Kannada varsity VC’s ‘suitcase’ remark creates a flutter

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

BALLARI/BENGALURU/BELAGAVI,SEPTEMBER 15, 2017 00:00 IST

UPDATED: SEPTEMBER 15, 2017 04:59 IST

Mallika Ghanti says statement ‘misinterpreted’

Mallika Ghanti, Vice-Chancellor of Kannada University, Hampi, has created a flutter by stating that one has to “take suitcase” to Vidhana Soudha to get the university’s work done, implying corruption in the corridors of power. She, however, later claimed that it was a generic comment not targeted at anyone and suitcase meant “only files”. She also said in a statement that she was being “misinterpreted”.

During a symposium on Wednesday, Ms. Ghanti said she was told by founder Vice-Chancellor Chandrashekar Kambar that Ministers used to extend full support earlier and allocate adequate funds required for the development of the university.

“But today, I myself have to go with a suitcase to get the files cleared,” she said, underlining the need for additional academic staff. A video footage of her statement soon went viral.

On the silver jubilee celebration day, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had promised that the government would permit filling of the required number of posts in the university.

Prof. Ghanti’s allegation has irked Higher Education Minister Basavaraj Rayaraddi. He said he would ask her to provide evidence for the charge made against the government. Reacting to journalists’ questions on the matter in Belagavi, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said he was unaware of the context in which the allegation was made.

Meanwhile, State BJP spokesperson S. Suresh Kumar hit out at the government for not meeting its promise of providing corruption-free governance. He said Prof. Ghanti’s remark has justified the BJP’s charge that corruption was rampant in the Siddaramaiah government.

‘50% bank accounts linked with Aadhaar’

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

TIRUCHI,SEPTEMBER 15, 2017 00:00 IST

UPDATED: SEPTEMBER 15, 2017 04:21 IST

All bank accounts should be linked to the Aadhaar numbers of the account holders before November 30 as per the decision of the Union government, Collector K. Rajamani said here on Thursday.

Inaugurating a seminar on Aadhaar seeding with bank accounts with bankers in the district, Mr. Rajamani said so far 50% of the accounts have been linked with the Aadhaar numbers. Customers should provide their Aadhaar numbers to the banks concerned at the earliest and the banks should expedite the seeding process, he said.

Linking of Aadhaar numbers help direct disbursement of subsidies and compensations directly to the beneficiaries, he said.

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

‘4% of motorists booked for violations had original licences’

STAFF REPORTER

CHENNAI,SEPTEMBER 15, 2017 00:00 IST




Safe journey:Tamil Nadu has made it mandatory for motorists to carry original driving licences from September 1. 

 
Rise in number of people applying for driving licences: official

Only about 4% of the motorists out of the 1.5 lakh cases booked for various traffic violations had original driving licences, according to K. Periaiah, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Greater Chennai Police, said.

“Based on the Supreme Court directive we have to collect the licences from those motorists violating norms and send it to the respective RTOs for suspending the licences. However, we found only 5,700 people had original licences out of the total cases booked,” he said speaking at a session of Chennaiinfra conference, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in Chennai.

A Supreme Court panel had held that unless strong and urgent measures are taken to deal with speeding, drunken driving, red light jumping, violation of helmet and seat belt laws, use of mobile phones while driving, and overloading, the number of accidents and fatalities will continue to remain high. Tamil Nadu had made it mandatory for motorists to carry the original driving licences from September 1.

Mr. Periaiah also said that there has been an increase in the number of people applying for driving licences, post the rule.

Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train: All you need to know

TNN | Updated: Sep 14, 2017, 11:05 IST




Here's a look what India's first bullet train project connecting Ahmedabad to Mumbai will entail - the costs, the duration and what it will translate to in the long run.







LATEST COMMENTIt''s like a poor man is trying to buy a Mercedes. Let''s spend previous resources on really useful things and masses.Sanjiwan Kumar

No restrictions on H-1B visa: US official

PTI | Updated: Sep 14, 2017, 22:18 IST

HIGHLIGHTS

The official said around 70% of the visas issued under the H-1B category over the past nine months have gone to Indians

The H-1B is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations

NEW DELHI: A senior US official on Thursday sought to allay India's concerns on the H-1B visa programme, which is being "reviewed" by the Trump administration, saying there are no "restrictions" in place.

The official said around 70 per cent of the visas issued under the H-1B category over the past nine months have gone to Indians and that a record 1.2 million visas of Indians were adjudicated by the US last year.

The year-over-year increase in terms of issuance of H-1B visas and L1 visas (work permit) to Indians is six per cent each, the official said.

"The President (Donald Trump) spoke about review. There are no restrictions but it (H-1B) is under review," he said, adding the issue was not on the agenda for the upcoming Indo- US bilateral dialogue on consular relations, but it may come up in the course of the talks.

The issue of the repealing of the Deferred Action for Children Arrival (DACA) programme, which has hit more than 7,000 Indian-Americans+ , may also figure in the talks scheduled to be held on September 27 in Washington.

AIE to fly to Singapore from today

tnn | Updated: Sep 14, 2017, 23:01 IST

Friday will be a red letter day for Madurai international airport when Air India Express launches the first direct flight to Singapore. The service which operates four days a week also connects Madurai and Delhi, a first direct connection to the nation's capital.

Flight (IX-163) originating from New Delhi at 7 pm will reach Madurai at 10.15 pm. It will depart from Madurai as flight IX-684 at 11.15 pm and reach Singapore at 6.15 am. In the return direction, flight IX-683 will depart from Singapore at 10.40 am and reach Madurai at 12.25 pm. IX-164 will depart from Madurai at 1.50 pm and reach New Delhi at 4.40 pm.

While an inaugural event with the customary water cannon salute has been planned, passengers of the first flight to the Southeast Asian nation would be presented flowers and sweets. A group of enthusiasts who maintain a facebook fan page for the airport are planning to celebrate it in their own humble way by presenting the passengers a memento and greeting card. "It is a big day for Madurai airport. We will present a key chain and greeting cards highlighting the modernity of Singapore and culturally-rich Madurai," said Mohammed Mustafa.

This is only the third international connectivity for Madurai after flights to Dubai and Colombo. According to tour operators, it is expected to get good patronage from the people of South Tamil Nadu who are either settled or are working in Singapore besides those looking for cheap international destinations. Apart from this, the service will also help to boost industrial development given the fact that Madurai-Tuticorin industrial corridor is expected to take off shortly.

Members of Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, who played an important role in pushing for the service, are celebrating it in their own way. A 25-member trade delegation of TNCCI will visit Singapore on the first flight. They will sign a memorandum of understanding with Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry to improve two-way trade and investments.

According to Air India officials, many industrialists and industry bodies have been invited to the inaugural function scheduled on Friday at 7 pm. Apart from them, a couple of elected representatives from Madurai and officials like regional passport officer Maniswara Raja have also been invited to the event, said airport manager, Air India, A Shahjehan.

Engineer who built bus stand suspended

TNN | Updated: Sep 15, 2017, 00:48 IST

Coimbatore: The engineer, who oversaw the construction of Somanur bus stand in 1998, has been placed under suspension after it collapsed on September 7, killing five people and injuring 18.

Commissioner of municipal administration G Prakash placed Paramasivam, who was working as an assistant engineer in Karumathampatti town panchayat in 1998, under suspension.

After the construction of the bus stand, Paramasivam was promotion and was transferred to another district. He was working as an engineer at Virudhunagar municipality just before the suspension.

Meanwhile, the one man inquiry committee set up by the State government to probe the incident is all set to visit Somanur on Friday. Senior IAS officer Gagandeep Singh Bedi will conduct inquiry at the office of the Karumathampatti town panchayat in the afternoon. Residents of Somanur and Karumathampatti can participate in the inquiry and lodge complaints.

The bus stand had collapsed on September 7 following heavy downpour. As many as 23 people were trapped under the debris. While five of them died, 18 people were rescued by local residents with the help of police and firemen.

People of Somanur, Karumathampatti and Samalapuram had closed shops to condemn the government for not taking any steps against the government officials and the building contractor. Subsequently, the government formed the one man inquiry committee on September 11.