Change in name will not affect alumni, say deemed varsities

Meghana Choukkar, Bengaluru, DH News Service Dec 5 2017, 1:27 IST

If students want, we will give letter explaining name change: Manipal, KLE

The UGC had issued a directive to deemed-to-be universities to remove the word 'university' from their names.

Following a Supreme Court order and directive from the University Grants Commission (UGC), deemed-to-be universities in the country had to drop the word 'University' from their names.

Five deemed-to-be universities in Karnataka were affected by the directive and former students were left wondering if it would have any affect on them.

Dr Narayana Sabhahit, Registrar, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), formerly known as Manipal University, said that the change would not affect alumni who received their degree under the former name.

He said they would provide a letter explaining the name change, if students required it when applying for jobs or higher education.

"We will give a letter quoting the Supreme Court directive and the the UGC letter. Students will not face any problems because changes in names of universities do happen," he said. Usually, recruiters contact them directly seeking a clarification and the institution will provide supporting documents, Dr Sabhahit said.

Until 2006, Manipal University was known as MAHE and some courses, including medical and dental, were still under that name in the UGC record, he said.

He expressed confidence that the name change would not affect the brand name of the institution, more so because they are well known by the name MAHE, too.

The institution attracts a large number of international students, so there may be a little confusion at first about the name change, Dr Sabhahit said.

"We have already changed the name on the website and we have given an explanation for it, too. People will understand. Ultimately, it is the quality of education that matters," Sabhahit said.

Similarly, KLE University has changed its name to KLE Academy of Higher Education and Research. Vice-Chancellor Dr Vivek A Saoji said, "The change is prospective. For degrees which were issued earlier, if it comes to credentials, the university will give clarification. Earlier also, when there was a need we have given such clarification. We will be in a position to verify that the change was because of a directive. The course, curriculum, degree requirements, and other things remain the same."

Dr Saoji said that there is bound to be some confusion whenever a change takes place. However, because of reports in the media, students will be aware of the reason for the change.

Court rejects plea seeking release of Justice Karnan

TNN | Updated: Dec 4, 2017, 23:49 IST

Chennai: The Madras high court on Monday dismissed a PIL seeking direction to the office of the President of India to consider the immediate release of Justice C S Karnan, who was imprisoned for contempt by the Supreme Court.

The first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice R Hemalatha rejected the plea moved by A P Gowthama Sidharthan for want of jurisdiction.

On May 9, the apex court convicted Justice Karnan, the then judge of the Calcutta high court under the Contempt of Courts Act and sentenced him to six months imprisonment. Subsequently, he retired from service on June 9 and was arrested on June 20.

Claiming that Justice Karnan, who belongs to the scheduled caste community, had been victimised and was meted out social injustice, the petitioner wanted the court to direct the office of the President to consider his representation in this regard and release the former judge immediately.

When the plea came up for hearing, the bench said they did not find any reference to the circumstances which led to the incarceration of Justice Karnan, who had been a judge of this high court and transferred to the Calcutta high court.

At the time of arrest, he was no longer a judge of any high court. This apart, the respondents in the PIL — secretaries of the office of the President of India, department of law and justice, and the secretaries-general of the National Commission for Human Rights and Scheduled Castes and the secretary of the Union ministry of social justice and empowerment — are located in New Delhi. The sixth respondent — the superintendent, Presidency Jail — is in Kolkatta. No case has arisen within the jurisdiction of the Madras high court. Hence, the PIL is not maintainable and dismissed, the bench said.

Banks to decide on Rs 11 crore fixed deposits

B Sivakumar| TNN | Updated: Dec 5, 2017, 06:56 IST

CHENNAI: Late chief minister J Jayalalithaa has left behind several assets in the form of immovable as well as movable assets. While the immovable assets may remain idle for years to come, movable assets like fixed deposits will lie untouched for about a decade till they are claimed either by the nominee or by those whose names are mentioned in her will, if any.

Jayalalithaa, as per her affidavit filed for the 2016 assembly election, has Rs 10.63 crore in fixed deposits in 11 bank branches in Chennai, Secunderabad and Elada-Kodanad. There are no details of whether she has nominated anyone. But bank sources told TOI that the deposits would remain for a decade before a decision was taken by higher officials. Of the total unclaimed cash lying in fixed deposits, Rs 2.47 crore was frozen in the wealth case.

As per bank rules, a fixed deposit can remain inoperable for 10 years. "Interest will accrue for the deposit and if there is a nominee for the deposit we will get a death certificate and release it. But if there is no nominee, then we have a separate procedure of seeking the death certificate and legal heir certificate and other documents. But with regard to the former chief minister, we have not received any demand so far," a senior bank official told TOI.

The banks have not received any will of the former chief minister and have no indication of who could be her legal heir. Nine fixed deposit accounts in PSU banks in Chennai and Secunderabad have been frozen. There are six fixed deposit accounts which have Rs 1 crore or above and the principal amount in two accounts is Rs 99.99 lakh each.

The former chief minister had also invested as partners in several companies including Shri Jaya Publications, Sasi Enterprises, Kodanad Estate, Royal Valley Floritech Exports and Green T Estate. Jayalalithaa invested Rs 27.44 crore in all these companies. In Jaya Publications alone, her share is Rs 21.50 crore. "We don't know what has happened to all these investments and bank deposits. We have information that her relative Deepak Jayaraman has filed an application claiming that he and his sister Deepa are the legal heirs," said a senior AIADMK leader.

Gold articles and jewellery weighing 21kg have been seized from her house and are now lying with the Karnataka government treasury. She also had silver articles to the extent of 1250kg worth Rs 3.12 crore in April 2016.

Class V boy 'rapes' 7-year-old girl in Ghaziabad school

Ayaskant Das| TNN | Updated: Dec 5, 2017, 07:11 IST




GHAZIABAD: When the shocking incident of rape of a four-year-old by a classmate at a Dwarka school was reported about two weeks ago, it was considered as an aberration. However, it may only have served to lift the lid over what could be a widespread crime.

On Sunday, December 3, police registered an FIR in Sahibabad police station, following a complaint by the father of a seven-year-old girl (studying in Class II) who alleged she had been sexually assaulted by a schoolmate in a washroom of a school in Ghaziabad. TOI is not revealing the name of the school to protect its identity.

The incident, which reportedly took place on November 8, came to light after a woman doctor figured out the crime when her family took the girl over to her for treatment on December 1. The FIR has been registered against an 'unidentified person' under IPC Section 376 (rape) and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, as the girl could not name the accused.

On Monday, Ghaziabad police accompanied the girl to her school along with her parents, where she identified the accused in the presence of the school principal and teachers, as a boy studying in Class V. It has been alleged in the complaint that the boy had inserted a 'wooden twig' inside the girl's private parts, inflicting injuries.

The girl's father, who works in a gas agency in Ghaziabad, told TOI she had been bleeding from her private parts since November 8. "We took her for a check-up to a local doctor, who did not find anything seriously amiss with her. We thought the bleeding could be a result of eating hot and spicy food, and changed her diet. However, it didn't stop. On Friday, we took her to a female doctor, who confirmed sexual assault. The doctor took her into confidence at her clinic, following which she narrated the sequence of events," her father told TOI.

Ghaziabad police had a medical examination of the girl conducted on Monday. Its report is awaited. "On November 8, classes were dismissed at around 10am due to smog. The school management called up parents and asked them to take their kids back home. Around 15 students could not go back immediately. My daughter was huddled in a classroom along with other students, who were all waiting for their parents. The boy, who was also waiting for his parents, followed my daughter to the washroom, where he committed the crime," her father added.

The school management said an inquiry was being conducted into the incident.

Mourning Jayalalithaa

DECCAN CHRONICLE. | E T B SIVAPRIYAN
PublishedDec 5, 2017, 6:02 am IST

Prime Minister Modi and Jayalalithaa shared special relationship of mutual admiration, respect.

Jayalalithaa

Chennai: On this first anniversary of J Jayalalithaa's death, there are many reasons to grieve than just her personal loss to her family, party and the people who had overwhelmingly voted for her second consecutive term that lasted barely six months.

First, her legacy as an Iron Butterfly who could take on the toughest political adversary with scary confidence — and that included the Prime Minister of the day — and a Queen Bee who ran her fiefdom at the Fort St.George and the AIADMK headquarters with a stranglehold that brooked no challenge of even the mildest kind, lay in tatters.

Until her death this day last year at the Apollo Hospital, no Minister or AIADMK functionary — big or small, senior or junior — would even raise his / her voice over the whispering decibels even while discussing an inane theme like the previous day's weather. But things changed dramatically after her demise as lieutenants quickly changed into the tunics of generals and multiple islands of authority emerged where just the other day, there was just one Empress holding sway over one tightly held kingdom.

When she lived, and ruled, even senior leaders from the neighbouring states and the Centre would rue in private conversations with media persons that they not just admired Jayalalithaa's competence in governance but were also mighty jealous of her control over the party and the public mood. Even her mentor MGR had ministers and party functionaries, such as RM Veerappan and S D Somasundaram, questioning him on issues personal and political, but none dared to raise a finger against Amma.

So much so, even after her death and to this day, the ministers and party members deem it necessary to flaunt her photograph in their transparent shirt pockets - like the deep sea diver carrying the O2 cylinder in the survival kit. It's another matter that the picture in pockets could do little in holding them together after Amma's death, as the AIADMK splintered into multiple factions and midget groups. If all this chaos did not add up to the collapse of the government and the party, the BJP government at the Centre must take the most credit.

It is common knowledge that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Jayalalithaa shared a special relationship, of mutual admiration and respect, and the former tried his best to protect her — particularly when her health came under severe stress — and when she died, might have decided it's his duty to lend support for her government and the party. In the process, DMK's longtime prince-in-waiting MK Stalin found the slip between the cup and the lip terribly annoying.

The Supreme Court verdict confirming the conviction of Judge Cunha in the Disproportionate Assets case has posthumously guillotined Amma's image while sending her controversial companion to the Parappana Agrahara jail. Even the illiterate engaging in teashop political discourses argued that had Jayalalithaa been alive, she too would have been 'driven' to Bengaluru.

But then, all this is to recap in a nutshell the many flaws in the J-era. The bitterness over opportunities lost in the state, known for its high degree of education and enterprise over decades, might linger on for long among those who are intelligent enough and have been privy to inside information. They have only now begun to openly talk about investors having been driven away by demands of huge bribes for even an appointment with CM.

The great things missed post-J is her able handling of the state's administration, particularly at times of crisis. Fishermen leaders wailing about the delayed response from the administration to Cyclone Ockhi disaster are recalling, repeatedly, the way Amma had responded at lightning speed to the tsunami of 2004 by setting up high-level relief/rehab mechanism under her direct supervision.

26,000 school teachers in Tamil Nadu not qualified

DECCAN CHRONICLE. | A RAGU RAMAN

PublishedDec 5, 2017, 1:24 am IST

NIOS is conducting a two-year diploma programme for untrained teachers working in primary and upper primary schools in the country.

As many as 17,812 teachers From Telangana registered for the course, from Karnataka 5,175, Andhra Pradesh 5,022 and Kerala 705.

Chennai: As many as one in seven teachers working in private nursery, primary and matriculation schools in Tamil Nadu are unqualified. This fact is made evident by the statistics on admission to the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), which has started a diploma programme for untrained elementary teachers.

As per the direction from Ministry of Human Resource and Development (MHRD), NIOS is conducting a two-year diploma programme for untrained teachers working in primary and upper primary schools in the country.




The last date for applying for the course was in November. Totally 25,929 teachers working in private schools have applied for the course, which is highest among the southern states. Roughly around 1.75 lakh teachers are working in all private schools in the state.

As many as 17,812 teachers From Telangana registered for the course, from Karnataka 5,175, Andhra Pradesh 5,022 and Kerala 705.

Among the districts, Chennai has 3,696 registrations for the course highest in the state. From Coimbatore 3,441 teachers registered and Thiruvallur district had 2,804 registrations.

"Right to Education Act mandates diploma in elementary education for teaching the primary classes. Due to the huge number of untrained teachers working in the schools, the HRD ministry has decided to give them a chance to get trained and introduced specifically designed diploma programme for in-service teachers," said P. Ravi, regional director, NIOS, Chennai.

As per the HRD ministry's announcement, teachers without the diploma in elementary education will not be allowed to work in primary and nursery schools after March 31, 2019.

Teachers have to study the entire course online and appear for the written test to qualify for the diploma. The candidates have to register themselves at the Swayam portal for accessing video lectures.

"They will study five papers in the first year and four papers in the second year. They will understand important aspects of elementary education such as child psychology, children growth and development and learning disorders like dyslexia," he said.

"Working teachers have the distinct advantage as they can practice in classrooms what they learnt in their lessons," he added. Though the course is conducted online, the students have to write a paper, pen test to get the diploma.
From all over the country, 14,02,962 teachers have registered for the course.

Bihar with 2.82 lakh teachers has the highest registration among the states followed by 1.82 lakhs from Uttar Pradesh and 1.77 lakh from West Bengal.
NIOS also has come up with six-month bridge course for B.Ed graduates who teach in primary classes 1 to 5.

Following the circular from the HRD ministry, the state government has made this course mandatory for BEd graduates employed in primary and nursery schools and for those who take classes for primary students in matriculation schools.

This order has stirred up a controversy among the private school managements who claimed that it has added the burden for private schools and teachers.

"The course fee is Rs.5,000 and a majority of teachers earning less than Rs.10,000 in private schools. We feel that this bridge course is unnecessary and the government should revoke the order," said K.R. Nandakumar, general secretary, Tamil Nadu Nursery, Primary, Matriculation and Higher Secondary Schools Association.

"B.Ed. graduates are only qualified to teach secondary and higher secondary classes. Teaching and understanding elementary students are completely different as they have to teach the language and subjects in a unique way," Mr Ravi said.

The teachers would be taught about pedagogy, learning process and challenges in elementary education in the bridge course. When enquired, officials from school education department said as per the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) guidelines, the elementary teachers should possess a diploma in elementary education. "B.Ed. teachers should use this one time opportunity and enrol themselves in the bridge course as it's only a six months course," an official said. The last date for applying for the course has been extended up to December 15.

Man creates ruckus at Chennai airport

DECCAN CHRONICLE.

PublishedDec 5, 2017, 1:19 am IST

Police investigations revealed that the passenger, Subhadutt Nath, 28, was under medication for mental health issues.

Chennai airport

Chennai: Drama ensued at domestic terminal of the city airport on Monday after a passenger assaulted at least six persons including security personnel, airport staff and passengers after an argument. Two flights had a delayed departure because of the incident.

Police investigations revealed that the passenger, Subhadutt Nath, 28, was under medication for mental health issues.

A resident of Kolkata, Nath, and his wife had come to Tamil Nadu a fortnight ago for treatment at the Christian Medical College Hospital in Vellore. After treatment, the couple was supposed to fly back to West Bengal on Monday.

After treatment, the couple was supposed to fly back to West Bengal on Monday. They were to travel by a SpiceJet flight supposed to leave at 2.50 pm, airport sources said.

After checking into the airport, the man however went to gate no. 3 instead of gate no. 5. The CISF men on security detail informed the passenger that he was on the wrong gate and asked him to check into gate no. 5. Nath, however, insisted that he was at the right gate and picked up an argument with CISF men. All of a sudden, he started assaulting them and hit the airline staff and two passengers who attempted to pacify him.

He was pinned to the ground and later handed over to the Airport police. His wife shared with the cops that he was under medication and pleaded with the authorities to drop charges. After learning this, those who were attacked also chose not to proceed with the complaint, police said.

The flights to Kolkata and Coimbatore, supposed to depart before 3 pm, had a delayed start because of this. Much to the chagrin of the couple, they were denied travel as the passenger was suffering from mental health issues. Cops suggested the couple travel by train.