for their survival