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Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Over 1,100 passengers arriving on special trains to undergo RT-PCR tests

Over 1,100 passengers arriving on special trains to undergo RT-PCR tests

Keep them on railway premises until they are screened, CM urges Centre

13/05/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

Migrant workers bound for Mizoram boarding a bus to MGR Central railway station in Chennai. B. VELANKANNI RAJ

As over 1,100 people are expected to arrive in Chennai on special trains, Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Tuesday urged the Union Home and Railways Ministers to keep them in quarantine facilities on railway premises until all of them are screened for COVID-19.

Since there was a possibility of the infection spreading in the air-conditioned trains, the passengers would be allowed into Tamil Nadu only after undergoing RT-PCR tests. As there were practical difficulties in screening over 1,100 passengers in one go, they should be kept on railway premises until they are screened, the CM said.

Once testing is done, within a day or two, those with the infection and those without it will be sent to hospitals and home quarantine facilities, respectively, Mr. Palaniswami said in an official press release. The CM also insisted that regular train services to Chennai should not be resumed, since the city’s case count was on the rise.

Following the Railways’ announcement that it would operate Rajdhani Express trains — from New Delhi to Chennai and Chennai to New Delhi — from May 13, Mr. Palaniswami had, in a video-conference with PM Narendra Modi, insisted that train services should not be resumed till May 31. However, the Railways said the Rajdhani Express trains would be operated since reservations for May 14 and 16 had already commenced.

13,000 sent home

The CM said 13,000 migrant labourers had been sent back to their home States so far. He also announced a compensation of ₹3 lakh to Sakthivel, a police driver who was grievously injured in a melee involving migrant workers in Kudankulam on May 9, and ₹1 lakh to Anthony Jegatha, a police inspector who sustained minor injuries in the incident.

‘Nearly 3 lakh e-passes issued in a week’

Figure accounts for 50% of the applications submitted by individuals, industries

13/05/2020, T. RAMAKRISHNAN,CHENNAI

Around three lakh e-passes for movement during the COVID-19 lockdown have been issued in the last one week, after the introduction of the Tamil Nadu e-pass system (https://tnepass.tnega.org/), according to the government.

The figure accounts for 50% of the applications submitted by individuals and industries. About six lakh applications have been processed, of which 4.5 lakh are from individuals and the rest from industries.

Only companies permitted to operate by the State government can apply for the e-pass. The passes — intra-State and inter-State — are being issued by the Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency (TNeGA) for four reasons — medical emergency, death, wedding and cases of stranded persons.

According to a TNeGA official, on an average, each application gets cleared within 30 minutes, especially those in respect of medical emergencies and death. As there were complaints that applications citing the two purposes had been pending with some District Collectors for more than 24 hours, Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami asked officials whether a provision could be made for alerting the Collectors automatically. Subsequently, an automated alert system was created for the District Collectors and the Commissioner of the Greater Chennai Corporation.

“Every hour, the Collectors are being alerted about any application for medical emergency or death that has been pending for more than an hour. Now, the applications are, on an average, being cleared in 20 to 25 minutes,” explained the official. He added that a “close watch” is being kept on applications being received by the Collectors.

In respect of inter-State movement, applications land at the decision box of the State Control Room at the TNeGA, and in the case of intra-State movement, applications go to the Collectors concerned/Commissioner of the Greater Chennai Corporation.

In respect of the latter, the Collectors of the destination districts are being informed about the issue of passes so that they plan accordingly. In the case of inter-State movement of people, since Tuesday, applicants are having to furnish documentary proof of having obtained the permission of the destination State, except for Maharashtra and Rajasthan. The new requirement has been introduced following the insistence of other States.

The official said that invariably, absence of proper documents in support of identity or address was the main reason for rejection of applications.

Also, essential details such as the reason for travel and vehicle number will have to be provided, the official said.

“If all the details and documentary proof are provided, it is highly likely that applications will be approved,” the official added.

Besides Chennai, cases surging in Chengalpattu, Tiruvallur

Besides Chennai, cases surging in Chengalpattu, Tiruvallur

Neighbouring districts had fewer cases before the emergence of Koyambedu cluster

13/05/2020, SERENA JOSEPHINE M. ,CHENNAI

Chennai’s neighbouring districts continue to bear the brunt of the Koyambedu market cluster. The COVID-19 case counts of Chengalpattu and Tiruvallur districts have been rising even as the State capital witnesses a surge in cases linked to the market.

As of Tuesday, Chengalpattu had a total of 391 cases and Tiruvallur, 467. Both districts had fewer cases before the emergence of the Koyambedu cluster.

There were a total of 86 cases in Chengalpattu and 61 cases in Tiruvallur as of May 1. The surge in cases began during the second week of May.

K. Kolandaswamy, retired Director of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, said districts situated close to Corporations that were thickly populated were bound to face such a situation, and this was what had happened to both Chengalpattu and Tiruvallur.

“Till Monday, Tiruvallur district had a total of 440 cases. Of these, 211 persons are linked to the Koyambedu cluster. Of them, 136 are index cases — vendors who had visited Koyambedu; as many as 58 are their primary contacts, i.e., their household contacts, and 17 are secondary contacts,” an official said.

Extensive measures

Prior to the emergence of the Koyambedu cluster, the district had very few containment zones and had contained existing cases well, he said, adding, “The district shares its border with the Greater Chennai Corporation at Villivakkam and Poonamallee. After cases from the Koyambedu market started to emerge, contact-tracing was done extensively, and we picked up all those linked to the market. We made a block-wise list of those who had visited the market that week. There were about 1,200 such persons, and we lifted samples from all of them.” Around 200 persons who had visited the market have been quarantined.

‘Under control’

Though the cluster changed the COVID-19 trajectory for the district, officials said the situation was now under control. “We have strengthened surveillance in the border areas and are picking up cases of Influenza-Like Illness and Severe Acute Respiratory Infection from containment zones. We are also taking up massive disinfection work,” an official said.

Unlike in the southern districts, where lorry drivers and loadmen linked to the market have tested positive for COVID-19, the border districts are seeing a different pattern, another official said.

“Take Chengalpattu, for instance. Here, we have people who travel in small vans or share-autos and procure vegetables from Koyambedu for their shops in the district. Many of them run grocery stores, and their family members are also involved in the business. There are also wholesalers, who procure vegetables and distribute them to shops in the district,” an official said.

Till Monday, Chengalpattu had 356 cases, of which nearly 150 were linked to the Koyambedu cluster, he said.

“Testing of the persons who are linked to the Koyambedu cluster and are under quarantine continues,” he added.

Follow Goa model to fight corona, CM tells districts

Follow Goa model to fight corona, CM tells districts

Sujit Mahamulkar & Bhavika Jain TNN

Mumbai: 13.05.2020

CM Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday suggested that some of Maharashtra’s districts can battle the coronavirus by taking a leaf out of Covid-free Goa’s playbook, including house-to-house surveys and treating all patients.

Making it clear that district borders would not be opened anytime soon, Thackeray, addressing district authorities over video conferencing on Tuesday, asked them to submit to the Centre their plans detailing how to ease restrictions during Lockdown 4.0 by Friday. He also instructed them to focus on containment zones, and take precautionary measures so that the infection does not spread from there.

“The CM has suggested that a few districts should implement the Goa pattern and start house-to-house surveys to check not only for symptoms of Covid-19 but also for monsoon-related diseases to stem illnesses,” said an official, pointing out Goa is about the size of a Maharashtra district.

Reviewing the situation of the Green, Orange and Red Zones, Thackeray said even if the lockdown is relaxed in the immediate future, the district boundaries will not be opened, considering the mass movement of migrant labourers. The CM asked all district collectors and divisional commissioners to review if the exodus of migrants has caused any shortage of manpower, and fill it with locals.

Discussing the advent of monsoon, he said “district authorities should take care about water-borne diseases, put the medical system on alert and take help from private practitioners,” he added.

The Hindu is India’s fastest growing English daily, fourth time in a row

The Hindu is India’s fastest growing English daily, fourth time in a row

It has added 4,61,000 readers, 1,03,000 more than The Times of India did

13/05/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

The Hindu has consolidated its leadership position as the fastest growing English daily in India with its Total Readership (TR) growing by 6% and Average Issue Readership (AIR) by 4% in the fourth quarter of 2019 over the corresponding figures for the third quarter, registering the highest growth rate among the top three national English dailies. The Times of India and the Hindustan Times have declined in AIR. The Hindu has added 4,61,000 readers nationally over the third quarter, which is 1,03,000 more than what The Times of India did, says the Indian Readership Survey’s recent report released by the Media Research Users Council in the fourth and final quarter of the calendar year.

In south India, The Hindu has witnessed the highest TR of 46,70,000, which is higher than that of The Times of India. The Hindu’s performance is attributed to sustained leadership in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and gains in Karnataka.

The Hindu continues to be the largest read English daily in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, in terms of both TR and AIR. Its AIR in Tamil Nadu is higher than that of The Times of India and The New Indian Express combined. The Hindu has witnessed a consistent growth in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. In Karnataka, The Hindu has grown by 10% in AIR, whereas The Times of India and the Deccan Herald have declined.

L.V. Navaneeth, Chief Executive Officer, The Hindu Group, said, “It is heartening to note that we have witnessed continued growth in all four quarters, even as we continue to disseminate verified information during these challenging times. We are thankful to our readers and to our advertisers for the continued support of our quality and credible journalism.”

PM announces ₹20 lakh crore economic stimulus package

PM announces ₹20 lakh crore economic stimulus package

It will focus on self-reliance; lockdown to continue with significant changes

13/05/2020, NISTULA HEBBAR,NEW DELHI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said a new-look Lockdown 4.0 beyond May 17 was in the offing, while announcing an economic stimulus package for ₹20 lakh crore (estimated at 10% of the GDP), with a clearly defined leap towards economic reforms that will, in his words, lead to Atmanirbhar Bharat, or a self-reliant, resilient India.

This amount includes packages already announced at the beginning of the lockdown, incorporating a slew of measures from the RBI and the payouts under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana.

‘Relook at systems’

Addressing the nation on television, Mr. Modi said the whole world was reeling from the crisis engendered by the COVID-19 pandemic, as was India. In this crisis, however, India had had an opportunity to look at systems and institutions that were in existence before the crisis hit and how they crumbled. “We have been hearing for many years that the 21st century will be India’s century and this crisis is, I believe, one that carries a message, that we have to move forward not just to combat the crisis but to prevail,” the Prime Minister said. “That can happen when we are self-reliant.”

Ramped-up capacity

He gave the example of India’s ramped-up capacity in producing Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) kits and N-95 masks required by medical personnel and frontline health workers to illustrate his point that India could achieve this.

“When the first case hit us, we didn’t produce either of these things. Now, within weeks we have the capacity to produce 2 lakh of PPE and 2 lakh of N95 masks everyday,” Mr. Modi said.

Clarifying that by self-reliance he did not mean insularity and suspicion of the world as in the past, but embracing the world in the spirit of Vasudheva Kutumbakam (the world is one family).

“Self-reliance in this sense is neither exclusionary nor isolationist, it is for helping the world, with our actions. In the past whenever we have acted it has impacted the world in a positive way — be it solving the Y2K riddle in 1999 or our campaigns against open defecation, tuberculosis and polio,” Mr. Modi said.

He said that the new edifice of this self-reliant India would be based on the five pillars of the economy, infrastructure, demography, technologically driven systems and to strengthen demand and supply chains, with the supply chains being based on local sourcing.