MBBS book links Covid-19 spike to TJ, withdrawn

Mumbai:19.03.2021 

The publishers of the third edition of Essentials of Medical Microbiology, a reference book for 2nd year MBBS students, have withdrawn it after objections to the negative description of Tablighi Jamaat. The authors, Dr Apurba Sastry and Dr Sandhya Bhat, have apologised “if they inadvertently hurt the sentiments of a group of people”, reports Mohammed Wajihuddin.

Talking about Covid situation (as of Aug 2020), the book said: “Subsequent to the Tablighi Jamaat, a religious congregation that took place in Delhi’s Nizamuddin Markaz Mosque in March, there was an explosive outbreak of Covid-19 with 4,000 cases.”

‘No study said TJ meet led to Covid spread’

Once it was brought to our notice, we apologised and the publishers have withdrawn the book. Changes will be made in the new edition,” said Dr Sastry. “The matter is closed.”

The “misrepresentation of facts”, said a spokesperson for the Students Islamic Organisation (SIO), the student wing of Jamaat-i-Islami (Hind), was flagged when some SIO members saw it.

“There is no epidemiological study that corroborates the claim that Covid-19 spread because of the TJ congregation. It was a vilification by media and the authors of this book too bought it without crosschecking facts. We are glad they have accepted their mistake and withdrawn the book,” said an SIO (Maharashtra) spokesperson.

Nursing colleges under govt scanner

Nursing colleges under govt scanner

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru:19.03.2021 

The state government on Thursday said it would conduct an inquiry and take stringent action against nursing colleges operating without basic training facilities and faculty.

Medical education minister K Sudhakar told the legislative council that the government would cancel errant colleges’ licences after the probe. “I will table the inquiry report within 90 days in this house,” he added.

On Thursday, BJP MLC N Ravi Kumar claimed most of the 650 nursing colleges in Karnataka lacked basic amenities and teaching staff. “There are 30 to 40 colleges in Bidar district where people from Kerala write their exams and get a degree. There is no teaching faculty at many colleges,” he said.

JD(S) legislators alleged that running nursing colleges was a huge business that was churning out untrained professionals and putting people at risk. Marithibbe Gowda said that in Manyda, two licences were issued to a single facility.

The proceedings were adjourned after JD(S) members, not satisfied with the government’s response, staged a protest and demanded a probe by a house committee.

Maharani varsity sealed after +ve case

Maharani varsity sealed after +ve case

Nithya.Mandyam@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:19.03.2021 

Maharani Cluster University was closed for all academic activity on Thursday after a student tested positive for Covid-19.

A senior BBMP health official said the 21-year-old student, who resided in a hostel in Malleswaram, was found to be infected. “The girl underwent tests two days ago and the results were confirmed today. She has returned to her hometown, which is a worry,” the official said.

The official said 15 of her hostel mates have also tested positive. The hostel has been sealed off. A statement issued by the registrar of the varsity said: “The college has informed both UG and PG course [students] that classes will be held online with no change in schedule for theory examination for I and III semester UG students. The fifth semester UG examination of BCR will be conducted as per BCU timetable with strict adherence to Covid-19 (SOP).”

Meanwhile, of the five cluster outbreaks in Bengaluru, three are in Yelahanka zone, while east and Bommanahalli zone have one each.

A resident of Govardhan Residency in Yelahanka, who returned from Kerala on March 1, developed symptoms a week after his return. He tested positive on March 8 and officials had asked all members of the apartment to stay in quarantine. The three-floor complex has 19 residents.

“In spite of instructions, a resident visited a temple on March 9 and developed symptoms on March 14,” said senior health officer, BBMP, Yelahanka. “He tested positive on March 16. People violating protocols have put others at risk.”

Similarly, a family that had attended a wedding in RT Nagar on March 2, found out that one of the guests there was infected. The family underwent tests and, on March 12, found they were infected. The rest of the residents in the duplex building are in home quarantine.

N Manjuantha Prasad, BBMP commissioner, said irresponsible behaviour on the part of people and those with travel history are adding to the rise in cases. “Nearly 12% of fresh cases in the city are those with travel history or those who attended functions or visited malls,” Prasad said.

VIRUS INCUBATION? Grade 7 students of a government primary school in Jayanagar, Bengaluru, participate in classes on Thursday. There was no social distancing and most of the students and the teacher either did not have a mask on or wore one improperly. Sources said many of the students come from poor families and cannot afford masks

Train runs backwards for 20km after brakes fail

Train runs backwards for 20km after brakes fail

Prashant Jha & Kanwardeep Singh | TNN

Nainital/Pilibhit:  19.03.2021 

With 43 passengers on board, the Delhi-Tanakpur Purnagiri Jan Shatabdi Special hurtled in reverse for about 20km and crossed two stations until a mound of sand and boulders hurriedly piled on the tracks finally stopped it. The loco pilot, assistant pilot and guard were suspended on Thursday.

The train was close to its destination, Tanakpur, on Wednesday around 4pm when an animal strayed onto the tracks. “The engine brakes failed after the train hit cattle,” Izzatnagar railway division PRO Rajendra Singh told TOI. The loco pilot appears to have hit the brakes hard, because of which the air pressure vacuum pipe burst. “The driver may have lost control of the engine and the train started moving backwards,” a railways official said.

Train did not stop even after passengers pulled the chain

In the train compartments, there was panic. “Initially, we thought the train was going back to change tracks. But it gathered speed, and we realised something was wrong,” said Dev Singh, a TTE on board the train at the time. In video clips that went viral, the train can be seen running in the opposite direction as curious onlookers scream that there are passengers inside. “We were surrounded by passengers who wanted answers, but even we didn’t know what was happening … Those were the most frantic moments of my life,” said Lakshman Singh, the other TTE on board.

Tanakpur, at an elevation of 259m, is higher than the other stations. “The loco pilot could not stop the train as it started rolling backwards. He informed the control room immediately and all nearby stations were alerted. Our team went to several crossings, and placed sand and boulders on the tracks,” the railways official said. All crossings along the route, meanwhile, were shut. “The field staff was advised to alert locals to stay away from the tracks,” Rajendra Singh said.

Some passengers tried pulling the chain, but the train did not stop. “Then, we got calls from our seniors telling us the brakes had failed,” said Lakshman Singh.

Periods at 7? Docs pin spike to lockdown

Periods at 7? Docs pin spike to lockdown

Shobita.Dhar@timesgroup.com

19.03.2021 

Last year’s lockdown proved to be a life-changing experience for sevenyear-old Shanvi* and her parents who live in Delhi. The little girl started undergoing bodily changes associated with puberty, like breast enlargement and sprouting of body hair. Alarmed, Shanvi’s mother consulted a specialist who got a battery of tests and an MRI done. The diagnosis was precocious puberty. In India, a healthy puberty starts between 11 and 12 for girls. But if it hits before the age of 8 in girls and 9 in boys, it’s called precocious puberty (PP).

Paediatricians are reporting an increase in the number of cases of PP in the past year or so. Some of them feel this could be an effect of the lockdown that saw kids holed up in their homes for months, lonely, gaining weight and eating unhealthy food. Dr Vaishakhi Rustagi, paediatric endocrinologist in Delhi who consults at Max hospital, Patparganj, said that between June 2020 and February 2021 she saw 67 cases of PP. “Before Covid, I would see about 25 cases in a year. I think it’s the stress of the pandemic that is causing this rise. Stress causes hormonal imbalance,” she said.

“My daughter is so small, she was confused and disturbed by these changes. She kept asking me why she had body hair when none of her friends did,” said Barkha Verma*, Shanvi’s mother. Barkha took her to a doctor at the right time, before Shanvi started menstruating. Now she’s on medicines that have suppressed her hormones till the time she is older and more mature to handle puberty. But the changes that happened will remain.

Globally, PP is estimated to affect1 in 500 girls and1 in 2,000 boys. In girls, PP is typically idiopathic (with no apparent cause), while in boys PP is often due to the presence of adrenal or pituitary tumours. Prevalence of PP is10 times higher in girls than in boys. All the cases that Rustagi saw since last year were idiopathic.

At Narayana Health City in Bengaluru, Dr Pavithra Nagaraj said she got 12 cases of PP between April last year and now, higher than the five odd cases she got from 2018-2020. “Weight gain is definitely a contributing factor as is hypothyroidism,” she said.

Globally, too, doctors are reporting this trend.

(Names changed on request)

PRECOCIOUS PUBERTY

3-year-old drowns in sump in Kanchi

3-year-old drowns in sump in Kanchi

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:19.03.2021 

A three-yearold girl, who went missing, was later found dead in a sump at a relative’s residence near Kancheepuram on Wednesday night. Police said the child likely drowned.

The deceased was identified as Krithikashree, daughter of Varadharajan of Padappai and his wife Nithya.

The couple went to attend a relative’s funeral at Karanai along with their children. While Nithya was feeding her seven-month-old, Varadharajan was busy with the rituals. After nearly 30 minutes, they realised that Krithikashree was missing and launched a search for the child.

A relative, who went to draw water from the sump, found the body and alerted others. The body was sent for postmortem. A case has been registered and further investigations are on.

HC refuses to exempt lawyers from paying electricity charges

HC refuses to exempt lawyers from paying electricity charges

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:19.03.2021 

Calling it a publicity stunt, the Madras high court has dismissed a public interest writ petition filed by a Bar association leader to direct Tangedco not to demand power consumption charges for lawyers’ chambers from March 2020 to February 2021.

“Lawyers are more privileged when compared to many other sections of society affected due to Covid-19,” the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy said on Thursday. The bench further added that the petitioner’s attempted publicity could not be permitted by the court.

According to Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry co-chairman G Mohanakrishnan, there was absolutely no power consumed either by the lawyers or the registrar office during the lockdown period between March 22, 2020 and February 28.

However, lawyers have tremendously assisted the court for effective dispensation of justice either from their homes or offices. Therefore, the demand of consumption charges for the non-usage period for the lawyer’s chambers is unjust and unreasonable, he said.

More than 3,000 lawyers use the 550 chambers located on high court premises. But none used the chambers during lockdown as they were denied entry, he added. Claiming that the Tangedco authorities have started disconnecting electricity supply due to nonpayment of charges for the lockdown period, the petitioner sought the court’s intervention .