BCU reduces affiliation fee by 10%

BCU reduces affiliation fee by 10%

07/06/2020, STAFF REPORTER, ,BENGALURU

Bengaluru Central University has decided to reduce the affiliation fee for colleges under its jurisdiction by 10% for the academic year 2020-21.

The annual affiliation fee is usually increased by 10% every year.

However, considering the prevailing situation owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the university has decided not to increase the fee this year.

Instead, it has planned to reduce the amount to ease the burden on colleges.

Fraud of ₹57 lakh detected in JNU

Fraud of ₹57 lakh detected in JNU

Officials claimed travel concession and phone bill reimbursement during 2017-18

07/06/2020, STAFF REPORTER,NEW DELHI

A central expenditure audit team has detected a fraud of ₹57 lakh by over 100 officials of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), in claiming leave travel concession and reimbursement of phone bills during the 2017-18 period.

Executive Council

While the varsity did not respond to queries pertaining to the same, a senior official, who did not wish to be named, said that the matter was put forth before the Executive Council (EC) meeting.

“The EC is apprised of the matter and is looking into it. As per the EC decision, the defaulters will be asked to pay,” the official said.

Following the audit, the Director General of Audit (Central Expenditure) had also recommended suspending the varsity employees involved in the alleged fraud on the basis of fictitious bills.

The matter came to light following an RTI query filed by Kota-based activist Sujeet Swami seeking details of complete audit and inspection reports of JNU and Jamia Millia Islamia for 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20.

In the 2017-18 audit report for JNU, the DGCAE found that 34 JNU officials had availed their LTCs on the basis of fraudulent bills while 70 employees had claimed phone reimbursements worth ₹5.05 lakh, despite not being entitled to them.

(With PTI inputs)

As States prepare to unlock, 10 die in Telangana

As States prepare to unlock, 10 die in Telangana

Fatalities in Karnataka and Kerala point to challenge of managing the disease; many travellers continue to test positive

07/06/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

The COVID-19 trajectory in Telangana took a sharp turn on Saturday with the death of ten people. The State recorded a total of 3,496 cases, of which active cases were 1,663, and death toll rose to 123.

Kerala on Saturday crossed the milestone of 1,000 active COVID-19 cases, as 108 more cases were confirmed. There was one fatality from infection.

In Karnataka, two more persons from containment zones in Bidar and Vijayapura succumbed to the disease.

Kerala had 1,029 active cases, out of a total case tally of 1,805. Fifty more patients were put on the recovery list, taking the total of those who recovered to 762.

Of the 108 new cases, 98 were imported, diagnosed among those who had returned from abroad or other States. Ten persons were infected by local transmission by other infected persons.

A 61-year-old seriously ill patient, a Mumbai-returnee, at Manjeri Medical College, Malappuram, who was the first recipient of convalescent plasma therapy for COVID-19 patients in the State, died on Saturday, raising the death toll to 15.

Senior Health officials said no hospitals in Kerala had been chosen to be part of the PLACID clinical trial of ICMR, and the State had to draw up guidelines for administering convalescent plasma therapy on compassionate grounds or when there were no other treatment options left.

Clearance for the therapy was given on Friday night and plasma from two prior patients at Manjeri MCH was administered to the patient early on Saturday.

Doctors said that the patient was on ventilator and had deteriorated too much to be saved.

The number of people on institutional or home quarantine in the State was 1,81,482, while another 1,615 persons with suspected COVID-19 symptoms were isolated in hospitals.

Three days after clocking over 4,000 cases, Karnataka’s tally touched 5,213 on Saturday, with 378 new cases. Of these, 333 were inter-State and eight international travellers; 329 travellers were from Maharashtra.

With two more deaths, the toll in the State was 59, apart from two non-COVID deaths.

One of the fatalities was that of a 55-year-old womanfrom Bidar with severe acute respiratory illness and the other an 82-year-old woman from Vijayapura with co-morbidities.

Also, 280 persons recovered and were discharged; with 1,968 discharges, the State had 3,184 active cases.

More Maharashtra returnees tested positive in Udupi. With 121 cases, this district recorded the highest cases for the third day, totalling 785 active ones. Yadgir followed with 103 new cases. While Kalaburagi recorded 69 cases, Dakshina Kannada had 24, and Bengaluru Urban 18 cases.

With 96% of all active cases being asymptomatic, the Health Department submitted a proposal to the State Task Force that even asymptomatic persons from Maharashtra should be tested.

Andhra Pradesh saw the highest single-day spike in fresh COVID-19 cases on Saturday. A whopping 210 fresh cases, including a record 161 cases of locals were detected after 12,771 samples were tested, the Health Department said.

The tally rose to 4,460 and the number of active cases to 1,786. The number of patients discharged was 2,601 and the toll stood at 73, with no new deaths reported.

(With inputs from Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Vijayawada bureaus)

Pvt. school ‘blocks’ students from online classes

Pvt. school ‘blocks’ students from online classes

07/06/2020, STAFF REPORTER

A private school in Coimbatore has blocked 15 students from its online classes as a punitive measure for the alleged derogatory messages posted by their parents against the school.

M. Aruna, mother of two Class IV students at the school in Vadavalli, said that her children were unable to log in from June 3 for the online classes, which is being conducted for students of Classes I to V from June 1. In a letter addressed to District Collector K. Rajamani, a copy of which she shared with The Hindu, she alleged that the class teacher also removed her from a WhatsApp group meant for communication of “academic details to the parents” by the school.

An official from the school reportedly told her, “The management instructed me to remove list of parents from the group and also not to permit their kids to attend online classes because those parents have posted message in social media against the school (sic),” she said in the letter. However, Ms. Aruna denied posting anything derogatory against the school on social media platforms. “I was added to a parents association group which was a discussion forum among the parents (sic),” she claimed in the letter, adding that she shared a media report regarding online classes in the group.

When contacted, a senior official from the school said that 10 parents were allegedly circulating messages in WhatsApp group against online classes conducted by the school.

Once the school management came to know about these messages, they instructed the teachers to not allow the children of these 10 parents, he said.

“We are not against the children,” the official said, claiming that missing these classes will not affect their academic performance as it is not mandatory.

The 10 parents must write a letter explaining the situation to the school principal, following which the students will be allowed to participate in the online classes again, according to the official.

Coimbatore Chief Educational Officer P. Usha said that the issue has come to her notice and an inquiry is under way.

84 discharged in Salem

84 discharged in Salem

07/06/2020, STAFF REPORTER,SALEM

As many as 84 patients, who were undergoing treatment for COVID-19, at the Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College Hospital were discharged on Saturday.

According to doctors, the patients had travelled to Salem from places like Maharashtra, Chennai and others.

Mr. Raman said, “strict checking is being carried out at check posts and swab samples are collected. We have also started a survey of persons above 60 years of age in the district and they are provided with medicines for lifestyle diseases for two months. To ensure they do not venture out, volunteers have been arranged to get them essentials.”

Three new cases

Three COVID-19 positive cases were reported in Salem on Saturday. According to health officials, two of the patients have travelled from Chennai and Maharashtra to the district.

Outrage over body being thrown into pit

Outrage over body being thrown into pit

Clip captures callousness of workers

07/06/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,PUDUCHERRY

A video of front line workers in Puducherry hurriedly dumping the body of a COVID-19 patient from Chennai in a pit triggered outrage on Saturday.

The 45-year-old Chennai resident had come to Puducherry on Wednesday to visit his wife. The next day, he developed chest pain and was taken to the Indira Gandhi Government General Hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.

He was tested for COVID-19 and and the results returned positive, said a doctor. Following this, staff deputed by the Villianur commune panchayat took the body in an ambulance to a burial ground.

The clip showed the workers taking the body in a stretcher and then throwing it into the pit dug for his burial.

When contacted, S. Mohan Kumar, Director of Health and Family Welfare Services, said that based on the clip, the department had sought a report.

The body, as per protocol, was packed in a polythene bag and handed over for burial. “We made sure all protocols mandated for the burial of COVID-19 patients were followed. The video is shocking as it is a clear case of insensitivity shown to the dead. The staff may have panicked as they were handling the burial of a COVID-19 patient for the first time,” he said.

Doctors, nurses, paramedical staff and patients in the critical care unit of the hospital have been isolated.

Heavy rains likely in a few districts today

Heavy rains likely in a few districts today

07/06/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

As Southwest monsoon advances in Tamil Nadu, the Meteorological Department has forecast that some districts in the State are likely to get heavy rains on Sunday.

Officials of the Meteorological Department said that the Southwest monsoon has advanced upto Puducherry.

During the past 24 hours ending 8.30 a.m. on Saturday, some places in the State had received rains due to convective activity and the influence of southwesterlies.

Eraniel in Kanniyakumari district received the highest rainfall of 9 cm and Nagercoil recorded 8 cm.

S. Balachandran, Deputy Director General of Meteorology, Chennai, said one or two places in districts, including Kanniyakumari, Theni, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli and Dindigul are likely to get heavy rains on Sunday.

Thunderstorm activity may increase over the State around June 10 and many places are likely to get rains.

A low pressure area is likely to develop over Bay of Bengal and westerlies may strengthen under its influence.

This may bring thundershowers over the State. The weather system is being monitored and rainfall activity will depend on the movement of the weather system, S. Balachandran said.