Swathi murder: Father wants Rs 3 cr compensation from railways

TNN | Nov 7, 2017, 00:03 IST

Chennai: About 16 months after IT employee S Swathi, 24, was murdered on Nungambakkam railway platform, her father K Santhanagopalakrishnan has sought Rs 3 crore compensation from the railway administration. However, he had been made to run from pillar to post till a division bench of Madras high court rapped the court registry and held that the father's plea was fit to be heard by the court.

The matter came up before a division bench of Justice KK Sasidharan and Justice P Velmurugan on Monday, after the high court registry rejected it saying the parent must move only the railways claims tribunal. Since the tribunal was an alternative remedy available to him, he cannot directly moved the high court, it was reasoned.

But the bench headed by Justice Sasidharan was not pleased with the registry — which had overstepped its limits — pointing out that the upper limit for the railway claims tribunal was just Rs 8 lakh and hence it could not hear the case anyway. It censured the registry for returning Santhanagopalakrishnan's petition on the ground of maintainability, and said it had "virtually acted as a court, exercising judicial function.'

The bench said: "The registry has no authority to reject the plea on the ground of availability of alternative remedy. It is for the court to decide whether the petition should be entertained in a matter, inspite of alternative remedy. It is always open to the court to entertain pleas notwithstanding the alternative remedy available to the party. We, therefore, hold that it is not within the province of the registry to return the petition on the ground of alternative remedy."

Noting that the issue in the present case pertains to public law domain, the bench held that as such, the writ petition is maintainable before the high court. "We are therefore of the view that the single judge was not correct in dismissing the petition," they added.

The court then directed the registry to number the writ petition and post the same before appropriate portfolio judge.

Swathi was hacked to July 24, 2016, allegedly by a youth identified as Ramkumar, who hailed from Tirunelveli district. Arrested after intense probe, Ramkumar killed himself inside Puzhal central prison later. Both deaths had triggered big public debate in the state, over the safety of working women and undertrial prisoners in state custody.

SC students wait for scholarships from 2013: RTI reply

Siddharth Prabhakar| TNN | Updated: Nov 7, 2017, 00:16 IST

Chennai: In a move that has affected thousands of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) students pursuing higher education, the Tamil Nadu government has stopped giving them post-matric to take up distance education courses offered by state universities for the past five years.

The Centre-sponsored scholarship provides financial assistance to SC/ST students to enable them to complete education.

The issue came to light when the Tamil Nadu Information Commission (TNIC) heard an appeal filed by an RTI applicant from Trichy, who was pursuing MBA in Periyar University via distance mode. He had applied for scholarship to be sanctioned by the Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department, but did not receive the amounts due for 2013-14 and 2014-15. A later RTI filed with the department did not elicit any response, based on which he filed the second appeal with TNIC.

During the hearing in October, the department informed TNIC that around 50,000 applications from students of various universities were pending since 2012-13 and many universities had written regarding release of the dues. The public information officer of Adi Dravidar department told TNIC that 'the guidance of government had been sought for procedural difficulties'.

Prinicipal secretary of the department, K Manivasan IAS, told TOI that as per existing rules, distance education students were not eligible for the scholarship.

Enquiries by TOI revealed that the state government had not cleared the PM scholarship dues of University of Madras since 2010-11. For Annamalai University, a total of Rs 14.32 crore scholarship amount claimed for 23,000 students had been pending since 2012-13. A similar situation exists in other universities as well.

"We are not even being given user ID and password for uploading data pertaining to eligible students," said a senior official from a university.

50% cardiothoracic seats go vacant as demand falls

TNN | Nov 7, 2017, 00:26 IST

Chennai: More than a decade ago, cardiac surgery was one of the most pivotal professions, saving the lives of many patients who were at death's door. But, while the number of patients with heart diseases is on the rise, the once sought-after field isn't as favoured anymore.

More than half the number of cardiothoracic surgery seats in the state, even in prestigious institutions like the Madras Medical College, have not been filled. "There is a huge demand for cardiology, but surgery seats are vacant," said state selection committee secretary Dr G Selvarajan.

"Rapid developments in the field of cardiology are among the most important reasons," said Dr K Kannan, head of cardiology, Stanley Medical College. "Cardiologists are now able to do things which they could not ten years ago. Even a 90-year-old with a block in the heart can undergo a procedure to clear it. These patients may not be taken for an open heart surgery as it comes with a high risk," he said.

As these procedures are minimally invasive, done in cath labs rather than huge operation theatres, most patients return to work within two weeks. Senior cardiac surgeons say that developments in cardiac surgery have been relatively slow, but add that things may change when there are better surgical options.

Like cardiac surgery, there are vacancies in paediatric surgery and plastic surgery as well. Doctors say, just like advances in cardiology, advances in dermatology have had an effect on plastic surgery. "The number of cosmetic options in dermatology is vast now. This will last until there are newer developments in plastic surgery," said director of medical education Dr A Edwin Joe.

The state has now sought additional time to fill up seats, and is even contemplating offering special concessions for these students. For instance, the directorate of medical education, which makes it mandatory for all students to continue to work for the government for a specific period or pay Rs2 crore, may relax rules for cardiac surgery alone this year, say senior health department officials.

Community med seats in TN likely to go up

TNN | Updated: Nov 7, 2017, 00:24 IST

Chennai: Community medicine, the stream that encompasses prevention and management of disease outbreaks, is seeing a resurgence of interest among budding doctors after a decade-long lull. Tapping into this, the government has given the go-ahead to increase the number of postgraduate seats in the subject from the existing 19 in all state colleges to 25.

The six additional seats will be offered at the Institute of Community Medicine at Madras Medical College, which will increase its PG intake from 4 to 10 the next academic year. The government also sanctioned 15 new faculty posts at the institute.

Earlier, those who failed to get the subject of their choice in the highly competitive scramble for limited PG seats chose community medicine, said director of medical education Edwin Joe, adding, "We are seeing a change in trend now. Students are choosing community medicine even when they are eligible for other clinical courses."

Community medicine, also known as social medicine, preventive medicine, public and community health, largely involves managerial and research work towards prevention of diseases, promotion of health in a community and monitoring implementation of various health policies.

"A community medicine practitioner doesn't see the patient alone. A personal disease is seen as a symptom of a wider social malady afflicting the individual, family and community," said Dr Sanjay Zodpey of the Indian Institute of Public Health. The practitioner identifies non-medical factors that led to the disease, including poverty, illiteracy, poor hygiene or limited access to health care facilities, and chalks out a plan to prevent this through health education.

Only 5% of the 16,191 MD seats in medical colleges across the country have been reserved for community medicine. Director of public health K Kolandaisamy said the highest number of postgraduates take up teaching, while a large number apply for managerial roles in the state health department. "A sizeable number are also recruited by international agencies like the WHO, while a smaller number pursue research," he added.

Community medicine could have played a crucial role when the state was in the grip of a dengue outbreak just before the recent spell of rain. "Most of the dengue deaths happened because families sought medical help too late. Ideally, community medicine doctors should have been utilised to pick up cases directly from the field," said former director of public health S Elango. "We need community medicine because a doctor's responsibility is not just to those who seek help but also to those who can't afford to."

CM seeks Rs 1,500cr central funds for drainage project

Julie Mariappan| TNN | Updated: Nov 7, 2017, 00:32 IST

Chennai: While the opposition is strident in its criticism against his government's poor monsoon preparedness, chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday blamed unapproved and indiscriminate construction in low-lying areas of Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur for inundation of roads. The Tamil Nadu CM went on to ask for a Rs 1,500 crore from the Centre for a drainage project that would permanently prevent flooding in low lying areas of Chennai, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur.

Palaniswami had apprised the flooding situation to Prime Minister Narendra Modibefore his visit to the city.

At the media event at University of Madras on Monday, when the CM urged the PM to extend financial support for the drainage project, Modi assured the state government of all possible support. "I express my condolences and sympathies to the families of all those, who have lost their loved ones, or faced immense hardship in the recent incidents of heavy rain and floods in Chennai and other parts of TN," the PM said.

On Monday, Madurantakam, one of the biggest irrigation tanks in Kancheepuram almost reached its full storage capacity and the district administration sounded a red alert to the adjoining 21 villages. The water level stood at 22.8ft as against the total storage capacity of 23.3ft. According to PWD sources, 678 tanks in Kancheepuram were beyond the half-storage mark, while 212 reached full capacity. Pillaipakkam and Manimangalam (both in Sriperumbudur taluk), Manamathy, Sirudavur and Thaiyur in Tiruporur reached full capacity.

On the lack of infrastructure despite facing worse floods, Palaniswami said the houses in low-lying areas had not come up overnight. "High-powered motor sets are availed to remove water. It is not easy to provide alternate arrangement (for housing). Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur were villages, where houses were built without approval," he said. The CM pointed out at concrete encroachments that were constructed in the ayacut areas of Narayanapuram tank which were removed after a court order.

On the complaints that people could not voice grievances in the absence of elected local body representatives, Palaniswami said elections to civic bodies would be held after the court verdict.

Note ban: Over 20,000 I-T returns picked for detailed probe

PTI | Updated: Nov 6, 2017, 20:24 IST

HIGHLIGHTS

The Income Tax Department has identified one lakh 'high risk' cases of alleged tax evasion for detailed investigation

The I-T department initiated the first phase of the 'Operation Clean Money' on January 31 this year

NEW DELHI: The Income Tax Department has picked 20,572 tax returns for "detailed scrutiny" suspecting discrepancies in incomes before and after demonetisation+ , official sources said today.

Separately, they said, the department has identified one lakh "high risk" cases of alleged tax evasion for detailed investigation+ .

According to the sources, 20,572 tax returns have been selected for detailed scrutiny after their profiles before and after demonetisation did not match.

A scrutiny procedure in the I-T department parlance denotes submission of a volume of records and testimonials, after which the taxman or the assessing officer makes sure that the return filed is correct and the filer has not evaded any tax.

The I-T department initiated the first phase of the ' Operation Clean Money+ ' on January 31 this year to check black money and stash funds in the wake of the withdrawal of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, the two highest value banknotes of the time, from circulation on November 8 last year.

According to official data, 17.73 lakh suspicious cases involving Rs 3.68 lakh crore were identified by the taxman in 23.22 lakh bank accounts post demonetisation.

Responses from 11.8 lakh people for 16.92 lakh bank accounts have been received by the department through online medium till now.

The I-T department had conducted 900 searches between November 9, 2016 and March this year, leading to seizures of assets worth Rs 900 crore, including Rs 636 crore in cash.

The searched led to the disclosure of Rs 7,961 crore undisclosed income, according to the official data.

During the same period, the department conducted 8,239 survey operations leading to detection of Rs 6,745 crore of black money, it said.

கருணாநிதியை சந்தித்து நலம் விசாரித்தார் மோடி

சென்னை: தி.மு.க., தலைவர் கருணாநிதியை, நேற்று அவரது இல்லத்தில்,பிரதமர் மோடி சந்தித்து, உடல் நலம் விசாரித்தார்.சென்னையில், பல்வேறு நிகழ்ச்சிகளில் பங்கேற்க வந்த, பிரதமர் மோடி, நேற்று பகல், 12:00 மணியளவில், சென்னை, கோபாலபுரத்தில் உள்ள கருணாநிதி வீட்டிற்கு வந்தார்.



வரவேற்பு

அவரை, வாசலில் நின்று, தி.மு.க., செயல் தலைவர், ஸ்டாலின், ராஜ்ய சபா எம்.பி., கனிமொழி ஆகியோர், பொன்னாடை அணிவித்து வரவேற்றனர்.பின், பிரதமர் மோடியை, முதல் மாடியில் உள்ள கருணாநிதி அறைக்கு, அழைத்துச் சென்றனர். அங்கு, பிரதமர் மோடியை, கருணாநிதியின் துணைவி, ராஜாத்தி வரவேற்றார். கருணாநிதியின் கையை பிடித்து, பிரதமர் உடல்நலம் விசாரித்தார்.

பிரதமர் வந்துள்ளது குறித்து, கருணாநிதியின் காதருகில் சென்று, ஸ்டாலின் கூறியதும், பிரதமர் மோடியை பார்த்து, கருணாநிதி சிரித்தார்.
கருணாநிதி எழுதிய, 'குறளோவியம்' மற்றும் முரசொலி பவள விழா மலரின் ஆங்கில பதிப்புகளை, பிரதமர் மோடிக்கு பரிசாகவழங்கினர்.பிரதமருடன் வந்திருந்த கவர்னர், பன்வாரிலால் புரோஹித், மத்திய அமைச்சர்கள், நிர்மலா சீதாராமன், பொன்.ராதாகிருஷ்ணன், தமிழக பா.ஜ., தலைவர், தமிழிசை சவுந்தரராஜன் ஆகியோரும், கருணாநிதியிடம் நலம் விசாரித்தனர்.

பின், வீட்டின் கீழ் தள அறையில் தங்கியிக்கும், கருணாநிதியின் மனைவி தயாளுவை, பிரதமர் மோடி சந்தித்து நலம் விசாரித்தார்.கருணாநிதி வீட்டில் இருந்து வெளியே வந்த பிரதமர் மோடி, வெளியில் திரண்டிருந்த கட்சியினரை பார்த்து, உற்சாகமாககையசைத்தார்.

பகல், 12:26 மணிக்கு பிரதமர் புறப்பட்டுச் சென்றதும், கருணாநிதியை, வீட்டின் வாசலுக்கு ஸ்டாலின் அழைத்து வந்தார். கருணா நிதியுடன்கனிமொழி, 'செல்பி' எடுத்துக் கொண்டார். அங்கு, திரளாக கூடியிருந்த தொண்டர்களை பார்த்து கையசைத்தார்.

கனிமொழி கூறியதாவது: டில்லியில் உள்ள, தன் வீட்டில் ஓய்வு எடுக்க வர வேண்டும் என, கருணாநிதிக்கு, பிரதமர் மோடி அழைப்புவிடுத்தார்.பிரதமருக்கு, கருணாநிதி கை கொடுத்தார்; புத்தகங்களை பரிசாக வழங்கினார்.

நன்றி

கருணாநிதியை, பிரதமர் சந்தித்ததில், அரசியல் உள்நோக்கம் எதுவும் இல்லை. எல்லாவற்றையும், அரசியலாக பார்க்க முடியாது.மரியாதை வைத்திருக்கக் கூடிய மூத்த தலைவர் என்ற முறையில், கருணாநிதியை பிரதமர் சந்தித்தார். இது, மரியாதை நிமித்தமான சந்திப்பு. பிரதமர் மோடிக்கு, எங்கள் குடும்பத்தின் சார்பில் மனதார நன்றியை தெரிவித்தோம்.
கருணாநிதியின் உடல் நலம் நன்றாக உள்ளது. விரைவில், தொண்டர்களை சந்திக்கும் நிலைக்கு வந்து விடுவார் என்ற நம்பிக்கை உள்ளது.இவ்வாறு கனிமொழி கூறினார்.