Surge in cases shows likely 3rd wave in Kerala: Experts

Surge in cases shows likely 3rd wave in Kerala: Experts

More Than 50% Of The State’s Population Still Susceptible

Preetu.Nair@timesgroup.com

Kochi:3.8.2021

The number of new Coronavirus cases in Kerala is surging once again, with epidemiologists and public health experts stating that this may be the beginning of the third Covid wave in the state.

Though the state government has not officially called it the third wave, experts said that Kerala, after being in a plateau phase in the second wave, is now seeing a surge with 20,000 to 22,000 cases reported per day in the past six days, with TPR above 12%. From June 4 to the last week of July, the state saw an average of 12,000-14,000 cases a day.

“The surge indicates that it may be the beginning of the third wave and we need to be careful now. We have a large susceptible population and the government needs to come up with a long-term strategy to deal with new Covid waves,” said public health expert and epidemiologist Dr Raman Kutty. Kerala now has 51% of the total Covid cases in the country and its seven-day average daily growth rate is 0.60%, while that of the country is 0.13%.

“It is the general principle of any viral infection that there may be multiple waves when we have a susceptible population. Kerala will also see many Covid waves before the cases actually start subsiding,” said Dr A Sukumaran, former state epidemiologist, who has come out of retirement to work at Covid control room at Wayanad.

Dr Sukumaran said that during the Spanish Flu, the cases started to subside only after four waves. “But in Covid, we may see more waves as there are mutations,” he said.

In India, so far, there have been two very distinct periods of surge, separated by a prolonged lull. But it has been a different story in Kerala. During the first wave, Kerala was in a plateau phase for a long period, and then there was a surge in Covid cases in April, indicating the beginning of the second wave. In the second wave too, the state was in plateau phase for more than seven weeks and now there is a surge.

Unlike the rest of the country, now Kerala’s Covid concerns are manifold too. More than 50% of the population is still susceptible and so far, only about 17% are fully vaccinated. In July, as per CSIR Institute of Genomics & Integrative Biology’s (CSIRIGIB) Covid-19 genome surveillance, the most dominant virus in Kerala is the dangerous Delta variant (B.1.617.2), with 95% samples tested from the state showing presence of the variant. Added to this, any gene mutations in the virus needs to be identified immediately at the state level.

Health minister Veena George has acknowledged that the state has not come out of the second wave yet but will have to get prepared to meet the third wave now.

No Covaxin for 1st dose at govt vaccine centres

No Covaxin for 1st dose at govt vaccine centres

Bengaluru:3.8.2021

The administration of Covaxin for the first dose has been suspended temporarily at all government Covid-19 vaccination centres due to an overall shortage of vaccines, reports Sunitha Rao R.

Given the supply trickle, the state health and family welfare department decided to ensure that those due for the second dose be catered to first. A circular was issued by the state government on July 31 and it has come into effect from August 1. Many states have suspended giving Covaxin for the first dose since the last week of July due to shortage. “Currently, only second dose of Covaxin will be provided at government centres,” said Dr Arundhathi Chandrashekar, mission director, National health mission, Karnataka.

State has 22k doses of Covaxin at B’luru buffer storage facility

Administration of Covaxin as the first dose will resume as and when the supply situation stabilises, say authorities. Data from health and family welfare department shows about 6.1 lakh people took the first dose of Covaxin over four weeks ago and have not yet come forward to take the second dose so far. “We need to administer the second dose to all who are due,” said Chandrashekar.

The state currently has about 22,000 doses of Covaxin at its buffer storage facility in Bengaluru and another 1.5 lakh doses have been already supplied to all districts, including BBMP. The health department has directed authorities that the emphasis should be on giving existing Covaxin recipients the second shot and fully vaccinating them. It also said awareness should be created among recipients to turn up for the second shot as and when it becomes due, without delay.

Covaxin continues to be available for the first dose in private hospitals. The cost of one dose of Covaxin in private vaccination centres is Rs 1,410.

Covishield 1st dose available

Covishield continues to be available for the first dose at all government vaccination centres. The districts, however, have been directed to reserve a part their allocation exclusively for the second dose, reads the circular, a copy of which is with TOI.

On May 7, the health department had suspended the administration of first dose of both Covishield and Covaxin at government centres due to shortage of vaccines and said the entire supply would to be used for the second dose. By May-end, as supplies were streamlined, the department started administering both first and second doses.

“Between Covishield and Covaxin, many prefer Covaxin because both doses will get over in four weeks,” said a district health officer. “We do tell them that both vaccines are effective. But the spacing of 84 days between the two doses for Covishield is pushing many to take Covaxin.”

24 institutes declared fake by UGC: Govt

24 institutes declared fake by UGC: Govt

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi:3.8.2021

Twenty-four “selfstyled” institutes have been declared as fake by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and two more have been found in violation of the norms. This was informed by Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan in response to a written question in Lok Sabha.

“Based on the complaints received from the students, parents, general public and also through electronic print media, UGC has declared 24 self-styled institutes as fake universities. Besides, two more institutes namely Bhartiya Shiksha Parishad, Lucknow, and Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM), Qutub Enclave, New Delhi are also found functioning in violation of the UGC Act, 1956. The matters of Bhartiya Shiksha Parishad, Lucknow and IIPM, New Delhi are sub-judice in the court,” he added.

Uttar Pradesh has the highest number (eight) of fake universities. Delhi has seven fake universities. Odisha and West Bengal have two such universities each. Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Puducherry and Maharashtra have one fake university each. Elaborating on the steps taken by the UGC against the fake or nonrecognised universities, Pradhan said, “The UGC issues public notices about the list of fake universities/institutes in national Hindi and English newspapers.”

55% of OBC posts in central univs vacant

55% of OBC posts in central univs vacant

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi:3.8.2021

Over 55% of the sanctioned OBC posts in the 45 central universities and other technical and research organisations are lying vacant. This includes 89.8% of the OBC posts lying vacant in Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. The Union ministry of education (MoE) on Monday told the Lok Sabha that over 41% of the SC posts and 39% of the ST posts are also lying vacant in these institutions.

Replying to a written question on the total number of sanctioned and vacant posts in the reserved categories – SC, ST and OBC – in all central universities and research institutions, Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan in a written response said being autonomous institutions, “the onus of filling up the vacant posts lies on Central Universities.” On the vacancies minister said: “Now, after implementation of ‘The Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Teachers’ Cadre) Act, 2019’, the OBC reservation has been implemented at all levels.

 Further, in June 2019 UGC has prepared the Guidelines for Recruitment of Faculty in Universities, Colleges and Institutions Deemed to be Universities outlining the selection procedure and the time frame for recruitment which has been circulated to all Universities to adhere to the guidelines. The UGC on July 31, 2019, August 7, 2019, September 5, 2019 and October 22, 2019 has again requested the universities to ensure that vacant positions in university as well as colleges affiliated to University are filled at the earliest.” As per the data provided by the ministry, as on April 1, 2021 the OBC vacancies are highest in central universities, Indira Gandhi National Open University, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISERs) and Indian Institute of Science (IISc) which is well above 50%.

Minorities panel headless for over a year

New Delhi:

The National Commission for Minorities has been without a chairman for over a year now and posts of five members are also lying vacant. The Delhi High Court had directed the Centre that all vacant positions must be filled up before July 31, but with the nominations yet to be made, the ministry of minority affairs (MoMA) has given no timeframe and said the “process is on”. Currently, the NCM has only one member, Atif Rasheed, who is the vice chairman.

The post of chairman fell vacant after former NCM chairmain Ghayorul Hasan Rizvi’s tenure ended in May, 2020. When TOI reached out to the ministry, sources attributed part of the delay to the pandemic which has been keeping the govenrment engaged since last year. The NCM chief is appointed from names recommended by the minority affairs ministry and requires the approval of the PMO. TNN

‘PG Medical Regulations 2021 may reduce Guj seats by 30%’

‘PG Medical Regulations 2021 may reduce Guj seats by 30%’

Experts Say Similar Situation Likely In Other States

Bharat.Yagnik@timesgroup.com

Ahmedabad:3.8.2021

The draft Postgraduate Medical Regulations, 2021 may lead to a sharp decline of more than 30% in PG medical seats in Gujarat, warned experts in the medical education field. A similar situation is likely to be created in other states of the country, they said.

“There are a total of 1,874 PG medical seats in the state. If the new rules that are proposed in the draft are implemented Gujarat will see a decline of about 600-700 seats,” said two experts in the know of the matter. The maximum intake of postgraduate students in specialities where units are prescribed shall not exceed three PG seats per unit per academic year, according to clause 16.2 in the draft regulations. Presently, there are six seats per unit per academic year.

“A unit consists of one professor, one assistant professor and an associate professor. While three seats are earmarked for the professor, two are for assistant professor and one seat is marked for one associate professor. There is a cap of six seats per unit. The proposed draft aims to change this by limiting the seats to three per unit,” said one of the two experts.

He said that at a time when the government is planning to increase the number of seats for PG medical students, the new set of rules could put the government’s ambitious plans off track.

“The institute can have any number of units to meet the needs of the workload. But only the minimum number of units required as per the Minimum Standard Requirements for annual MBBS admissions Regulations, 2020 of the NMC shall be taken into account to calculate the number of postgraduate seats to be sanctioned,” according to clause 16.6 of the draft. The draft also proposes to change the criteria for professors in three-year PG courses. This could further impact the student teacher ratio, said experts.

‘Draft could impact student-teacher ratio’

The draft also proposes to change the criteria for professors in three-year PG courses. This could further impact the student-teacher ratio, said experts. So far, assistant professors were required to have four year of work experience to qualify for the post of professors.

“The draft aims to change this to five years and also have two eligible research publications in the past three years as professor,” said an expert.

The draft has been opposed by many states who are of the view that if the proposal sees light of the day in its current form, the power of the state would be undermined.

The experts had red flagged a provision of the draft PG regulations aimed to centralise and designate the Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India as the designated authority for counselling for state quota seats.

The maximum intake of postgraduate students in specialities where units are prescribed shall not exceed three PG seats per unit per academic year, according to clause 16.2 in the draft regulations. Presently, there are six seats per unit per academic year

Chitlapakkam locals add green to city’s landscape

Chitlapakkam locals add green to city’s landscape

Srikkanth.D@timesgroup.com

Chennai:3.8.2021

At a time whenGreater Chennai Corporation is inviting resident welfare associations to collaborate with it in increasing the city’s green cover, residents of Chitlapakkam, just outside the corporation limits, have taken it upon themselves to help increase lung space in their town panchayat limits.

Last weekend, residents organised a seedball-throwing party at Pachamalai hills near Tambaram to add more green to the city’s landscape.

“We had organized a similar event in September 2019 just before the monsoon. We sourced seed balls from an NGO and threw more than 3,000 seed balls at that time. Due to the onset of pandemic in early 2020, we were not able to continue the seedball-throwing event last year, but have resumed it this year,” said Sunil Jayaraman of Chitlapakkam Rising, a community movement.

The hill is a catchment area and source for the Chitlapakkam lake's rainwater. Considering the citizen movement in Chitlapakkam began with saving the waterbody, it has come as a natural extension to ensure that the catchment area is also well maintained.

“It is an important step for the survival of the lake which we have revived after a public movement,” said Sunil Jayaraman.

Last weekend, about 300 seedballs of native tree varieties such as Pungai and Poovarasu were thrown down the hill by volunteers.

For the seed-ball throwing event, more than 20 people, including kids, hiked the hills on Saturday and Sunday to participate in the event. Apart from increasing the urban lung space, the community movement also acts as a good physical exercise for kids and adults alike.

“While hiking down the hill, residents also collected plastic waste strewn along by visitors. The hill has a good view point and attracts a lot of visitors. But some of them leave behind plastic water bottles and litter which can be avoided,” said a resident.

Apart from this, as part of the ‘Green Chitlapakkam’ initiative, residents have, over the years, planted more than 1,000 saplings in town panchayats, including three urban forests, using the Miyawaki method.

“Now, another set of 100 saplings is ready and will be planted in the next three months,” Sunil said.

Restrictions imminent on ECR attractions as crowds increase

Restrictions imminent on ECR attractions as crowds increase

Yogesh.Kabirdoss@timesgroup.com

Chennai:3.8.2021 

As tourists throng historical attractions across East Coast Road (ECR) on weekends, indications of a lockdown are imminent to check Covid-19 cases.

Monuments maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) at Mamallapuram and theme parks on the entertainment corridor are clocking record footfalls to the extent that the Chengalpet district authorities are now exploring options of banning entry for tourists or cutting down the visiting hours at these monuments.

Nearly 5,000 people visited ticketed monuments at Mamallapuram on Sunday — one of the highest turnout since the centrally protected monuments were reopened this year. Two weeks ago, about 4,200 tourists visited the Pallava era monuments. A theme park without water sport activities on ECR recorded 700 visitors on Sunday. This footfall used to be around 2,000 during pre-Covid times on a weekend. Though ferry services at the TTDC boathouse at Muttukadu remains out of bound for tourists, people shot selfies on the pathway to the facility.

Mamallapuram-based tourist guide R Stalin said a majority of tourists were from Chennai and its neighbouring districts, and Puducherry. “Tourists from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka have dropped significantly... But the crowd that thronged Mamallapuram on Sunday did cause extensive traffic jam in the town,” he said. It appears that shutting down market places to check Covid-19 cases could have forced people to move to the tourist spots.

An official from the Chengalpet district administration said that special teams have been formed to identify any violation of Covid-19 protocols. “We are also discussing with senior officers on stopping or reducing the timings for visitors. A final decision will be taken before this weekend,” he said.