Seniority list: High Court directs state to amend service rules within 2 months

Authorities should prepare seniority list and panel for promotion every year, says HC

Published: 05th September 2019 04:52 AM

Madras High Court

By Express News Service

MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court passed an order directing the State government to make necessary amendments in Tamil Nadu Ministerial Service Rules indicating the right time for preparation of seniority list and promotion panel during promotion of government servants, within two months.


A Bench, comprising justices K Ravichandrabaabu and Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy, passed the order while disposing of a batch of appeals filed by some revenue assistants, appointed through promotion from junior assistant post, expressing grievances over a seniority list prepared for appointing Deputy Tahsildars.

The judges observed that the inter-se seniority list between the two categories of assistants — directly recruited assistants and those appointed through promotion — can be prepared reasonably three months in advance before the crucial date for preparing the panel. This would help the aggrieved parties to approach the appellate authority and express their grievance with regard to the list, they added.

Moreover, authorities should prepare the seniority list as well as panel for promotion to the next higher post for every year, without accumulating the same for years together, they ordered.

UoM to revise UG &PG course syllabus
The vice chancellor also said as soon as the blueprint of the revised syllabus is ready, it will be sent to the Board of Studies for

Published: 05th September 2019 06:21 AM 

By Binita Jaiswal

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The University of Madras will soon revise syllabus of most of the undergraduate and post-graduate courses offered by it, for the affiliated colleges. The university authorities said they have planned to revise the syllabus of the undergraduate and post-graduate courses, simultaneously. The revision process is likely to start from September and the revised courses are scheduled to be implemented from the next academic year.

Varsity officials said the move is significant as syllabus of all the courses was hardly ever revised in one go. “The university offers over 150 courses and it is very difficult to revise and upgrade the syllabus of all the courses in one go. So, usually the process is undertaken in a phase wise manner, but this time it has been decided to undertake the revision process for all courses simultaneously,” said a senior faculty member of the university.

Usually, the syllabus of each subject should be revised, ideally in four to five years, but there are many courses offered by the university, the syllabus of which has not been revised for eight years. The varsity official further added that a few courses were revamped recently, to meet the needs of the market, hence, these courses will be excluded from the process.

Vice-Chancellor of the university, P Duraisamy, said the revision of the syllabus is necessary to foster quality education and to prepare the students to meet the present day needs of the market. “The aim behind revision of syllabus is to make our students more employable and upgrade their skills so they can meet the needs of the industry.

We will also seek the recommendations of industry experts from renowned institutions like Indian Institute of Madras and others while upgrading our syllabus,” said Duraisamy.

The vice chancellor also said as soon as the blueprint of the revised syllabus is ready, it will be sent to the Board of Studies for its examination and approval.

Study first, marry later, High Court tells woman

She is in relationship with a 19-year-old youth

05/09/2019, STAFF REPORTER ,MADURAI

Hearing the case of an 18-year-old woman in relationship with a 19-year-old youth, the Bench of the Madras High Court on Wednesday asked the girl to continue with her studies and said a decision on her marriage could be taken after he turned 21, the legal age for men to marry.

The court was hearing the habeas corpus petition filed by the woman’s father from Tirunelveli, who alleged that his daughter was illegally detained by the youth . It was said that the couple were in love and wanted to get married.

Apprehending that his daughter could quit her education for marriage, the father, in his petition, said that his daughter had only joined college and therefore she must complete her graduation before taking a decision on marriage.

A Division Bench of Justices S. Vaidyanathan and N. Anand Venkatesh observed that the woman had expressed her willingness to continue her studies. However, she had categorically stated that she would not go with her father.

The court took cognisance of the youth’s submission that his parents had accepted their relationship and were willing to support her education. He further stated that the woman could continue her studies from her hostel and a decision on marriage would be taken after he turned 21.

The court observed that in the specific view taken by the parties, the relief sought by the father could not be granted as his daughter was now a major. Therefore, she could not be compelled to stay with her father against her wishes.

Taking into consideration that the couple could not get married as the youth was 19 years old, the court said that the woman could not be sent with him. The court asked her to continue her studies from the college hostel. Once the youth turned 21 years, the parents of both the youth and the woman could create a congenial atmosphere for the couple’s marriage, the court said and disposed of the petition.

Student denied admission to Madras varsity

Candidate alleges he has been targeted because he participated in several protests

05/09/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

A student of the Department of Buddhism of the University of Madras has been declared ineligible for the programme.

Kripa Mohan, who graduated from the University’s Department of Journalism and Communication in 2018, applied for a master’s programme in the Department of Philosophy for a course in Buddhism on July 31.

He said his admission was rejected as he had not produced an eligibility certificate. According to him, the head of his department told him that his admission was rejected due to pressure from the Governor/Chancellor’s office.

Mr. Kripa Mohan was a secretary of the student body of the Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle while being a student in the journalism department. “Now I am a member. We organised protests when Tarun Vijay (former Rajya Sabha member) and BJP leader L. Ganesan came to the University. We protested against ban on beef eating and the New Education Policy recently. When I applied for the programme the Buddhism HoD said I need not provide TC as I had graduated from another department in the same University. Just the PG provisional certificate was required.” On August 29, the department head rejected his admission since he had not submitted the eligibility certificate.

Rules not followed

Vice-Chancellor P. Duraisamy said when a student joins another programme in a different department he has to get a letter from the previous department head. “He had completely violated the admission guidelines. Last year and the year before, he created a lot of protests. The candidate had graduated from Anna University in engineering and then done a PG in journalism. He has not met the conditions of the admission guidelines,” he said and added that the letter from the head of journalism department regarding his conduct was factored in. The Chancellor’s office was not involved in the rejection process, he added.

Applicants of entrance test for Ph.D. yet to get hall tickets
The examination is scheduled to be conducted on September 8

05/09/2019, SANJANA GANESH ,MADURAI

A section of applicants waiting to write the preliminary entrance examination for Ph.D. says that it is yet to receive hall tickets from Madurai Kamaraj University. For the first time, the institution has sought online applications. The test is to be conducted on September 8.

A total of 52 Ph.D. and 44 M. Phil programmes will be in the offing and tests will be held in Madurai, Coimbatore, Chennai and Tirunelveli. However, without any admit cards, the applicants say that they do not have any idea about which centres they are to head to.

According to University Grants Commission guidelines laid in 2010, M. Phil and Ph.D. admissions were to be conducted through common entrance tests by each university.

Only two years ago did MKU begin the process of conducting the examination.

Prior to this, individual schools conducted their separate tests and admitted students.

Students were to pay a total of ₹ 2,000 to write the entrance before August 25. The date was extended to August 27 by the Registrar’s office.

Deepika Babu, an aspirant for a Ph.D. in Commerce, says that she had applied on August 24 and that amount was deducted from her account. “However, I received no acknowledgement from the university about my centre or receipt of my payment. I called the university and even emailed but it was not of any use,” she said.

N. Arun, another aspirant, says that he is unclear about which centre he must travel to.

“As I do not have an admit card, I may not be able to travel to Coimbatore or Chennai though they have been listed in my order of preference,” he said.

Vice-Chancellor M. Krishnan said that the arrangements were made to outsource it to a large-scale information technology service and consulting organisation that any irregularity, including corruption, is avoided.

“There are some small technical errors which will be solved tomorrow and the day after. In case of further confusion, applicants can approach the university supervisors at the centre to sort out the issue,” he said.

Research Coordinator, MKU, V.S. Vasantha, said there had been a high demand from students in Madurai to continue writing the examination in the district limits.

“It was initially planned that only three centres would be in Madurai. Now, there are seven. Students can approach the university in person and all grievances will be redressed by Thursday,” she said.

Students with problems in their hall tickets may contact: 9442357392 and 9443344483 and through the mail id: rco@mkuresearch.org

Heavy rain brings Mumbai to a standstill
Intermittent rain and showers likely, says Met Department

05/09/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,MUMBAI

Monsoon fury: The flooded Andheri subway, top, and a flooded street in Parel.Emmanual Yogini & Vijay Bate

Mumbaikars woke up to heavy rainfall on Wednesday morning, which lead to waterlogging in several key spots and affected the city’s suburban railway system and traffic.

While the island city received light rain in the morning, the eastern and western suburbs received between 11 mm and 14 mm of rainfall from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has given a forecast of intermittent rain and shower, with very heavy rainfall at isolated places in city and suburbs. As a precautionary measure in the wake of the IMD’s warning, schools have been asked to remain closed today.

“The principals of the schools where students are already in are requested to take all precautions and ensure that the children are sent back home carefully and safely,” said an official from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.

Due to the heavy showers, there were multiple point failures at Virar, affecting suburban rail services on Western Railway (WR). Trains were running 15 minutes late between Vasai Road and Churchgate, with very few services being run between Virar and Vasai Road. On the Central Railway’s (CR), Central Line as well as Harbour Line, services were over 20 minutes late as water entered the tracks at various spots.

According to Mumbai police, traffic is moving slow due to heavy showers and waterlogging at various spots across the city.

Traffic snarls have been reported at Amrut Nagar Jn, Gandhi Nagar at Kanjurmarg, Sakinaka Junction, Sonapur Junction at Mulund, Netaji Palkar Chowk in Andheri Ganesh Mishthanna in Antop Hill, 90 Feet Road in Dharavi, Andheri Subway, Chincholi Port Rd. in Malad, Shivaji Chowk in Antop Hill, Western Express Highway near Metro Station, Milan Subway, King Circle, Poisar Subway, Hindmata Junction, Dadar T.T Circle, Postal Colony in Chembur, LBS Road in Kurla (W), Mazgaon dockyard Jn.

The rain had some minor impact on air traffic as well. An airport spokesperson said that at 10 a.m., operations at the Mumbai airport were normal with minor delays of 10 to 15 minutes.

Laws alone are not enough, says IMA

‘Multidimensional approach needed’

05/09/2019, BINDU SHAJAN PERAPPADAN,NEW DELHI

“Laws are needed but it is not enough,’’ said the Indian Medical Association (IMA) reacting to the Health Ministry’s proposed draft Bill which states that anyone who attacks a doctor at a hospital may be jailed for up to 10 years or fined ₹10 lakh.

The Ministry has asked for feedback from the public on how to improve the draft Healthcare Service Personnel and Clinical Establishments (Prohibition of Violence and Damage to Property) Bill, 2019, which was made public earlier this week.

The Association said, “Violence on doctors and hospitals is a complex phenomenon and will require multidimensional institutional response. A law for deterrence alone might not have the desired impact.’’

Dr. R.V. Asokan of the IMA said, “We have requested that the government declare hospitals as safe zones with structured security. It is also our considered opinion that inadequacies of infrastructure and human resources in public sector and out of pocket expenditure in the private sector are the root causes of violence.’’

He said high expectations, lack of understanding of limitations, patient load, and lack of professional counselling are all contributory factors. Such determinants of violence have to be addressed comprehensively, Mr. Asokan added.