‘Rajini must watch what he says about Periyar’

Actor’s comment draws flak, support

22/01/2020, STAFF REPORTER,CHENNAI

With actor Rajinikanth standing firm on his comment on Periyar, it has attracted criticism and support from different quarters. DMK president M.K. Stalin on Tuesday said that the actor must watch what he speaks about Tamil leaders. “Rajinikanth is not a politician. He is just an actor. Thanthai Periyar fought for the Tamil people for 95 years. Rajinikanth should be mindful of what he says about him,” said M.K. Stalin.

Fisheries Minister D. Jayakumar said that comments against leaders who are not alive should not be allowed in the society. “I condemn his statement. Rajinikanth shouldn’t rake up old issues and create controversies,” he said. Dravidar Kazhagam president K. Veeramani said that Rajinikanth has said something that was ‘false’. “In his eagerness to praise Thuglak editor Cho, Rajinikanth has spoken about something that Cho didn’t write about in Thuglak and Thuglak didn’t publish. Who is making him speak like this?” asked K. Veeramani.

Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi Chief Thirumavalavan on Tuesday urged Rajinikanth to fully know the facts before speaking about Periyar. “What Rajinikanth spoke about Periyar was false. This is why we asked him to apologise. We are not forcing him to do it. We hoped that he would apologise. We hope that once he realises that he was wrong, he would come forward to apologise,” said Mr. Thirumavalavan. He said that Rajinikanth has fallen into the trap of Sangh Parivar forces.

Thuglak’s editor and a close associate of Rajinikanth, S. Gurumurthy, on Tuesday posted on social media that the actor’s comments are a reflection of his ‘Spiritual Politics’. BJP MP Subramanian Swamy said that he was on the side of Rajinikanth on this issue.

Training for DEOs in Madurai on January 24, 25

22/01/2020, STAFF REPORTER,MADURAI

A total of 60 District Education Officers (DEOs) from across Tamil Nadu are expected to attend a training programme on handling school administration here on January 24 and 25.

The 60 officers, who were recently promoted to the post, will be taught how to tackle issues relating to handling finance and fixation based on pay.

The focus will also lie on working through litigations, handling court cases and approaching litigants, said a senior official from the School Education Department.

Samagra Shiksha

The programme is usually conducted once a year for new appointees. The programme has been primarily conducted under the Central government’s Samagra Shiksha programme, which aims at improving school effectiveness through equal opportunities for schooling and equitable learning outcomes.

The programme will also teach the participants to handle disciplinary action against colleagues and students.

The implementation of new schemes and usage of technology will also be taught to the District Education Officers .

R.Sudalaikannan, State Project Director, Samagra Shiksha, and S. Kannappan, Director of School Education, are expected to participate in the event.

‘Implement biometric attendance in govt. hospitals’

22/01/2020, STAFF REPORTER,MADURAI

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday directed the State government to implement biometric attendance in all government hospitals within three months.

The State submitted that biometric attendance was being introduced in most of the hospitals and sought an additional six months.

However, a Division Bench of Justices M. Duraiswamy and T. Ravindran directed the State to implement biometric attendance within three months and adjourned the case for reporting compliance to April 21.

The court was hearing a contempt petition filed by C. Anand Raj of Madurai. He complained that 25% of the doctors working in government medical college and hospitals, district and taluk hospitals, PHCs and health sub-centres across the State were not regular. They concentrated more on their private practice, which impacted the poor and economically weaker sections.

‘It’s unclear how Coronavirus is transmitted’

More cases expected in China and possibly other countries in the coming days, says WHO official

22/01/2020, BINDU SHAJAN PERAPPADAN,NEW DELHI

Flight risk: A thermal screeening device at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi on Tuesday. PTIPTI

As six deaths were reported in China due to the Novel Coronavirus, Dr. Roderico Ofrin, Regional Emergency Director, World Health Organisation (WHO) South-East Asia Region, has said much remains to be understood about the virus.

In an interview to The Hindu, he said an emergency meeting of the WHO will assess the situation on Wednesday. It will decide whether the situation constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, and what recommendations should be made, he said.

Confirmed cases

The death toll from the virus in China climbed to six on Tuesday as new cases surged beyond 300. Thailand has reported two cases and South Korea one, all involving Chinese travellers from Wuhan. Japan and Taiwan also confirmed one case each.

Stating that not enough is known to draw definitive conclusions about how the virus is transmitted, the clinical features of the disease, its severity, the extent to which it has spread, or its source, Dr. Ofrin said, “Based on previous experiences with respiratory illnesses and in particular with other Coronavirus outbreaks and our analysis of data shared by China, human-tohuman transmission is likely occurring.”

“More cases could be expected in other parts of China and possibly other countries in the coming days,” he said.

Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. A Novel Coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans.

“An animal source seems the most likely primary source of this outbreak, with limited human-to-human transmission occurring between close contacts. WHO’s guidance to countries and individuals includes the possibility of the disease spreading through contact with animals, contaminated food, and/or person to person,” said Dr. Ofrin.

Read full interview at http://bit.ly/ChinaVirusWho

‘Employees spend over 3 hours a day on tasks that can be easily automated’
22/01/2020, PTI

An average employee spends more than three hours a day on mundane computer tasks that are not part of their primary job and ripe for human error, says a survey. These office workers are open to automation of repetitive digital tasks.

According to a global study commissioned by Automation Anywhere, in India, out of 1,000 participants surveyed, 88% believe humans should not be carrying out repetitive administrative tasks if these can be automated.

The research by the robotic process automation player noted that nearly half of the workers surveyed found digital administration boring and a poor use of their skills, while majority of the respondents said it gets in the way of doing their main job and reduces their overall productivity.

By deploying a digital workforce and automating these repetitive tasks, employees can be given back a quarter of their annual work time (4.5 months) to focus on more meaningful work, boosting productivity and overall business value.

File report on status of plea for pardon: SC

22/01/2020, KRISHNADAS RAJAGOPAL,NEW DELHI

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Tamil Nadu government to file a report on the status of a plea for pardon filed by Rajiv Gandhi assassination case convict, A.G. Perarivalan, before the State Governor. The order from a Bench led by Justice L. Nageswara Rao came after the court found that not much progress has been made by the CBI in its probe into whether the assassination was the culmination of a “larger conspiracy”.

Justice Rao remarked to Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand that the report on the status of the investigation submitted in the court merely makes vague allusions to enquiries abroad in places like London, Hong Kong, etc. It has no specifics.

Turning then to Perarivalan’s lawyers, senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan and advocate Prabu Ramasubramanium, the Bench asked what relief did they really want from the apex court. Mr. Sankaranarayanan pointed out that his client has been in prison for nearly three decades. They drew the court’s attention to a short order passed by the SC on September 6, 2018.

Cashless rule at ticket counters irks passengers

22/01/2020, STAFF REPORTER,CHENNAI

A recent move by the Chennai Metro to direct passengers wishing to pay for tickets in cash to ticket vending machines (TVMs) has irked many. Those heading to the counter should necessarily pay using either their debit or credit card.

Hari Madhavan, a resident of Nanganallur, said, “This is an absurd rule. The funny part is, many of their TVMs don’t even work. If there are 2-3 in each station, certainly one won’t work. Even if they function, they don’t accept many denominations of new currency notes that were introduced a few years ago. When they have so many flaws in their system itself, how can they impose such a ridiculous rule?”

Passengers said that it is unfair to have such a rule because they have to stand in queue to buy tickets from TVMs even if the counter is empty. Sri Lakshmi M., another passenger, said, “Only now more people are beginning to travel by Chennai Metro. But if they continue to have such rules, the ones travelling will also stop.”

Sources in Chennai Metro said that they receive several complaints every day from passengers but are helpless as they have been instructed to implement this rule. According to officials of Chennai Metro Rail Limited, they have brought in this rule only to save time as passengers buying tickets through TVMs will consume less time. “We have been trying to fix the issues in TVMs as well,” an official added.