Few object to Covaxin

Few object to Covaxin

Sunitha.Rao@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:  17.01.2021

Amid some concerns over safety and efficacy, state health officials on Saturday achieved a higher level of Covaxin acceptance at the six designated vaccination sites.

Karnataka had received 20,000 doses of Covaxin and half of these were sent to the six centres, one each in Ballari, Chamarajanagar, Davanagere, Hassan, Shivamogga and Chikkamagaluru districts. Most of these centres are medical colleges.

At the Vijayanagar Institute of Medical Sciences in Ballari, 62 out of 100 registered beneficiaries turned up. Of these, 58 took the vaccine. “Some raised issues like why the college was given Covaxin, while other centres were supplied with Covishield. Four refused to take it,” said Dr Gangadhar Gowda, the dean of the institute.

At the Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences (HIMS), 74 out of 100 registered beneficiaries took the vaccine. “There was some confusion, but very few have refused,” said the HIMS dean. At the Chamarajanagar Medical College, 64 out of 100 registered healthcare workers took Covaxin. Full report toi.in

The women who administered the first vaccines say it’s a matter of pride

The women who administered the first vaccines say it’s a matter of pride

Sunitha.Rao@timesgroup.com

17.01.2021

Bengaluru: It was a night of apprehension for nursing officer Jesima Jalarmathi, who works with Nimhans, after she got a call on Friday evening, asking her to be prepared to administer Covid vaccines on Saturday. “I have been a nurse for 21 years, but this is a new vaccine and I was a bit worried. I could not sleep the entire night and kept praying all through,” Jalarmathi told STOI on Saturday, after vaccinating 38 people at Nimhans.

The first dose was given to Nimhans director Dr G Gururaj. Jalarmathi says she was a bit tense while administering the first injection, but was at ease later. “My colleagues gave me confidence and I felt better and was able to administer the injection gently,” said Jalarmathi, who overcame the initial jitters after giving the first dose. By day-end, senior professors at Nimhans appreciated Jalarmathi, saying she was gentle with the task at hand.

While administering the shots, Jalarmathi couldn’t stop thinking of her many colleagues, who contracted the virus in the last few months and a nursing officer who succumbed to Covid-19.

She left for work at 5.45am

Nurses at PMSSY Hospital attached to Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute, had undergone training in Covid vaccination and Jyothi N was one among them. On Friday night, they attended another online session conducted by the health and family welfare department on the vaccination procedure.

Jyothi, a trained nurse, boarded a bus from her house at Vijayapura near Devanahalli in Bengaluru Rural district at 5.45am to reach the hospital. “I had explained to my ten-year-old daughter that I’d be returning home late because of the vaccination drive. She knows about Covid-19 and was excited that I am going to give the first vaccine. It’s a matter of pride,” said Jyothi, who had no doubts in her mind while vaccinating the listed people and was seen explaining healthcare workers about the jab and the mandatory 30-minute observation period thereafter.

Jyothi, who had worked in Covid-19 wards multiple times, never tested positive for the virus. “Initially, there was fear of working in Covid wards, but we got used to it. There is no need to fear the vaccine as it is safe. I will also be getting it in a couple of days,” the nurse said.

TOP EFFORT: Jesima Jalarmathi works at Nimhans, while Jyothi N (right) is a nurse at PMSSY Hospital, which is attached to BMCRI

WhatsApp delays its new privacy policy till May 15

WhatsApp delays its new privacy policy till May 15

Says It Will Protect Users Through End-To-End Encryption

Anam.Ajmal@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:  17.01.2021

WhatsApp announced on Saturday that it has delayed the implementation of its new privacy policy and terms of service until May  15.

“Thank you to everyone who’s reached out. We’re still working to counter any confusion by communicating directly with @WhatsApp users. No one will have their account suspended or deleted on Feb 8 and we’ll be moving back our business plans until after May,” the company tweeted around 1.15 am, while sharing a blogpost on the microblogging platform.

The company also said it would instead “go to people gradually to review the policy at their own pace before new business options are available on May 15”. On January 6, the instant messaging platform had announced that it was making it mandatory for users to share their data with its parent company, Facebook. The company had not given an option to users to opt out of the changes and had said people would lose access by February 8, if they did not accept the new terms. The move, digital experts had said, was a blow to privacy as it maximised data collection.

Reacting to WhatsApp’s new post, cyber security expert Jiten Jain pointed out that privacy concerns around the update still exist since WhatsApp has not rolled back the policy. “They have just delayed the new policy by a couple of months. It’s only a tactic to escape public anger and stop the mass exodus of people to other platforms,” said Jain.

The blog post said there had been a “lot of misinformation causing concern (around the new policy) and we want to help everyone understand our principles and the facts.” The statement further said that WhatsApp would continue to protect users through end-toend encryption, a method which doesn’t allow the company to read content of people’s messages.

“It’s why we don’t keep logs of who everyone’s messaging or calling. We also can’t see your shared location and we don’t share your contacts with Facebook. With these updates, none of that is changing,” the company wrote, adding that “This update does not expand our ability to share data with Facebook.”

In another tweet, the company added, it “never planned to delete any accounts based on this and will not do so in the future.”

EPS to meet PM ahead of Sasi release

EPS to meet PM ahead of Sasi release

Modi To Inaugurate Multi-Crore Projects

Julie.Mariappan@timesgroup.com

Chennai: 17.01.2021

Chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on January 19 to invite him to roll out multi-crore projects including Cauvery-Gundar interlink and inaugurate Chennai Metro Rail’s new line connecting Washermenpet and Wimco Nagar in north Chennai. Palaniswami is also expected to discuss with the PM the political situation in Tamil Nadu, ahead of Sasikala’s release from prison on January 27. Palaniswami will be accompanied by top bureaucrats.

“The PM might visit Chennai to launch the programmes or he might do it through video-conference as the budget session of Parliament will begin this monthend. The two leaders may have a one-on-one meeting to discuss the electoral alliance and the strategies to be adopted in the polls,” said a source. Palaniswami is making his first visit to Delhi after the AIADMK’s general council endorsed his candidature for the CM’s post. After dillydallying on the CM candidature, the BJP has finally endorsed Palaniswami’s candidature after the AIADMK general council meeting. This is in stark contrast to the national party’s earlier stand that its national leadership would decide on the CM candidature. Actor Rajinikanth’s decision not to enter electoral politics has apparently prompted the BJP to stay with the AIADMK in the polls.

Meanwhile, RSS ideologue Gurumurthy’s suggestion to the AIADMK to take V K Sasikala back into its fold to consolidate the Thevar votes and put up a tough fight with the DMK has not gone down well with many AIADMK leaders, who want to keep the Mannargudi clan at bay. What is not clear as of now is whether it is just Gurumurthy’s idea or whether the BJP national leadership also thinks along the same lines. BJP state general secretary R Srinivasan said his party’s prime target is that the DMK should not come to power. “Whenever there has been a split in the AIADMK, it has benefited the DMK. But it is for the AIADMK to decide whether to re-induct Sasikala or not. It is their internal matter. We have no say in that,” said Srinivasan.

The AIADMK leaders believe softening of stand on Sasikala would give fodder to the opposition. The party has fully endorsed the leadership of O Panneerselvam as coordinator and Palaniswami as joint coordinator. “If Sasikala’s re-entry is expected to bring in 3% votes, the party will lose 15% because of her corrupt background. There is no chance of merger nor inclusion,” a senior AIADMK leader told TOI. Partymen are apprehensive about the outcome of justice A Arumughaswamy commission of inquiry, set up to probe the cause of Jayalalithaa’s death, in the event of a merger of the AIADMK and the AMMK. Palaniswami and Panneerselvam are scheduled to open the Jayalalithaa memorial on January 27.

TTV hits out at Gurumurthy for sewage analogy

TTV hits out at Gurumurthy for sewage analogy

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:  17.01.2021

AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran on Saturday hit out at Thuglak editor S Gurumurthy for his “sewage analogy” while talking about a suggestion to take V K Sasikala back into the AIADMK to fight the DMK. Dhinakaran said Gurumurthy was tarnishing the name of Cho Ramasamy.

Responding to a query from the readers at Thuglak anniversary on the possibility of BJP aligning with Sasikala and Dhinakaran-led AMMK and the possibility of Sasikala and Dhinakaran returning to the AIADMK, Gurumurthy said desperate times needed desperate measures. If a house was burning, one could wait for Ganga water, even sewage should be used to douse the fire, he said, quoting an analogy of former Union minister Arun Shourie. The RSS ideologue clarified a day later, “We in Thuglak will continue to regard Mannargudi family as Mafia and they would turn AIADMK into a family-owned affair like the DMK. Our opinion on them will not change,” Gurumurthy tweeted. Sasikala hails from Mannargudi in Thiruvarur district.

Dhinakaran said that he was reacting to the statement since many people expected his response, despite his initial thoughts of not wasting his time on “blabbering” of certain people who consider themselves as “geniuses and saints”. “Only the people of Tamil Nadu should decide what is Ganga water, sewage and mafia and not those like Gurumurthy, who consider themselves as Gangaputra Bhishma,” Dhinakaran said, adding that he was saddened by the lowering standards of Gurumurthy as ministers have questioned his integrity.

The AMMK leader said Thuglak founder Cho was a political commentator for more than five decades and was known for his strident criticism of the opponents with a sense of humour and without crossing the boundaries of decency. However, Gurumurthy’s choice of words in recent years had tarnished the name of Cho, whose chair he (Gurumurthy) was occupying, Dhinakaran said.

Disabled student who was denied MBBS seat to be paid ₹2L

Disabled student who was denied MBBS seat to be paid ₹2L

Had Cleared NEET, Not Called For Counselling

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

17.01.0221

The Madras high court has directed the health secretary to pay ₹2lakh as compensation to a differently abled man from Madurai who was denied the opportunity to study medicine despite scoring well in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET). The direction came after more than two years of court battle.

G Arunkumar, 27, from Villapuram wrote the entrance test in 2018 and secured a score that was above the cut-off mark for the differently-abled quota. However, he was not given a chance in counselling despite being declared fit and issued a certificate of disability by a regional medical board from Chennai. Arunkumar had lost three of his fingers, including his thumb, after being injured in an accident in 2008.

After his complaint letter to the Director of Medical Education (DME) was not met with a reply, he took the matter to court. As it was argued that the fitness certificate was only valid for 2018, the court ordered him to appear before the board again in 2019. They too declared him fit but he was not called for counselling that year too since he had written the NEET exam in 2018, not 2019.

Arun Kumar then filed another writ petition in 2019 seeking a solution since it was the delay from the government’s side that led him to miss counselling in 2019.

The court on January 6 directed the health secretary to pay Arun Kumar ₹2lakh towards cost for the petitioner. “Since the respondents had unfairly denied medical seat to the petitioner during the academic year 2018-19, the petitioner was constrained to move this court thrice. The petitioner may utilise this amount for payment of coaching fee and I can only wish him good luck in his attempt to make it in the next academic year,” observed Justice G R Swaminathan in his order. Arun Kumar is happy to get at least some relief through the court and he hopes that differently abled candidates do not get discriminated any more.

THE VACCINATOR & THE VACCINATED: BOTH WERE WORRIED INITIALLY

‘Couldn’t sleep entire night, kept praying’

THE VACCINATOR & THE VACCINATED: BOTH WERE WORRIED INITIALLY

Sintha.Rao@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:17.01.2021

Jesima Jalarmathi, a nursing officer at Nimhans, was ridden with fear after getting a call on Friday night asking her to be prepared to administer Covid-19 vaccines.

“I have been a nurse for the last 21 years but this is a new vaccination and I was worried. I couldn’t sleep the entire night and kept praying to the Almighty throughout,” the 46-year-old vaccinator told STOI on Saturday after giving the jab to 38 people at Nimhans.

The first dose was given to Nimhans director Dr G Gururaj, and Jesima said that she was jittery while administering the first injection but got over the initial fear afterwards.

“All my colleagues helped me regain confidence and I eventually overcame my trepidation and was able to administer the injection gently,” Jesima said. By the end of the day, Dr Gururaj appreciated Jesima saying that she was a gentle injector.

While administering the vaccine shots, Jesima said that she could not help but recall the coronavirus cases she had seen among her colleagues and a fellow nursing officer who succumbed to the infection.

Health workers queue up for the vaccine at Cooper Hospital in Mumbai

‘Don’t go for the 1st round, my kids said’

Hyderabad: When she showed up for work at Gandhi Hospital on Saturday, sanitation worker S Kishtamma had little idea she’d become the first to get vaccinated in Telangana, reports Amrita Didyala. Initially slotted for Monday, she jumped to the front of the line as PM Modi was expected to interact with beneficiaries there and the authorities wanted some sanitation staff there along with doctors.

“I was a bit nervous initially, but I’m absolutely fine now,” she said after stepping out of the observation room. Her family, though, was apprehensive. “My children weren’t comfortable with me getting vaccinated in the first round,” said the mother of three. But she decided to go ahead with it, nonetheless.