Driven from Covid wards, attendants now crowd hosp premises

Driven from Covid wards, attendants now crowd hosp premises

A Prathap & Komal Gautham TNN

Chennai:04.06.2021

Despite the directorate of public health’s order banning relatives of Covid patients from wards, these attendants remain a problem at government hospitals in the city.

On Thursday, there were at least 50 attendants of covid positive patients crowding the exit gate at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) in Chennai. They insisted that they should be allowed to enter the wards to tend to their relatives.

Hospital dean E Theranirajan told TOI that ever since the order was issued, the hospital has ensured that attendants aren’t allowed in wards. “We also sought help from the city police to manage them. We appointed 60 volunteers. But attendants insist on helping patients themselves,” he said.

Around noon on Thursday, a TOI photographer witnessed a huge crowd at the out gate and several autos waiting alongside. These auto drivers and attendants are nothing but super spreaders, said health experts, adding that since they don’t wear PPE or N95 masks, they expose themselves to high viral load.

In May, TOI reported on hospitals in Chennai, Chengalpet, Ramanathapuram and Coimbatore mandating attendants for patients due to staff shortage. Vijayageetha, whose father was admitted to a Coimbatore hospital, said she had to call the nurse every time his saturation fell. “They don’t watch the patients closely as there are many critical patients. Almost everyone here needs ICU but it is not available and if we don’t stay with the patient, we are sure they will not be cared for properly. The situation is terrible,” she said. An attendant at RGGGH told TOI that though they were sent away, attendants of patients on ventilators were asked to stay close to the ward. “The nurses told us to stay as they are unable to even take toilet breaks,” an attendant said.

Director of public health T S Selvavinayagam told TOI that the state has ensured that no relative goes into the ward. “We cannot allow that as they will be exposed to high viral load and they will expose others as well when they travel. If they crowd outside the hospital, we need to ask the police to intervene,” he said.

POTENTIAL SUPER SPREADERS: Relatives of patients crowded the exit gate of Rajiv Gandhi hospital on Thursday

WA trying to get ‘trick consent’: Govt

WA trying to get ‘trick consent’: Govt

Abhinav.Garg@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:04.06.2021

In a fresh salvo against Facebook-owned messaging platform WhatsApp, the Centre has accused it of indulging in “anti-user practices” by trying to obtain “trick consent” for its contested privacy policy.

“Millions of existing users of WhatsApp, who have not accepted its new policy, are bombarded with notifications on an everyday basis,” the Centre told the Delhi high court in an affidavit, blaming the social messaging platform of trying to “force” its users to provide consent to the new privacy policy before the Personal Data Protection Bill becomes a law.

For this, the platform has “unleashed its digital prowess on unsuspecting existing users and would like to force them to accept the updated 2021 privacy policy by flashing such notifications at regular intervals”, the affidavit by the Centre said, adding that its “game plan is very clear”.

Disappearing mode in WhatsApp soon

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has told WABetaInfo, a website, that a disappearing mode is coming to WhatsApp that automatically enables ephemeral messages in new chat threads. He has mentioned that another feature ‘View Once’ will be rolled out soon.

‘How many have accepted the updated 2021 privacy policy’

The company wants to “transfer the entire existing user base committed to the updated 2021 privacy policy before the Personal Data Protection (PDP) Bill becomes the law”, the Centre said.

Backing a clutch of petitions challenging the platform’s revised privacy policy, the government has urged the HC to demand from it record of the number of times such notifications have been sent out till date on daily basis to users and what was the conversion rate — that is how many have accepted the updated 2021 privacy policy vis-a-vis the number of notifications.

It said WhatsApp is “currently having access to personal, sensitive and business data of hundreds of millions of Indian users and has also acquired role of an ‘essential digital service’ during Covid-19 pandemic” which is why its privacy policy and terms of service “should be examined on the touchstone of privacy principles as laid down in K S Puttaswamy judgment of the Supreme Court.”

The affidavit also informs HC that the Competition Commission of India (CCI), in a recent “prima facie opinion,” said that WhatsApp contravened legal provisions “through its exploitative and exclusionary conduct, in the garb of policy update.” Centre has argued that the privacy policy of WhatsApp violates rules as it fails to specify types of sensitive personal data being collected and also fails to notify users about details of the sensitive personal information which is collected. It said even when a user deletes her account, “a substantial corpus of data may be retained.”

Decide on home vaccination for elderly: HC

Decide on home vaccination for elderly: HC

04/06/2021

A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Thursday directed the State government to take a decision in 10 days on home vaccination for bedridden patients and senior citizens who cannot move out of their residences.

Norms for employing retired officials defined

Norms for employing retired officials defined

Fresh rules require vigilance clearance

04/06/2021

Devesh K. Pandey NEW DELHI

The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has laid down a defined procedure to be followed by government organisations for getting vigilance clearance before employing a retired official on a contractual or consultancy basis.

In a letter to the Secretaries of all the Union Ministries and departments, chief executives and chief vigilance officers of public sector undertakings, the CVC said the absence of a uniform procedure sometimes led to a situation where officials with tainted past or cases pending against them were engaged.

According to the procedure, before offering employment to retired All India Services and Group A officers of the Central government or their equivalent in other organisations owned or controlled by the Centre, vigilance clearance from the employer organisation, from which the officer has retired, should be obtained.

In case a retired officer served in more than one organisation, clearance has to be obtained from all of them where the person was posted in the 10 years prior to retirement.

Simultaneously, a communication seeking clearance should also be sent to the CVC.

If no reply is received from the erstwhile employer (s) within 15 days of sending the communication by speed post, a reminder can be sent.

If there is no response within 21 days, vigilance clearance should be deemed to have been given. Later, if the employee is found involved in any vigilance-related matter or not cleared from the vigilance point of view, the erstwhile employer organisation would be responsible for all consequential actions.

Cooling-off period

In the case of retired officials taking up full-time or contractual assignments in the private sector, the Commission said often, the “cooling off” period was not observed and the act constituted serious misconduct. It directed all government organisations to formulate rules to ensure the cooling-off period was observed

CBSE cannot deny students name change on certificates’

CBSE cannot deny students name change on certificates’

Right to change names is part of freedom of speech: SC

04/06/2021

Krishnadas Rajagopal NEW DELHI

The Supreme Court on Thursday found a Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) rule that prohibited students from changing or correcting their names on Board certificates, based on a presumption that it would affect “administrative efficiency”, far-removed from social realities and even “absurd”.

The court said the CBSE’s examination bylaws of 2007 made it look as if the Board was more concerned about administrative paperwork than the future prospects of its students, who use their certificates as a public document to go for higher studies and gain employment.

“Students stand to lose more due to inaccuracies in their certificates than the Board, whose sole worry is increasing administrative burden… Administrative efficiency cannot be the sole concern of CBSE. Every institution desires efficiency in their functioning. But it does not mean that efficiency is achieved by curbing their basic functions… One of the primary functions of CBSE is to grant certificates to its students,” a three-judge Bench led by Justice A.M. Khanwilkar observed in a 132-page judgment.

Right to be forgotten

On the other hand, the court illustrated how a juvenile accused of being in conflict with the law or a sexual abuse victim whose identity is compromised due to lapses by the media or the investigative body may consider changing the name to seek rehabilitation in the society in exercise of their right to be forgotten. “If the Board, in such a case, refuses to change the name, the student would be compelled to live with the scars of the past,” Justice Khanwilkar highlighted.

The court ordered the CBSE to take “immediate steps” to amend the by-laws and incorporate a mechanism outlined in the judgment “for recording correction or change, as the case may be, in the certificates already issued or to be issued by it”. The court said one’s name is an intrinsic element of identity. The right to change our name is part of the right to freedom of speech and expression

Class 12 evaluation criteria might be similar to that of Class 10

Class 12 evaluation criteria might be similar to that of Class 10

04/06/2021

S. Poorvaja

CHENNAI

Following the cancellation of the Class 12 exams for CBSE students, schools now expect that the evaluation criteria, which will be announced in two weeks, might be similar to the framework announced for the class 10 results earlier this year.

The evaluation criteria for the Class 10 results took into account marks in the tests and exams conducted throughout the academic year as well as 20 marks weightage for internal assessments. The results also had to be in consonance with the school’s performance in the Class 10 board exams during the last few years. Private CBSE schools began online classes at the start of 2020-21 and through the year, conducted assessments online for Class 12 students.

“Whatever exams we used to conduct during a regular school term, we conducted online. We were able to physically administer revision exams when students came back to the campus in January,” said Srinivasa Raghavan, principal, Bala Vidya Mandir.

While schools had been given the flexibility to conduct practical exams any time till the end of the board exam schedule, CBSE schools in Tamil Nadu scheduled and completed the practical exams in March and April.

Ashok Shankar, general secretary, CBSE Schools Management Association, said most schools also conducted multiple rounds of revision exams and pre-board exams.

“The onus will now lie on the schools to comply with the criteria that the CBSE comes up with. With regard to ensuring transparency, the CBSE can recommend that its officials will carry out audits of this process at random, in schools across the State,” he said.

Superspeciality hospital coming in Guindy

Superspeciality hospital coming in Guindy

Govt. announces free city bus travel for transpersons and the differently abled

04/06/2021

The hospital will come up on the King Institute campus

.B. JOTHI RAMALINGAM

The Hindu

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI

The Tamil Nadu government on Thursday made six major announcements, including the construction of a 500-bed multi-superspeciality hospital at Guindy and free city bus travel for transpersons and the differently abled.

The announcements coincided with former Chief Minister and DMK leader M. Karunanidhi’s birth anniversary.

An official release said a state-of-the-art library would be built in Madurai at a cost of ₹70 crore in memory of Karunanidhi. ‘Ilakkiya Mamani Virudhu’ will be instituted for Tamil literary figures on a par with Kalaimamani awards. Free houses will be given to the recipients of Jnanpith, Sahitya Akademi and other national and State awards.

Warehouses will be established at a cost of ₹30 crore in Tiruvarur.

The ₹250 crore hospital will come up on the campus of the King Institute. The state-of-the-art library, to be built over 2 lakh sq ft, is meant to benefit the people of southern districts. It will be similar to the Anna Centenary Library in Chennai, which has been serving the people of northern districts.

Transpersons and the differently abled can travel free on town buses, in a measure similar to the benefit announced for women last month. “This order will come into force after the lockdown is lifted,” the release said. The ‘Ilakkiya Mamani Virudhu’, comprising a cash prize of ₹5 lakh and a citation, will be presented to three writers every year.

Under the dream house scheme, a house will be given free to scholars who are natives of Tamil Nadu and have won important awards. The house will be in their native district or in any district of their choice.

The government will construct a 16,000-tonne storage unit at a cost of ₹24.3 crore in Tiruvarur, besides 54 drying units and solar dryers costing ₹6.2 crore.