Jet’s senior staff to get salary in 2 instalments

New Delhi: times 07.09.2018

Cash-strapped Jet Airways will pay its senior employees, pilots and aircraft engineers salary in two instalments for the next three months. The airline’s chief people’s officer Rahul Taneja sent a mail to employees on Thursday evening, saying “disbursal of salary for GMs and above, cockpit crew (pilots) and AMEs (aircraft maintenance engineers) will be postponed for the month of August 2018, and shall be disbursed in 2 instalments — 50% by September 11 and balance 50% by September

26. For the months of September and October 2018, the same disbursement schedule will be followed.” Jet’s employee remuneration cost was ₹2,995 crore in 2017-18.

“We have recently sent a mail expressing our alarm at the unnecessary increase in expenditure …. pilots are being forced to bear the brunt of this financial mismanagement…,” NAG said in a letter. TNN

Uber may block passengers whose rating’s below 4 star

Sabrina Barr

times 07.09.2018

Reaching that elusive fivestar rating on Uber is a top priority shared by many people in today’s digital day and age. Falling below four stars on the app may not only hurt your pride, but could also now prevent you from using Uber at all in future, due to new community guidelines introduced by the company.

The newly updated community guidelines have been introduced in Australia and New Zealand. It’s outlined that as of September 19 this year, people using the app in both countries could risk being blocked from the driving service if they fall below a certain score.

Amanda Gilmore, Uber’s New Zealand country manager, explains these changes have been introduced following feedback that the company has received from its drivers. “This change is really about setting good standards of behaviour, and creating a mutual level of respect between drivers and riders,” Gilmore added. This rule is already used in the US but hasn’t been implemented yet in the UK

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THE INDEPENDENT

Dubai-New York flyers may have caught flu

New York: times 07.09.2018

Eleven people on an Emirates flight were taken to a New York City hospital suffering flu-like symptoms on Wednesday after scores of passengers and crew complained of feeling sick during a 14-hour trip from Dubai, officials said.

Laboratory tests on respiratory samples from the patients have yet to confirm the illness, but their histories and symptoms — fever, cough and vomiting — indicate influenza, said Dr Oxiris Barbot, New York City’s acting health commissioner.

Some passengers in recent days had attended the annual Haj pilgrimage to the city of Mecca on the Arabian Peninsula, a region where the flu virus was circulating, and could have contracted the illness there, Barbot said. It was also possible the virus was transmitted between passengers during the lengthy flight, she said. All who were hospitalised were in stable condition and none was in need of “extreme” medical attention, Barbot said. The flu’s incubation period typically is one to seven days, Barbot said, and people who are infected can be contagious before showing signs of illness.

The airliner, with at least 521passengers, landed at John F Kennedy International Airport and was surrounded by dozens of emergency vehicles as passengers waited to be evaluated by health officials. The airline and the mayor’s office said 19 people were confirmed ill. Three passengers and seven crew members went to a hospital, and nine other passengers medically evaluated at the scene were released afterward, Emirates said. The rest were allowed to leave and clear customs, the airline said.

Dr Demetre Daskalakis, New York’s deputy commissioner for disease control, said it was rare for so many people aboard a single commercial flight to fall ill at once. REUTERS


Eleven flyers were hospitalised in what Emirates called a ‘precaution’

RAJIV CONVICTS’ RELEASE CASE

TN govt to take decision after studying SC order

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:07.09.2018

The Tamil Nadu government will take a decision on the release of convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case after going through the Supreme Court’s order based on a plea by one of them. The government said it is for the release of all seven convicts currently in jail.

“It is our stand and desire of Amma (Jayalalithaa) that all the seven convicts should be released. Chief minister (Edappadi K Palaniswami)

will take a decision after going through the Supreme Court’s order,” law minister C Ve Shanmugam told reporters here on Thursday.

He was reacting to the court’s order directing Tamil Nadu governor to consider the mercy petition of A G Perarivalan, one of the seven life convicts in the case. An apex court bench comprising Justices Ranjan Gogoi, Naveen Sinha and K M Joseph disposed of the Centre’s petition on the Tamil Nadu government’s proposal for the release of the convicts.

Earlier in the day, Perarivalan’s mother Arputhammal appealed to the state government to initiate steps for the early release of her son. She expressed hope that her son could be set free within the next one week.

Welcoming the order, DMK president M K Stalin urged chief minister Palaniswami to convene the state cabinet meeting at the earliest, to take this forward. DMK’s alliance partner Congress was cautious in its reaction. “Whatever measures legally allowed in this, should be legally followed,” TNCC president S Thirunavukkarasar told reporters in New Delhi.

While PMK youth wing president Anbumani Ramadoss urged the state government to release all the seven convicts immediately, CPM state secretary R Balakrishnan asked the state government to avoid any further delay in releasing all the convicts. “I request the chief minister to immediately convene a cabinet meeting, pass a firm resolution to release all the seven convicts and recommend the same to the governor,” MDMK general secretary Vaiko said in a statement.

HC asks doctor to honour contract with hosp or pay up


TIMES NEWS NETWORK


Madurai  07.09.2018

 Terming the petition of a doctor urging a Madurai-based ophthalmology institute to return his MBBS and postgraduate provisional certificates without serving his contract unreasonable, the Madurai bench of the Madras high court directed the doctor to complete his contract of two years at the hospital or pay up the ₹20 lakh as per the agreed terms.

Dr J Praveen had moved the bench seeking directions to Aravind Eye Hospitals, Madurai to return his original certificates. After completing MBBS in 2011, Praveen applied for postgraduation in ophthalmology in 2014 and was allotted the three-year course at Aravind institutions. At the time of admission, Praveen executed a bond with the institution to the effect that he would serve in the hospital for two years after completing the course, failing which he would pay ₹20 lakh to the institution. However, on completing the course in July 2017, Praveen requested the institution to return the original certificates and since it did not consider his representation, he approached the court.

The doctor’s counsel submitted that when the bond was executed, he was under the impression that he was required to serve only in government service and not Aravind institute. The institution’s counsel submitted that the doctor having used the institution for academic pursuit, cannot be allowed to contend that he was under no obligation to abide by the bond conditions.

Scam overhead: 1 roof, many tenders

‘Anna Varsity Discovers New Way To Favour Contractors’

Siddharth.Prabhakar@timesgroup.com  07.09.2018

Chennai:

When Anna University had to renovate the ceiling of Vivekananda Auditorium at a cost of ₹28 lakh in 2015, it floated three separate tenders, one for the VIP area, one for the student area and another for the stage, despite all three being under one roof and one contractor eventually executing the work.

This was to keep each tender estimate under ₹10 lakh and thus avoid placing an advertisement in newspapers, thereby favouring a select coterie of contractors, says Jayaram Venkatesan, social activist. Such tender notices were put up only on the estate office notice board.

This modus operandi was followed for almost every civil work tender from 2013 till date. In 2017, authorities began to put up notices on the website.

“This has cut down on competition, leading to inflated costs, over-invoicing and loss of public money,” said Venkatesan.

Venkatesan and another whistle-blower have given a complaint to the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, vice-chancellor and Governor. The complaint is based on replies by the university to dozens of RTI applications.

Around 20 contracts awarded in this manner were worth ₹13 crore. The university awards at least 100 such small contracts every year.

For instance, Anna University issued five separate tenders (less than ₹10 lakh each) in the last one week for renovation of the corridor in the AC Tech main building. This was split as renovation on west wind, north west corner, north wing, north wing outer and inner quadrangle.

In another case in 2013-14, provision of electrical fittings, fans and power plugs for the three-storied ladies hostel was divided into eight separate tenders, all won by the same contractor.

Work for laying storm water drain and roofs for staff quarters was divided into houses in the A, B and C block and tendered separately, despite the work being the same. In 2014, the university floated separate tenders to paint the front and rear wing rooms of the international student hostel, executed by the same contractor.

Vice-chancellor V K Surappa, who has received a copy of the documents, told TOI that he would inquire into the issue. For work up to ₹6 lakh, the estate officer issues tenders; the registrar issues tenders for work up to ₹10 lakh.

Documents show that for most such work, there was an excess payment of up to 10%, which can be approved only by the vice-chancellor.

The estate officer, Professor V K Stalin, who has occupied the post since 2013, said the tenders were floated based on requests by individual departments. But he did not elaborate on why the same work was being divided into smaller tenders.

“There is no irregularity in this,” he said.

Govt docs protesting for pay hike boycott MCI inspections
‘Will Face Disciplinary Action If They Bunk Today’

Pushpa.Narayan@timesgroup.com

Chennai: TIMES OF INDIA 07.09.2018

The ongoing strike by government doctors seeking a pay hike became more intense on Thursday when faculty members of the Madurai and Tirunelveli medical colleges refused to appear before the Medical Council of India’s inspection committee for a head count ahead of an increase of 100 seats each in the two institutions.

The joint action committee of the government doctors’ association spearheading the strike told director of medical education Dr A Edwin Joe on Thursday that they would not be attending the mandatory head count before the inspection committee. The two-member panel inspected hospitals, classrooms and labs at the two colleges and waited with the dean for the faculty members to turn up but there was a no-show.

“Head count is a mandatory part of the inspection and we may lose these seats if the doctors don’t appear. Fortunately, the team has agreed to stay back tomorrow as well. We have told the doctors that disciplinary action will be taken if they skip the inspection,” said Joe.

The committee chairman Dr K Senthil, who also heads the government doctors’ association, said doctors will skip the head count on Friday if the government did not meet their demands.

Government doctors have not entered classrooms of medical colleges across the state since Monday. They have also stopped signing attendance registers, boycotted all government meetings and audits, refused to sit on the medical board or send daily reports, and stopped signing papers for pregnant women to get money from the Muthulakshmi Maternal Benefit Scheme.

“We will continue the stir until our demands are met. But we have promised that treatment of patients will not be affected,” he said.

The salary for doctors in state and central services is the same when they join duty, but doctors in central government services receive promotions in four, nine, 13 and 20 years, compared to eight, 15, 17 and 20 years in the state government.

“We start with the same salary but there is a difference in our basic pay from the fourth year. We understand we won’t get the allowances as we are allowed to do private practice, but we are demanding parity in basic pay,” he said.

Doctors in government service also get a salary that is lower than lecturers or professors at arts/science colleges, although government doctors work for at least 50 hours a week compared to 32 hours of the teaching faculty.

On Tuesday, members of the committee met health minister C Vijayabaskar and senior department officials including health secretary J Radhakrishnan to press their demands.

“We have been demanding this for more than a decade. Even this boycott happened after three months’ notice. Neither the minister nor officials promised a hike. We will withdraw our strike if they come out with an announcement on revised pay,” said Dr A Ramalingam from the Stanley Medical College and Hospital.