Relief for engg colleges, worry for others

Relief for engg colleges, worry for others

Bharat.Yagnik@timesgroup.com

Ahmedabad:03.06.2021

The state government’s decision to cancel the Class XII state board exams may prove a blessing in disguise for engineering colleges, where more than half of all seats went vacant last year.

However, for arts and commerce colleges, the decision brings the challenge of adding 1.25 lakh seats for the academic year 2021-22. This is to be done in anticipation of the large number of students who are likely to pass this year due to the cancellation of the Class XII board exams.

“Last year, some 34,000 seats at engineering colleges went vacant after the admission committee and the private colleges could not fill them. This year, more students will qualify for engineering courses due to which the number of vacant seats may fall substantially,” said an education department official.

This is expected to benefit private colleges which were left with more than 50% of all seats vacant last year, he added.

Approximately 1.40 lakh science stream students and 5.43 lakh general stream students were expected to take the board exam.

Wednesday’s decision applies to only regular students and the government is yet to take a call on ‘repeater candidates’, who number 1.25 lakh students for Class XII general stream.

Last year, about 3.71 lakh students took the Class XII (general) board exams of which 2.87 lakh cleared it and took admission in commerce and arts colleges.

“This year about 1.25 lakh more students are expected to apply for admission to arts and commerce courses. The education department will have to ensure addition of almost 1,000 divisions to accommodate the huge additional number,” said Jayvantsinh Sarvaiya, president of Gujarat State College Principals’ Association.

About 53,000 students of Class XII science (Group A) were expected to take the board exams this year. Students who have opted for Group A with mathematics can qualify for engineering courses after fulfilling other criteria. In comparison, there 56,000 students in this group last year of whom about 42,500 cleared the exams.

While the board is yet to announce assessment criteria for students, experts feel the overall number of students clearing Class XII and applying for college admissions will far exceed that of last year.

No clarity on GujCET

After the cancellation of the board exams, the government is exploring the possibility of holding the Gujarat Common Entrance Test (GujCET), the state-level exam is held annually for science students seeking admission to in degree engineering, diploma engineering and pharmacy courses in government, grant-in-aid and self-financed engineering institutions in Gujarat. “Unless there is clarity on GujCET, the college admission process cannot be initiated. Last year about 1.25 lakh students had taken the entrance test,” said a source in the Gujarat board. The merit lists for college admission were drawn up by giving 40% weight to percentile obtained by the candidate in GujCET 2020 and 60% weight to percentile obtained in the Class XII (science) board exams. TNN

Decision on JEE (Main) tests, NEET-UG next week

Decision on JEE (Main) tests, NEET-UG next week

New Delhi:03.06.2021

The government will review the situation next week before it is likely to finalise new dates for the remaining two JEE (Main) tests, as well as take a decision on whether NEET-UG could be conducted on August 1, reports Manash Gohain.

The ministry of education will also decide on the fate of the Central University Common Entrance Test (CUCET) after CBSE announces the assessment scheme for the class XII boards. Due to surge in Covid-19 cases in April, the April and May editions of JEE (Main) were postponed and registration of NEET-UG which were supposed to commence from May 1 was kept in abeyance.

According to a senior education ministry official, “A review meeting next week will assess the situation. Given the present situation, the NEET-UG is likely to be postponed.”

After the cancellation of the class XII exams, concerns are being raised by experts on expected disparities in school level evaluation across the country, as well as challenges that universities are likely to face in normalising the differences in results prepared by school boards.

1,000 govt employees died of Covid since March 2020: Assn

1,000 govt employees died of Covid since March 2020: Assn

ManuAiyappa.Kanathanda@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:03.06.2021

At least 1,000 fulltime and contract employees of Karnataka government have succumbed to Covid-19 and around 1 lakh workforce has been infected with the virus since March last year, according to informal surveys by employees’ associations.

“According to department-wise data collected by our association, 518 full-time employees have died of Covid-19 since last year. The total number of employees who have died of Covid-19 is well over1,000 if we take into account data provided by other associations which have contracted staff as members,” claimed CS Shadakshari, president of the Karnataka State Government Employees’ Association (KSGEA).

Other associations are those of contract employees and workers, ASHA workers and anganwadi teachers who are not full-time government employees. Hence, they do not come under KSGEA.

Victims’ families yet to get aid

There are 6.5 lakh government employees. The government has offered Rs 30 lakh ex-gratia to kin of those who have died due to Covid-19 and jobs to dependents based on their education qualification.

“About 400 teachers have lost their lives, largely in Kalaburagi and Belagavi divisions. This is because many of them were sent on election duty,” said Karnataka Primary School Teachers’ Association president Basavaraj Gurikar.

Some of the deceased were in irrigation, rural development, panchayat, public works, agriculture, revenue and animal husbandry departments. At least 21 forest department personnel died of Covid-19.

Employee association members said kin of many employees were yet to get full benefits from the government.

› Belagavi village sees 86 Covid-19 deaths in May, P 4

Seniority Cannot Be Claimed From A Date When The Incumbent Was Not Borne In Service: SC [Read Judgment]

Seniority Cannot Be Claimed From A Date When The Incumbent Was Not Borne In Service: SC [Read Judgment]: 'The Law is fairly well settled in a series of cases, that a person is disentitled to claim seniority from a date he was not borne in service.'

Fixation Of Seniority Between Direct Recruitment Employees And Promoted Employees

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Temporary AYUSH docs at GRH shown the doors

Temporary AYUSH docs at GRH shown the doors

The AYUSH doctors assisted the PG doctors at the hospitals by way of oxygen management for patients - ensuring the right amount of oxygen supply for every patient, among other things, they said.

Published: 02nd June 2021 10:20 AM 

By Express News Service

MADURAI: Days after allopathy doctors were recruited temporarily in the district, AYUSH doctors who were recruited last year temporarily for Covid duty, at the Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) and the Government Hospital for Thoracic Medicine (GHTM) at Thoppur were shown the doors on Tuesday.

Speaking to TNIE, a homoeopathy doctor said, "As many as 33 AYUSH doctors were temporarily recruited for posting on Covid duty at the GRH and GHTM, through a private manpower agency in June-July last year when the pandemic peaked during the first wave. While four of them opted for transfer, 29 doctors continued to work at the two hospitals under the control of the Directorate of Medical Education."

A Siddha doctor added, "AYUSH doctors who completed BHMS/BSMS were roped in by the government at a time when MBBS doctors were hesitant to take up Covid duty. We were recruited at a salary of Rs 60,000 per month, of which Rs 4,600 goes to the manpower agency. Although our work orders stated that we were being recruited for three months, our contract period was extended through oral instructions from the State Health Department."

The AYUSH doctors assisted the postgraduate doctors at the hospitals by way of oxygen management for patients - ensuring the right amount of oxygen supply for every patient, among other things, they said. "Now, the 80 medical officers (MBBS doctors), who were recruited last week, do the same work assigned to us, indicating that we have been replaced by them," the AYUSH doctors opined. The doctors also claimed that they were not paid their salaries for the past four months.

Another homoeopathy doctor, on condition of anonymity, stated that the temporary AYUSH doctors worked only in Covid wards, posted one week in the wards, the next week in-home quarantine, returned to the Covid wards in the third week and the cycle continued. Meanwhile, the department doctors are posted in non-Covid wards as part of routine duty, giving them a respite.

The Siddha doctor said, "It came as a rude shock at a time when we were hoping to get another extension of service period, as the previous extension ended by May 31. There was no prior intimation."

A group of AYUSH doctors submitted a petition to Collector Dr S Aneesh Sekhar on Tuesday evening, seeking to appoint them alternatively at any other Covid Care Centres or Interim Covid Care Centres.

Dean Dr Rathinavel said that the termination of temporary AYUSH doctors posted at government medical colleges came as an oral instruction from the office of the Directorate of Medical Education late on Monday night. "Had it been a GRH-specific instruction, arrangements would have been made to retain them. But, their termination is a statewide decision," he mentioned.

Southern Railway resumes 33 pairs of train services in Tamil Nadu and Kerala after two weeks

Southern Railway resumes 33 pairs of train services in Tamil Nadu and Kerala after two weeks

Although the railways extended the cancellation of select trains owing to poor patronage, most of the services were resumed amid speculation that lockdown curbs may be relaxed after June 7

Published: 02nd June 2021 07:18 PM 

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: After being suspended for two weeks on account of the lockdown in the state and Kerala, Southern Railway has resumed 33 pairs of reserved special train services.

The express special trains which include daily, weekly and Mainline Electrical Multiple Unit (MEMU) services were resumed between May 31 and June 1, according to railway sources.

Although the railways extended the cancellation of select trains owing to poor patronage, most of the services were resumed amid speculation that lockdown curbs may be relaxed after June 7.

According to official documents, the daily special trains were resumed on the following routes in Tamil Nadu:

Arakkonam – Jolarpettai, Chennai – Jolarpettai, Coimbatore – Mayiladuturai, Chennai Egmore – Rameswaram, Chennai – Karaikudi, Chennai – Madurai, Chennai – Tiruchy, Chennai – Erode, Chennai – Coimbatore, Chennai – Bengaluru, Chennai – Tirupati, Chennai Egmore – Puducherry, Coimbatore – Nagercoil, and Chennai Egmore – Thanjavur.

Weekly/tri weekly trains have been resumed on the following routes:

Chennai – Madurai, Chennai – Nagercoil, Chennai – Nizamuddin, Tambaram – Nagercoil, Rameswaram – Coimbatore, Mangaluru – Puducherry, Kanniyakumari – Puducherry, Gandhidham – Nagercoil.

MEMU express specials have been resumed on the following routes:

Villupuram – Madurai, Arakkonam – Salem, Kannur – Coimbatore, Tiruchy – Palakkad Town and Tiruchy – Rameswaram.