Omicron concerns: Threefold rise in mask sales

Omicron concerns: Threefold rise in mask sales

10L Disposable Masks Being Sold Every Day

Niyati.Parikh@timesgroup.com

Ahmedabad: 10.12,2021

As the new cases of Covid-19 begin showing a steady rise along with the added concern of the new Omicron variant, people have surely pulled their guards up. Clearly, the sale of masks as well as immunity boosters has increased threefolds in the past one week, according to estimates by Federation of Gujarat State Chemists and Druggists’ Association (FGSCDA).

In the past week, an estimated 10 lakh disposable masks and 3 lakh N95 masks were sold across Gujarat on a daily basis, suggest FGSCDA estimates. Gujarat is home to at least 24,000 chemists and pharmacies.

Alpesh Patel, chairman, FGSCDA, said, “With a steady rise in cases, people have their guards up. Especially with fewer restrictions on gatherings and public movements in place, people are exercising caution and are becoming increasingly careful and are choosing to wear masks at offices and other public places. As a consequence, the sales have gone up.” Gujarat reported some 70 fresh cases of Covid-19 on Friday till 5pm, according to data provided by the state government.

Even the demand for sanitisers has gone up by at least 50%, according to estimates by chemists. “In November, the sales of both masks as well as sanitisers had drastically dropped with barely any demand. However, over the past week to 10 days, the demand has once again begun picking up. People come asking for N95 masks as well as sanitisers,” said Ankur Aggarwal, co-founder, Medkart.

The sale of immunity boosters is also seeing a marginal increase. “So far, there is no exceptional demand for Covid-related medicines. However, some customers who had stopped purchasing immunity boosters such as vitamin C have once again begun placing orders for these medicines, ” said an Ahmedabad-based chemis.

Pay for juvenile diabetes treatment: Court

Pay for juvenile diabetes treatment: Court

INSURERS COULD NOT ESTABLISH THAT CHILD’S TYPE-1 DIABETES IS GENETIC DISORDER

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: 10.12.2021

A consumer court has ordered an insurance companies to reimburse the expenditure on treatment of juvenile diabetes with observation that the insurers could not establish that the child’s type-1 diabetes falls under the category of genetic disorder.

According to case details, Viramgam-resident Anilkumar Chavda’s 10-year-old son suffers from type-1 diabetes and was hospitalized in 2017.

Chavda had obtained a Happy Family Floater Policy with Silver Plan from the Oriental Insurance Co Ltd and M D India Health Care Services Pvt Ltd.

He sought reimbursement for treatment, Rs 48,882, which the insurers declined on the ground that the patient was treated for a disease which is a genetic disorder and according to the Mediclaim policy clause 4.15, such claim is not payable.

Chavda sued the insurers through Mukesh Parikh of Grahak Suraksha and Action Committee with the Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission, Ahmedabad (City), where the insurance companies submitted that the claim papers were scrutinised and investigated by TPA and it found that the treatment for the child was genetic in origin and therefore not payable.

After hearing the case, the commission said that the child was hospitalised for type-1 diabetes treatment, but there was nothing in medical papers to indicate that the ailment falls under the category of genetic disorder, nor was there a remotest whisper in any of the papers produced by the insurers.

The commission cited a 2018 circular issued by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and how the circular was put in abeyance after the orders of the Supreme Court and Delhi high court with regard to rejection of Mediclaim related to treatment of genetic disorder. Since the insurers in this case could not adduce any rebuttal evidence to establish that type-1 diabetes is a genetic disorder, “we hold that the opponents (insurers) have wrongly rejected the claim and which is a pointer to the deficiency in service and unfair trade practice”.

The commission ordered the insurers to pay Rs 43,938 with 7% interest since the date of filing of complaint. It deducted 10% of the claim according to the policy only. Besides, the insurers have been told to pay Rs 5,000 to Chavda as compensation towards mental harassment and legal expenditure.

REGION DIGEST

REGION DIGEST

10.12.2021

YouTuber held for tweet against govt

YouTuber Maridhas, who posted a controversial tweet about the DMK government, was arrested by the cyber crime wing attached to the Madurai city police on Thursday. A team of police officials went to arrest Maridhas at his house situated in Surya Nagar. However, BJP cadres including former MLA and Madurai district president of BJP Dr P Saravanan also went there and picked up an argument with the police officials against his arrest. They questioned the police officials for the reasons for the arrest and raised slogans against the police and the government. But, police managed to arrest Maridhas and took him to the nearby K Pudur police station.

Decomposed body found in house: The decomposed body of a 50-year-old man was found at his house in Keezhadevadhanam in Trichy on Wednesday. The deceased was identified as A Selvakumar, 50 at Keezha Devadhanam. Neighbours noticed his body after a stench emanated from the house that had been locked from December 6. Locals informed his wife S Sujatha, 40, who was residing in Keeranur in Pudukkottai district. The cause of death was yet to the ascertained by the Fort police station.

Elephant tramples man to death: A wild elephant trampled a 70-year-old man to death at Anaikatti on Thursday morning. According to police, the man, identified as K Karai of Arnadukadu village near the Anaikatti forest, had gone to the forest to attend nature’s call. Police recovered the body and sent it for postmortem. The Thadagam police are investigating the incident.

TNSTC driver dies of heart attack: A 45-year-old bus driver parked the bus he was driving with more than 40 passengers safely on the roadside moments before he died of a cardiac arrest on Thursday morning. M Arumugam, attached to the Madurai mofussil bus depot, has been a driver with the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) for 13 years. He was driving on the Madurai-Kodaikanal route and left the Arapalayam bus stand in the city at 6.20am.

Narikurava family thrown out of bus, staff suspended

SWIFT ACTION

Narikurava family thrown out of bus, staff suspended

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Kanyakumari:12.10.2021

Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) has placed under suspension the driver and conductor of a government bus on charges of forcing a narikurava family to get down from it at Nagercoil on Thursday evening. This was after a video of a visually-impaired old man, a woman and a child being ejected out of the bus and their luggage bundles thrown out by the conductor was circulated on social media. The child was seen inconsolably crying in distress.

TNSTC Nagercoil division general manager held an inquiry and initiated action against both the employees. A statement from the manager said the bus (TN 74 N 1802) attached to Thiruvattar branch was running on route number 565 from Nagercoil to Tirunelveli with C Nelson as driver and C S Jayadas conductor. As the bus was leaving Vadasery bus stand, the family was forced to get down from the bus. Information technology minister T Mano Thangaraj tweeted that action has been taken against the driver and conductor after he took up the issue with top TNSTC officials.

This is the second such incident of TNSTC crew forcing people belonging to certain classes of the society to get down from buses this week in the district. Both the incidents were caught on video and shared on social media, resulting in suspension of the crew. In the previous incident, a woman selling fish was forced to get down from the bus. A senior TNSTC official also apologised to the woman in person.

Madras School of Economics’ 1st BA course in 2022-23

Madras School of Economics’ 1st BA course in 2022-23

35% Of Seats Reserved For TN Students

Ragu.Raman@timesgroup.com

Chennai:10.12.2021

The Madras School of Economics (MSE) is opening its doors to Class XII passouts looking to pursue an undergraduate degree in economics. It plans to unveil its first BA in economics programme in 2022-23 with 50 seats. It will also reserve 35% of seats for students from Tamil Nadu.

The school, which ranks second after Delhi School of Economics, boasts of nearly 100% placement for its postgraduate degree programmes with average salary of ₹12 lakh per annum.

“Our degree programme will have a strong quantitative component. So, students with maths background in higher secondary will be preferred. We are planning to create awareness about this degree programme among city school students,” said K R Shanmugam, director, Madras School of Economics.

Tamil Nadu students can also compete for the remaining 65% of seats.

Students wishing to join this degree programme may have to write an entrance test in June next year. The institute also plans to allow UG students to study on for five years for an integrated degree.

“Students who complete this BA programme will find it easy to pursue a masters or PhD in foreign universities as the institute is following a similar approach. The syllabus, various options for the students and details of entrance test will be finalised at the academic council meeting in February,” Shanmugam added.

MSE will award its own degree for UG, PG and PhD students. The state recognised MSE as an institute of special importance in economics and allied subjects and management with degree granting power through Madras School of Economics Act, 2020. So far, the institute offered these programmes jointly with Central University of Tamil Nadu (CUTN) in Tiruvarur.

Students wishing to join BA (economics) course may have to take an entrance test in June 2022

Centre gives same old reply to query on 2nd city airport

Centre gives same old reply to query on 2nd city airport

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:10.12.2021

The ministry of civil aviation continued to present more or less the same old answer regarding the proposed second airport for Chennai in Parliament without any actual updated on the status of the project.

Though the erstwhile AIADMK government identified new locations for the second airport, the ministry in July 2021 replied that two sites were identified.

The reply presented on December 6, in response to DMK Rajya Sabha MP P Wilson, says that four sites are identified.

No reply talks about the Union government including the Sriperumbudur site in the National Infrastructure Pipeline.

“The state government of Tamil Nadu has identified four potential sites for development of a second airport in Chennai and has requested AAI to inspect these sites and prepare the feasibility study report,” the reply presented on December 6 said.

However, AAI has conducted preliminary study for these sites and also completed feasibility report for the site at Sriperumbudur.

The response presented in Parliament does not mention if the current DMK government has given approval for any of these locations for a new airport.

In an answer presented in Parliament in July 2021, the ministry of civil aviation said, “State government in November 2019 identified two locations of Mamandur and Parandur. However, they are yet to finalize the site for setting up of the second airport near Chennai.”

Wilson said repeating the same set of answers shows that the ministry is not interested in developing a new airport in Chennai.

The AIADMK government did not show interest in building an airport in Sriperumbudur and new locations were identified after a delay of nine years. But it was at the end of the term.

In July, the civil aviation ministry said two sites were identified. On December 6, it responded to DMK Rajya Sabha member P Wilson saying four sites were identified

Four city zones have over 100 active cases

TWO ZONES HAVE FEWER THAN 10

Four city zones have over 100 active cases

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:10.12.2021

Four of Greater Chennai Corporation’s 15 zones had more than 100 active Covid-19 cases as of Thursday. At present, the city has 1,265 active cases with 125 new cases recorded on Thursday.

Kodambakkam tops the list with 172 active cases, followed by Teynampet with 168, Adyar with 146 and Anna Nagar with 119.

Official data shows Teynampet has two streets with more than six active cases. Abhiramapuram First Street in Mylapore has eight cases and Luz Church Road in Mylapore has 10.

“In Abhiramipuram, of the five adults who tested positive, four have been vaccinated, except for a 60-yearold woman. We are carrying out an intense vaccination drive in the whole locality,” said an official. All residents of Luz Church Road have been vaccinated. Instructions have been given to ensure 100% vaccination in these zones, officials said.

Meanwhile, two zones in Chennai have fewer than 10 active cases. Thiruvottriyur zone has nine cases and Manali has five.

Officials urged residents to take part in the mega-vaccination camp taking place on December 11 across 200 wards. “The camp is to be held from 9am to 4pm, and we have a target to vaccinate 4 lakh people during the day,” an official said.