PIL in Madras high court to provide equal reservation to OBC students

DECCAN CHRONICLE.

PublishedJul 3, 2019, 3:10 am IST

The reservation in general and more specifically in educational institutions is a right that flows from the constitution.

Madras high court

Chennai: A Public Interest Litigation has been filed in the Madras high court to restrain the authorities from proceeding with the counseling, admitting the students to the course of MBBS/BDS course without providing equal reservation to OBC students in all institutions to be admitted under the All India Quota for medical admission under UG courses.

The PIL filed by Dr.G.R.Ravindranath, which also sought to quash Clause 5 (a) of the Information Bulletin issued by National Testing Agency for admission to MBBS/BDS courses for the academic session 2019-2020 and consequently direct the authorities to provide equal reservation to OBC students in all institutions to be admitted under the All India quota for medical admission under UG courses without any discrimination, is likely to come up for hearing tomorrow.

According to E.Vijay Anand, counsel for the petitioner, the present lis is questioning the denial of “Other Backward Class Reservation” to institutions other than central educational institutions in respect of All India Quota in Medical admission for both MBBS/BDS courses and MD/MS/PG Diploma courses.

The reservation in general and more specifically in educational institutions is a right that flows from the constitution.

The said right cannot be taken away or waived or negated in any manner as it is a fundamental right guaranteed under our constitution of India. Any action in contra to the above will have to be curbed as an action against constitution.

As such it is done in our present case wherein the reservation guaranteed under constitution has been restricted to central institutions alone, which is unreasonable and amounts to discrimination of Constitutional right. Therefore, the petitioner has filed the present petition. The petitioner has filed a similar petition in respect of PG courses admission, he added.

27 employees of private university get Madras high court reprieve

DECCAN CHRONICLE.

Published    Jul 3, 2019, 3:17 am IST

According to petitioners, pursuant to a notification issued by the University, they applied for the post of Skilled NMR.

Manonmaniam Sundaranar University

Chennai: Coming to the rescue of 27 employees of Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, who had put in 9 to 10 years of service as Skilled NMR on daily wages initially and thereafter on consolidated appointment, but were issued with disengagement memo, the Madras high court has directed the University to consider their representations, to be made afresh, in accordance with law and also in the light of regularization made in respect of similarly situated persons, within 4 weeks.

Justice R.Mahadevan gave the directive while disposing of the petitions from V.Srinivasan and 26 others.

According to petitioners, pursuant to a notification issued by the University, they applied for the post of Skilled NMR. The University, after completion of selection process, such as certificate verification, written examination and interview, appointed them as Skilled NMRs and after sometime, they got consolidated appointment. In the minutes of the meeting held on February 7, 2015, the Syndicate sub-committee held that the consolidated skilled NMRs, on completion of five years of service, would be made permanent/regularized and in accordance with the recommendation, they made a request to absorb them as Junior Assistant. But the University rejected their claim. While so, to their shock and surprise, the University issued a notification calling for application for various posts. Consequently, disengagement memos were issued against them, they added.

The judge said though it has been submitted that the appointment of the petitioners were not in accordance with the constitutional scheme of employment and the constitutional scheme of employment requires public notification, inviting applications from all eligible candidates, the fact remains that the petitioner were appointed as skilled NMRs by public notification, after undergoing certificate verification, written examination and interview. Thereafter, they were appointed on consolidated basis in the year 2009 and completed 9 to 10 years of service in the University. Even though it was stated on the side of the university that the University has the authority to engage temporary employees in emergent situations, the question now arises for consideration was, how long the emergent situation would remain. If the petitioners have been appointed in an emergent situation, this court was unable to understand as to why the University has not taken steps to fill up the regular vacancies, even at this length of ti
me, the judge added.

The judge said the authorities would have very well aware of the statutory rules of the University as well as the other rules in force, which may come to the aid of the incumbents like that of the petitioners, if they put up their services up to a certain period. In the circumstances, the University should have been cautious enough, and had they been cautious, this type of situation would have been avoided. The university has all along been permitting the petitioners to work all these years, coupled with the fact that the similarly situated persons have been given regular appointment. This led to a legitimate expectation in the minds of the petitioners that they would be given regular appointment. “In these circumstances, this court is of the view that a duty is cast upon the respondents (University) to review their orders impugned herein by considering the plight of the petitioners, if they are otherwise found eligible”, the judge added.

Coimbatore: Docs, nurses go on strike protesting attack by mob

DECCAN CHRONICLE.

PublishedJul 4, 2019, 3:53 am IST

Kin of patient assault medical fraternity

Doctors who examined her declared her ‘brought dead’, upon which angry relatives attacked the duty doctor, Laxmana Kumar, nurse Mahalaxmi and attender Kumarasamy. (Representational Image)

COIMBATORE: Doctors and nurses at the Mettupalayam government hospital went on a strike on Wednesday after the family members and relatives of a patient who died in a road mishap, attacked their colleagues on Tuesday evening.

According to police, Rajan (43), a daily wage labourer residing at Kuttaiyoor near Mettuplayam was returning home on his bike along with wife Rukmani (36), after darshan at Bannari Amman temple on Tuesday evening. While nearing a cinema theatre on Karamadai road by around 6 pm, a speeding truck knocked down the bike and the couple suffered serious injuries.

Motorists crossing the stretch rushed them to the Mettupalayam government hospital. After providing first-aid, doctors asked their relatives to take Rukmani to the Coimbatore Medical College hospital (CMCH) for further treatment. While their relatives took Rukmani to a nearby private hospital at Mettupalayam, doctors there directed them to rush the patient back to Mettupalayam government hospital, since her condition was very serious.

As they were heading back to Mettupalayam government hospital, Rukmani allegedly died on the way. Doctors who examined her declared her ‘brought dead’, upon which angry relatives attacked the duty doctor, Laxmana Kumar, nurse Mahalaxmi and attender Kumarasamy.

They also ransacked the ward and blocked traffic in front of the hospital, raising slogans demanding action against the duty doctor for allegedly taking time to treat the patient.

Following a talk with Periyanaickenpalayam DSP Mani, the mob withdrew their protest and road-roko. Traffic on the stretch was affected for more than an hour, while the body of Rukmani was sent to the Coimbatore Medical College hospital (CMCH) on Tuesday night.

Meanwhile, doctors and nurses of the Mettupalayam government hospital went on a strike on Wednesday by around 11 am, condemning the attack and demanding action against the gang that assaulted their colleagues.

Two special teams have been deployed to nab the offenders based on CCTV camera footages received from cams installed in the hospital.

More than 100 policemen were deployed on duty at the hospital premises. The doors of the out-patient (OP) ward remained closed on Wednesday, while hundreds of outpatients gathered at the hospital premises for treatment. Department higher officials gathered at the spot and held discussions.

‘Probe administrative and academic irregularities in MKU’

STAFF REPORTER

MADURAI, JULY 03, 2019 00:00 IST

Appointments made in violation of UGC norms: PIL petition

Calling for a probe into the appointments made to various posts in Madurai Kamaraj University during the tenure of former Vice-Chancellor P. P. Chelladurai, a public interest litigation petition was filed before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday.

The petitioner, M. Lionel Antony Raj of Madurai, said that the appointments made between May 2017 and June 2018 were in violation of UGC norms. No rule of reservation was followed, either, he alleged.

Further, the petitioner said advertisements were not published, as mandated, calling for applications from eligible candidates to posts that included Guest Lecturer and Office Superintendent. Even Guest Lectures were appointed to constituent colleges without the knowledge and approval of the Syndicate, the petitioner said.

The violations were duly pointed out in the audit report for the period 2017-18. Ineligible teachers were also promoted during the said period through the Career Advancement Scheme.

Under such circumstances, a resolution was adopted by the Syndicate to constitute a high-level committee to enquire into the violations.

However, despite repeated petitions submitted by the Save Madurai Kamaraj University Coalition to the present Vice-Chancellor, there was no progress, the petitioner said. He sought a direction for constituting a high-level committee headed by a former High Court Judge to probe the academic and administrative irregularities.

A Division Bench of Justices M. Sathyanarayanan and B. Pugalendhi directed the Department of Higher Education to consider the representation made by the petitioner and take appropriate action within 12 weeks.

High Court laments selective nature of disciplinary action

STAFF REPORTER

MADURAI, JULY 03, 2019 00:00 IST

Seeks a response from Tamil Nadu Electricity Board

Pulling up the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board [now holding company of TANGEDCO and TANTRANSCO for being selective in initiating disciplinary action against its employees, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday sought a response from it.

Justice D. Krishnakumar observed that the court was hearing a number of cases where employees sought revocation of their suspension, pending Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) inquiry. While in some cases departmental proceedings were initiated, in other cases no such action was initiated.

“It is seen that now a days, the public are suffering at the hands of employees of the board, who demand money to carry out repair works, including for installation of electricity connection and replacement of any materials. This court fails to understand why there is no uniformity to initiate action against those employees involved in such serious offences,” the court said.

The court directed the Chief Engineer (Personnel), TNEB, to submit relevant guidelines/ circulars/ memorandums issued by it to initiate disciplinary action against employees involved in serious offences.

The case was adjourned to July 11. The court was hearing a petition filed by Sivasamy, a foreman from Theni, who was placed suspended after a complaint of demanding and accepting bribe. He sought revocation of the suspension order.

Two-day intellectual property rights workshop begins

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

CHENNAI, JULY 03, 2019 00:00 IST

A two-day workshop on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), organised by the Tamil Nadu State Council for Science and Technology (TNSCST) and the Tamil Nadu Dr. M.G.R Medical University (TNMGRMU), was inaugurated in the city on Tuesday.

Mylswamy Annadurai, vice-president, TNSCST, while addressing the gathering at the event supported by the Department of Science and Technology, said that Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) should encourage inventors to bring out better inventions and innovations. “We are holding similar awareness programmes in 13 other places across the State including colleges and universities,” he said.

Highlighting the importance of documenting ideas properly and patenting it, he said that in the coming years the country will be known for its scientific creations in different fields ranging from agriculture to space research.

Free darshan reduces waiting time at Athi Varadar festival

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

CHENNAI, JULY 03, 2019 00:00 IST

Devotees waiting in a queue for Athi Varadar darshan at Devarajaswamy temple in Kancheepuram.B. Velankanni Raj

A new way has been opened to help the disabled, elderly

After removing ticketed darshan for the Athivaradhar festival at Devarajaswamy temple in Kancheepuram, devotees on Tuesday spent less time waiting in queues. It took people less than half-an-hour for entering through the eastern gopuram to exiting via the western gopuram after having darshan, said a temple official.

The Kancheepuram Collector P. Ponniah said they were able to streamline devotees after darshan was made free for all. A new way has been made to help the disabled and the elderly have darshan of the Athivaradhar idol at the Vasantha Mandapam. “On Monday, devotees on wheelchairs were allowed through the exit route for other devotees. It caused a delay and people in the queue had to wait to let the wheelchairs pass. But that has also been changed now,” he said.

Students get to experience a doc’s life on Doctor’s Day

TNN | Jul 2, 2019, 12.11 AM IST

July 1 is observed as the National Doctor’s Day across the country. While we saw different events being held to felicitate doctors for their relentless services, a hospital in Chennai decided to make use of this day to encourage school students to take up medical profession. According to a press release, the Fortis Malar Hospital reached out to 50 students of class XI and XII from the biology stream of Avvai Girls Higher Secondary School, and the doctors from the hospital inspired them to take up medical profession while interacting with the students. To give them a better clarity on the challenges and responsibilities of a doctor on a daily basis, students were made to form small groups and each group was assigned under a doctor to give them a first-hand experience of a doctor’s life. The students wore medical coats and stethoscopes and went around with the doctors. The press release also mentioned that the main objective of this activity was to create awareness among the students regarding the commitment required in this profession. The activity also enlightened the students on the importance of maintaining a good doctor-patient relationship. National Doctor's Day is observed every year across India on July 1 in remembrance of the eminent physician Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy.

What the flash strike tells us about MTC

TNN | Jul 2, 2019, 06.53 AM IST

CHENNAI: Office-goers and students were put to inconvenience on the first day of the new working week when crew of government-run Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses resorted to a flash protest. Protesting workers’ unions claimed that their monthly salaries were not credited as promised on Monday.

“Commuters were forced to travel in already-full local trains,” said T Sadagopan, a regular MTC bus user from Avadi. West Chennai was worst affected as buses did not leave five depots including Avadi right from 5am.

Transport minister M R Vijayabaskar met the staff, gave assurances and services resumed around 12.45pm when salaries got credited.

MTC said the payment was delayed because external financial support did not come in time. Somehow, it managed funds for salaries this month. But from the episode it is evident that the once profit-making body is struggling due to a financial crunch. It is also ironical that despite enjoying a monopoly, more than 35 lakh passengers — one-fourth of city’s population — travel in 3,200 MTC buses every day, MTC has empty coffers.

“The amount spent towards salaries is increasing exponentially. Salaries of 21,000 employees contribute to 52% of the operational cost,” said a senior MTC official.

Also, there is a drop in earnings per kilometre due to fall in passenger footfall and increase in fuel and maintenance costs, Vijayabaskar said.

This has forced MTC to take more loans and mortgage properties. Nine depots and 500 buses were mortgaged recently to gather funds.

Experts and unions attribute this to inadequate financial support from the state government. “Transport corporations are given a step-motherly treatment. When the government absorbed the Rs 22,800 crore debt of Tangedco, why is it not ready to help transport corporations,” asked K Anbalagan from SVS-APP transport workers’ union.

There is no clarity of whether the government has waived off MTC’s loans. Total outstanding loan value increased by 333% in the four years, according to official data. From Rs 80 crore in 2013, it stood at Rs 347 crore in 2017.

Besides, diesel subsidy to MTC was cut for a few months and the corporation was allowed to generate it by other ways and means.

Rubbing salt to injuries, absenteeism among workers is high. On an average, 200 buses remain idle due to non-availability of staff. Amid this, union office-bearers are given light duties or desk jobs.

Alongside salary, pending retirement benefits and accident claims are other components which add to MTC’s financial burden. A total of 180 employees, who retired last year, are yet to receive provident funds worth Rs 392 crore.

OBC candidates being denied reservation: Doc tells HC

TNN | Jul 3, 2019, 04.34 AM IST

Chennai: Claiming that candidates belonging to other backward communities (OBC) are being denied reservation, as provided under the Constitution, in admissions to UG and PG medical courses under all India quota in colleges other than those funded by the Central government for the past 10 years, a city-based doctor has approached the Madras high court alleging discrimination.
The illegality has been done through the provisions of the Central Educational Institutions (reservation in admissions) Act, in the guise of providing reservation for SC/ST/OBC candidates to certain central education institutions, explained doctor G R Ravindranath.

The act never stands in the way of central government to restrict the applicability of the reservation other than central education institution in so far as medical admission to all India quota is concern. The act neither takes away the right of reservation of a citizen guaranteed under the Constitution, nor direct the central government to restrict the applicability of reservation guaranteed under the Constitution only to central education institutions as defined under the act, he added.

“Section 4 of the Act, which furnishes a schedule of institutions for which the present act will not apply. The schedule enclosed along with the act consists of eight institutions that too run by the central government. Section 4 further emphasise that the act should not apply to minority education institution and programs of the post-doctoral level. Hence it is very clear that the act never intended to take away or restrict the OBC reservation guaranteed under the constitution for institutions other that what was defined under the act. It is a self-contained code applicable to those institutions mentioned in the act and it is not meant to travel beyond that,” Ravindranath said.

However, in the information bulletin issued for the admissions to UG and PG medical courses for 2019-20 it is clear that the 27% reservation for OBC is provided only in seats Central Educational Institutions, the petitioner pointed out.

Noting that all India quota is not a reservation and it is only a concession, or in other words, an understanding by which certain percentage of seats are surrendered by the state and union territory to the central government, the petitioner said, “In the case of UG medical admission, it is 15% of the total number of seats and 50% in the case PG medical admission. The surrendering of the seats will not take away the right of reservation guaranteed under the constitution.”

The central government is also aware of the fact that there cannot be any denial of reservation while allotting seats under all India quota, but however they may be under a wrong notion or probably may be ill-advised to restrict the OBC reservation only to central education institutions. Since the process and action is discriminatory, the petitioner has no other alternative or efficacious remedy available in law, except to approach the court he contended.

He wanted the court to direct the authorities to provide OBC reservation under all India quota in all the colleges across the country.

The plea is likely to be taken up for hearing on July 3.

TIMES AT THE WORLD CUP

Virat’s touching gesture for the old and the beautiful
Indian Skipper Promises Tickets For 87-Year-Old Charulata Patel

Gaurav.Gupta@timesgroup.com

Birmingham:04.07.2019

Even as millions of fans are still struggling for tickets to India’s semifinal and final matches in the 2019 World Cup, Charulata Patel can claim to be amongst the lucky ones to already have them in her purse. The 87-year-old South Africa-born Gujarati is a London resident and has become a sensation on social media ever since Indian captain Virat Kohli and his deputy Rohit Sharma touched her feet to seek her blessings, and spent some time with her at Edgbaston after India beat Bangladesh by 31 runs on Tuesday.

During the brief meeting with the spirited lady, who came all the way from London to watch the Men-in-Blue despite being slightly ill, Kohli told her that she now has to turn up for all of India’s remaining three games, promising tickets for her and her granddaughter, Anjali, who accompanied her to the stadium.

“Yesterday, when he hugged her, he said: ‘Please come for all our matches’. But she replied: ‘Beta, I don’t have tickets.’ He said: ‘Don’t worry, I’ll arrange the tickets, and he kept his word. So, now we have the tickets for all of India’s remaining games — the Leeds match (against Sri Lanka on July 6), the semifinal (both the semifinals actually) and the final,” Charulata’s granddaughter, Anjali, told TOI from London. “We asked for a few more tickets, but he couldn’t arrange that many,” she chuckled.

Sharing the emotional moment with his ‘special fan’, Kohli later tweeted: “Also would like to thank all our fans for all the love & support & especially Charulata Patel ji. She’s 87 and probably one of the most passionate & dedicated fans I’ve ever seen. Age is just a number; passion takes you leaps & bounds. With her blessings, on to the next one.” Throughout the match, the TV cameras kept panning on the enthusiastic fan. Former England captain Michael Vaughan described a TV shot of Charulata’s enthusiastic support as “the picture of the World Cup”.

ICC later shared a small video of her. “They’re playing very well. I’m praying to God that they keep on winning. I’m watching cricket for the last 20 years. The first time I went to watch a game live was in The Oval last year, so this is just this second time,” Charulata told Times Now.

You don’t have to guess hard to know her favourites players/ “Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma,” she said. “When Virat and Rohit touched my feet, I wanted to get up, but they asked me to keep sitting on my chair. I gave them my blessings, and hugged and kissed them,” he said.

There are many elderly people amongst the spectators in England. You do wonder how Charulata managed to attract the attention of Virat & Co. “It’s all thanks to the Indian guys. The Indian team’s media manager, Moulin Parikh, and a few other media personnel approached us for a few interviews. I asked if he could arrange for my grandma to meet the team or at least some players. Because of her age and illness, this would most probably be the last World Cup she would be able to see at a stadium. So, it meant a lot for her to see the team. Moulin said: ‘Look, I’ll arrange something for you when there are just two overs left for the game.’ And he did make it to happen,” she revealed.

MY PLEASURE: Virat Kohli greets Charulata Patel at Edgbaston on Tuesday

ADWISE workplace counselling NAMRATA SINGH

‘My boss makes me work on holidays. Is there a way out?’

04.07.2019

Question: I recently joined an MNC and this is my probation period. The organisation has a policy of Saturday/Sunday offs. In addition, it has declared 12 public holidays. However, my reporting manager makes me work on weekends. He rejects my request for a compensatory off. I am also made to travel/work on public holidays, like Holi and Good Friday. This is painful and demoralising. I am a 44-year-old male and, currently, I do not have another job option. How do I deal with such a boss?

S Ramesh Shankar replies:

It’s unfortunate that you made a change of job and ended up in a not-so-pleasant situation. In my view, you may consider converting a negative situation into a positive one. In our life, we cannot choose our parents or our boss. I am sure you decided to join the MNC after due consideration of role, image, brand, etc.

Since you are less than six months in your job, it may be an opportunity to make your first impressions. You may like to focus on giving your best and proving your value to your boss and thereby to your organisation. Once they realise that you bring immense value to your role, you will be considered an invaluable asset. At this stage, you could consider renegotiating with your boss regarding your weekly offs or working on public holidays.

It is true that employees in multinationals as we well as Indian organisations have to work on weekends or public holidays at times due to work exigencies. However, if someone makes working on weekends a habit, it may be neither good for their health nor for the productivity of the organisation. We need to first prove our worth in a new organisation we join before we start negotiating our terms and conditions at work. Otherwise, it may end up being evaluated as someone whose focus is not to give their best at the workplace but keep negotiating on terms and conditions of employment.

I would recommend the following steps:

A. Focus on your performance and become the best in whatever you do within a year of your joining the MNC

B. Once your boss realises your value, you could negotiate on weekly offs and talk about work-life balance

C. You have to determine what your priorities are: work-life balance, salary, working conditions or career progression

D. Establish your credibility before highlighting wrongs of others I hope these suggestions are useful and help you reflect.

S Ramesh Shankar is former HR head, Siemens

Talk to us

Are you dealing with a tough boss? Are your colleagues being mean to you? Is your workplace culture hindering your growth? Is there anything that’s bothering you at work, which you’re wary of discussing internally? Talk to us. Our panel of experts will assist you in resolving your workplace related matters. ‘AdWise’ will appear on these pages every Thursday to help you with your workplace matters. Write to us at adwise@timesgroup.com

6.3ft-long worm removed from man’s intestine in Haryana

Vijender Kumar TNN

Kaithal:04.07.2019

A 6.3ft-long live worm was surgically extracted from a 42-year-old man’s intestine at a private hospital in Haryana’s Kaithal district on Wednesday.

Dr Devender Panwar of Jaipur Hospital, who conducted the operation, said Ravi — a resident of Jind’s Pega village — approached them on Tuesday night complaining of fever since a fortnight. When a CT scan, ultrasound and other examination couldn’t detect the issue, an X-ray revealed damage in the intestine which needed immediate surgery.

“While sanitizing his intestine, we extracted a live pork tapeworm about 6.3ft in length. The scientific name of the organism is Taenia solium which usually enters the body through consumption of undercooked or contaminated pork and unwashed vegetables,” said Dr Panwar.

Once inside, the intestinal parasite can live there up to 25 years and affect the brain, and may cause epilepsy at a later stage or even death, he added.

“The tests didn’t reveal the presence of the worm and the X-ray only showed a hole in the intestine. It was during surgery that I minutely examined the hole, and found the worm, which was alive,” said Dr Panwar. The patient is stable and under observation, he added.

Defence staff can’t quit job at will as it affects preparedness of forces: SC

Holds IAF Man Guilty For Applying For Bank Job Without Telling Authorities

AmitAnand.Choudhary@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:04.07.2019

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said defence force personnel cannot be allowed to quit job at will in the middle of service, saying it will adversely impact operational preparedness of the armed forces and held an airman in IAF guilty of breaking rules by applying for a bank job without informing the authorities.

A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and Hemant Gupta rejected the plea of the IAF personnel who contended that the Constitution has given him a fundamental right to practise any profession and his right cannot be infringed upon by Air Force rules.

“A person who has been enrolled as a member of the Air Force does not have an unqualified right to depart from service at his or her will during the term of engagement. Such a construction, as urged on behalf of the appellant, will seriously impinge upon manning levels and operational preparedness of the armed forces. With the rapid advancement of technology, particularly in its application to military operations, there has been a reconfiguration of human and technological requirements of a fighting force. The interests of the service are of paramount importance,” the bench said.

The court passed the order on an appeal filed by Amit Kumar Roy challenging IAF’s decision not to issue ‘No Objection’ certificate to him to join as probationary officer in a bank. He joined the force in 2004 and applied for the bank job in 2010 and appeared for written exam and interview without taking mandatory permission from IAF. After selection for the job, he approached Armed Force Tribunal which directed IAF to issue provisional NOC and subsequently he joined the bank.

In 2012 Air Headquarters cancelled the provisional NOC and he was directed to join the force. after which he approached the apex court.

The court came to the conclusion that there was no illegality in cancellation of NOC as he violated Air Force rules but said that no purpose would be solved to direct him to join the force after eight years and asked him to pay ₹3 lakh to the government within two months for violating the rules.

“No purpose will be served in directing reinduction of the appellant into the IAF save and except to subject him to disciplinary action. Having regard to the facts and circumstances which we have noted above, we are of the view that the ends of justice would be met by directing that a final NOC and discharge be issued to him no later than within a period of three months of the receipt of a copy of this order,” the bench said.

A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and Hemant Gupta rejected the plea of the IAF personnel who contended that the Constitution has given him a fundamental right to practise any profession and his right cannot be infringed upon by Air Force rules

HC pulls up officials for stopping pension of elderly woman

K.Kaushik@timesgroup.com

Madurai:04.07.2019

Pulling up the revenue department officials for their recklessness, the Madurai bench of the Madras high court has directed the authorities to disperse pending arrears and compensation to an elderly woman for whom the old age pension (OAP) was stopped based on false information that she was dead though she was alive.

On Wednesday, justice R Suresh Kumar gave the direction on the petition filed by K Sundarammal, a resident of T Vallakulam village at Kamuthi taluk in Ramanathapuram district. She had sought the continuation of OAP after it was stopped based on false information.

The judge observed that the tahsildar of Kamuthi in his counter had stated that the reason for the erroneous deletion of the petitioner’s name was made by an outsourced computer operator.

The judge observed, “This is a classic case where the government authorities have recklessly acted in providing welfare schemes to the needy people as per the policy of the state government. Expressing its anguish, the court wants to give remedial action for the loss sustained by the petitioner for her sufferings.”

Hence, the judge directed the officials to calculate and disperse the pending arrears of OAP to the petitioner with an interest rate of 6% and also distribute a compensation of ₹50,000 to the petitioner within two weeks.

The judge also directed the authorities to submit a compliance report in this regard on July 24. In her petition, Sundarammal stated that she is a destitute woman and does not have any legal heir to take care of her. She further stated that as she does not have any permanent job she is unable to fulfil her daily needs. She said that after she submitted a representation, the officials started distributing OAP from November 24, 2006. However, it was stopped from July 21, 2015.

900 students at Madras univ college learn in fear in crumbling buildings

Staff Worried About Ceilings Falling Down

Ragu.Raman@timesgroup.com

Chennai:04.07.2019

More than 900 students and 30 staff members of a constituent college of University of Madras in Thiruvottiyur are in constant fear of ceilings of dilapidated buildings that are more than 40 years old falling on their head.

The college operates from a corporation school on Poonthottam Road where it began functioning seven years ago as a temporary arrangement. A unitary complex with an anganwadi centre, a corporation primary school, a special tahsildar’s office and a park function out of the same campus. What’s more, there are only four toilets each for men and women. “We are in constant fear. One of the staff members had a narrow escape recently as a chunk of concrete fell a feet away from him. Almost, all the buildings are in a bad shape,” a staff member said. “Despite the fund crunch, the university has promised financial help to plaster the ceilings and undertake some maintenance work. The college could not find a piece of land to have another building,” said a syndicate member of the university.

The college offers five under-graduate programmes – BA Tamil, BA English, BCom (general), BCom (computer applications) and BCA. It’s a co-ed college with girls constituting more than 70% of the students. None of the 30-odd teaching staff is a full-time employee. The college has 15 guest lecturers and 15 part-time guest lecturers. Against a requirement of 15 classrooms, the college has only eight rooms and classes are being conducted in two sessions to accommodate the students. The first session functions from 8.10 am to 12.45 pm and the second from 1pm to 5.35pm. The college caters to the needs of children from poor background from Tiruvottiyur, Manali, Kavarapettai and Ponneri. “With better facilities, the college could get up to 3,000 students,” said a faculty member.

“In Tiruvottiyur, there is no vacant land to build a college,” said K Kuppan, a former MLA who played a key role in opening the college. “The government has allotted a piece of land near Ernavur flyover, but the land was mortgaged by a government agency for a loan. The government has also allocated ₹20 crore for a building, but we decided to construct a new structure, locals who use the playground opposed it.”

The government has allotted three acres of land near CPCL in Manali. “Considering pollution and access issues, the proposal was kept pending. If there is no other land, then we may have to settle on that one,” said Kuppan.


COMING APART: University of Madras Arts and Science College (constituent college) functioning from an old corporation school premises on Poonthottam Road in Thiruvottiyur; (right) a broken wall on the campus

Dharmapuri girl tops rank list for veterinary courses
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:4.7.2019

The Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (Tanuvas) on Wednesday released the rank list for admissions into undergraduate courses BVSc & AH and BTech.

S Swathi of Dharmapuri topped the rank list with 199.5 marks out of 200.

A Jane Sylvia of Tuticorin and M Harsha of Kanyakumari got 199.25 and 199 marks respectively and secured second and third places on the rank list. The admission into veterinary courses is based on Class XII marks. Candidates may verify their ranks on Tanuvas’s official website www.tanuvas.ac.in. There has been a surge in applications for the BVSc and AH course, compared to last year. While Tanuvas received 12,000 applications for the BVSc & AH course in 2018, this year the number has gone up to 15,476. The applications for BTech courses also witnessed a rise this year.

“There was a 29% increase in applications for BVSc and AH compared to last year. For BTech courses, the number of applications has increased by 14.64%,” animal husbandry minister Udumalai K Radhakrishnan told media representatives after releasing the rank list. Of 18,438 applicants, 17,122 were found eligible.

As many as 360 seats are available for the BVSc and AH course at four veterinary colleges, while 100 seats are available for the BTech courses (food technology, poultry technology and dairy technology). “We plan to start new veterinary colleges,” the minister said.

Tanuvas vice-chancellor C Balachandran said counselling will be held in the third week of July. “The schedule along with details of candidates called for counselling, their marks and rank will be released on our official website,” he told the media.

Last year, the OC cut-off for BVSc and AH was 196 out of 200 marks. This year the cut-off is likely to come down due to poor performance of Class XII state board students.

K Gopal, secretary of Animal Husbandry, Dairy and Fisheries, and P Tensingh Gnanaraj, registrar of Tanuvas, also participated in the event.

FIRST RANK: S Swathi

While Tanuvas received 12,000 applications for the BVSc & AH course in 2018, this year the number has gone up to 15,476

MBBS entry rank list delayed again

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:4.7.2019

The state selection committee will not release the rank list for MBBS and BDS admissions on Thursday. The list is likely to be released on July 6 or July 8, officials said.

The committee which was scheduled to release the list on Tuesday had earlier postponed it to July 4. The policy decision on quota for economically weaker section will be taken after an all-party meeting. If the state adopts the quota, the medical seats in government quota will increase by 25%. “They are trying to delay the list so they get time to take a decision. But they don’t understand the difficulty of students and parents,” said Arul Kumar, a parent.

The selection committee said it has asked nearly 3,000 candidates to hand over the original form for verification. “It can be verified after we release the rank list too but we wanted to make sure we have the documents,” said selection committee secretary G Selvarajan.

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திருவல்லிக்கேணியில்ஒரு கிலோ தோசை மாவு வாங்கினால் ஒரு குடம் தண்ணீர் இலவசம்




 திருவல்லிக்கேணியில் ஒரு கிலோ தோசை மாவு வாங்கினால் ஒரு குடம் தண்ணீர் இலவசமாக வழங்கப்படுகிறது.

பதிவு: ஜூன் 30, 2019 05:12 AM

சென்னை,

சென்னையில் தண்ணீர் பிரச்சினை தலைவிரித்தாடுகிறது. ஒரு குடம் தண்ணீருக்காக இரவு முழுவதும் தூங்காமல் தண்ணீர் லாரியை எதிர்பார்த்து பலர் காத்துக்கிடக்கின்றனர். பல இடங்களில் ஒரு குடம் தண்ணீரை ரூ.5 முதல் ரூ.10 வரை விலை கொடுத்து வாங்கி வருகின்றனர். கடந்த ஒரு வாரமாக சென்னையில் மழை பெய்த போதும் தண்ணீர் பிரச்சினைக்கு தீர்வு ஏற்படவில்லை.

தலைவிரித்தாடும் தண்ணீர் பிரச்சினையை கருத்தில் கொண்டு சென்னை திருவல்லிக்கேணி பண்டி வெங்கடேசன் தெருவில் இட்லி, தோசை மாவு கடை நடத்தி வரும் பார்த்தசாரதி என்பவர் மாவு வாங்க வரும் பொதுமக்களுக்கு இலவசமாக தண்ணீர் கொடுக்க முடிவு செய்தார்.

அதன்படி, ‘ஒரு கிலோ இட்லி, தோசை மாவு வாங்கினால் ஒரு குடம் தண்ணீர் இலவசம்’ என்று அறிவித்தார். இதுதொடர்பான அறிவிப்பை பேனர் மூலம் தனது கடை முன்பு அவர் வைத்துள்ளார். மேலும், அந்த அறிவிப்பில் ஒரு கிலோ மாவு வாங்கினால் ஒரு குடம் நிலத்தடி நீர் இலவசமாக வழங்கப்படும் என்றும், மாவு வாங்க வரும்போது குடம் கொண்டு வர வேண்டும் என்றும் கூறப்பட்டுள்ளது. அதுமட்டுமல்லாமல் வாடிக்கையாளர்களின் நலன் கருதி குடிநீரை வடிகட்டி காய்ச்சிய பிறகு உபயோகப்படுத்தவும் என்றும் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.

இந்த அறிவிப்பை பார்த்த பொதுமக்கள் பலர் இவரது கடைக்கு மாவு வாங்க குடங்களுடன் படை எடுக்க தொடங்கி உள்ளனர். இதனால், குடிநீர் லாரியில் தண்ணீர் பிடிக்க குடங்களை வரிசையாக வைத்திருப்பது போன்று இவரது கடையிலும் குடங்கள் வரிசையாக வைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளன.

தண்ணீர் பிரச்சினையை கருத்தில் கொண்டு சூழ்நிலைக்கு தகுந்தாற்போல் இந்த அறிவிப்பை வெளியிட்டு அதை செயல்படுத்தி வரும் மாவு கடை உரிமையாளர் பார்த்தசாரதி கூறும்போது, ‘கடந்த 24 ஆண்டுகளாக மாவு கடை நடத்தி வருகிறேன். ஆனால், இதுபோன்று தண்ணீர் பிரச்சினையை சந்தித்தது இல்லை. தண்ணீர் பிரச்சினையால் மக்கள் திண்டாடுவதை பார்த்து இதுபோன்ற அறிவிப்பை வெளியிட்டேன். வெளியில் இருந்து பணம் கொடுத்து தண்ணீரை வாங்கி வாடிக்கையாளர்களுக்கு கொடுத்து வருகிறேன்’ என்றார்.

RGUHS to conduct baseline survey of affiliate colleges 

Special Correspondent 
 
MANGALURU, June 29, 2019 23:37 IST 

Updated: June 29, 2019 23:37 IST

The Syndicate of the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) here on Saturday decided to conduct a baseline survey of the state of academic practices in its affiliated 700 institutes in Karnataka.

Talking to reporters after the meeting, RGUHS vice-chancellor S. Sacchidanand said the baseline survey would be done to know the condition of the medical, dental and other health institutes and take steps for improving quality.

“It’s like a self-assessment. The survey helps institutes to know where they stand. It will help institutes to make changes necessary to get accreditation of the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers and other quality assessment organisations,” Dr. Sacchidanand said, and added that the survey would be part of the ongoing exercise to improve the quality of the education in all its affiliated institutions.

The Syndicate also decided to keep in abeyance disaffiliation of Rajarajeswari Medical College and Hospital, Bengaluru, following the latter’s recognition by the Union government to bring it under the ambit of MGR Educational and Research Institute (Deemed to be University), Chennai.

PIL against officials for allowing college to function

The interim prayer of K M Krishnan of West Mambalam is to restrain the authorities concerned from conducting counselling in the medical college.

Published: 30th June 2019 05:39 AM 

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: A PIL petition has been filed in the Madras High Court for a directive to the Central Vigilance Commissioner and the Union Ministry of Health in New Delhi to take punitive action against the Secretary-General, Board of Governors (in supersession of the Medical Council of India) and Tamil Nadu Health secretary for allowing Sri Muthukumaran Medical College Hospital and Research Institute at Chikkarayapuram in Chennai to function.


The interim prayer of KM Krishnan of West Mambalam is to restrain the authorities concerned from conducting counselling in the medical college. The first bench of Chief Justice VK Tahilramani and Justice M Doraisamy, before which the plea came up for hearing on Thursday, ordered notice to respondents.

According to petitioner, he sent representations to various state government authorities and Central Vigilance Commissioner, to order an inquiry with regard to unauthorised constructions by the college. The college had not obtained environment clearance and completion certificate, petitioner alleged.

Court stays fee panel’s fiat to private law college

According to the petitioner, the Central Law College, a self-financing, non-aided private one, is in existence from 1984 and had produced 30 batches of law graduates.

Published: 30th June 2019 05:38 AM 

Madras High Court (Photo 

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: A division bench of the Madras High Court has stayed the operation of the orders of the State government’s fee fixation committee, recommending a private law college in Salem to collect only Rs 65,000 per annum from 2019-20. The bench of Justices R Subbiah and C Saravanan, which granted the stay, permitted the petitioner college - Central Law College - to continue to collect Rs 85,000 till the disposal of the writ petition, on June 26.


According to the petitioner, the Central Law College, a self-financing, non-aided private one, is in existence from 1984 and had produced 30 batches of law graduates. It was collecting Rs 85,000 per year towards admission and tuition fees. The committee constituted by the petitioner/college consisting of a former High Court judge, a former Vice-Chancellor of the TN Dr Ambedkar Law University and former director of the TN State Judicial Academy and a reputed chartered accountant, after going through all the records, recommended to collect fees of Rs 1.03 lakh for the academic year 2019-2020.

In the meantime, the committee constituted by the government, had fixed the fees only at Rs 65,000 p.a. by an order dated May 28 this year, after rejecting the petitioner college’s plea to take into account the capital expenditure. Hence, the present petition. Considering the submissions made by the petitioner’s counsel, the judges said that they are granting the interim stay for four weeks.

Plea from institute turned down

The judge was dismissing a writ petition from the college on June 26.

 Published: 30th June 2019 05:37 AM |

 By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Accepting the arguments of Additional Advocate-General A Kumar, the Madras High Court has refused to quash the orders of Anna University, reducing the students’ strength for two undergraduate courses and denying affiliation to four post-graduate courses in SMK Fomra Institute of Technology in Kelambakkam.

Justice G Jayachandran also rejected the consequential prayer for a direction to the university to grant continuation of provisional affiliation for the engineering courses conducted by the petitioner college, for the sanctioned intake of students approved by All India Council for Technical Education (AIVTE) for 2019-2020. The judge was dismissing a writ petition from the college on June 26. The University had issued a communication on May 11, 2019, indicating that the deficiency mentioned in the inspection report regarding the library and laboratory, continue to exist for some courses and therefore, recommended for provisional affiliation with 25 per cent reduced intake of students for two UG courses viz; BE (Electronic and Communication Engineering) and BE (Mechanical Engineering) and no affiliation for four PG courses viz; ME (Computer Science Engineering), ME (Power System Engineering), ME (Thermal Engineering) and ME (VSL design). Hence, the present petition.

These children in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore fetch water at home and school

The primary, middle and high schools in these panchayats are all deprived of water, making the sight of students walking outside schools in search of water quite common.
 
Published: 01st July 2019 06:40 AM |

 

Since schools reopened on June 3, the children have had to fetch water for their families and classes, often despite the scorching heat.

By Nirupa Sampath

Express News Service

CUDDALORE: For the past two months, nine-year-old Gayathri has been pulling ‘double duty’. At home, she has to fetch water for the household from the nearby lake before going to school.

Then once she gets to the government school in Nallur block where she is a student, she is sent to fetch water from the nearby village pump to meet the drinking water and sanitation needs of her classmates.

This has become the norm for children in some of the more parched parts of Cuddalore district this summer. Since schools reopened on June 3, these children have had to fetch water for their families and classes, often despite the scorching heat.


The severe water shortage in the district is most felt in the town and village panchayats of Virdhachalam, Nallur, Mangalore and remote villages of Thittagudi and Veppur. The primary, middle and high schools in these panchayats are all deprived of water, making the sight of students walking outside schools in search of water quite common.

Express visited government middle schools in Kadampuliyur and Nallur and found that it had become a practice for children to be sent out to fetch water — in pots, jugs or bottles — during class hours. While some of the children clearly relished the opportunity to bunk classes, the shortage of water meant students also had to resort open defecation.

One Class 5 student, seen washing his plate after having his mid-day meal, said, “We wash plates with drinking water provided to us from the common pipes. But, since there is no water in the toilets we often go in the open.”

Given the risk to the children and disruption of their studies, some teachers had taken it upon themselves to source the water.

A teacher at a government school at Mel Mathur village of Nallur block said that she ensured drinking water was kept outside the class so that students didn’t have to go looking for water.
“Due to the heat we frequently run out of water.

Although we are currently able to manage water for drinking, there is no water in toilets. Most of our time is spent on planning where to source water from,” she added.

The situation is worse in more remote villages, Express found. At several schools, the Reverse Osmosis plant was unused.When this was brought to the attention of the district education department, officials said that, at a recent review meeting, they had informed the Collector that the plants were not being used and the schools were facing water shortage.

“In a week’s time, the RO plants will be serviced if faulty and the shortage of drinking water will be resolved soon,” an official from the department said.

Anna University to boost its alumni association

Anna University authorities will soon direct all heads of departments to keep track of the students, who have passed from their branches.
  
Published: 01st July 2019 07:19 AM

Anna University (File Photo | EPS)

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Anna University has planned to strengthen its alumni association and create a strong database of students passing out from varsity departments, university senior officials said. Officials claimed the move will serve multiple purposes and immensely benefit students and the institution.

University authorities will soon direct all heads of departments to keep track of the students, who have passed from their branches.

The alumni association, which is also active, will be asked to broaden its reach by including more of their friends into the association.

The exercise of strengthening the association will start in the next few months.“The initiative is very necessary as our alumni are our asset. Students passing from the university are scattered across the globe. They are working in eminent positions in big industries, government institutes and research fields. If we manage to compile a strong database of our alumni, then it will be a great achievement for us,” said a senior varsity administrative official.

 Along with helping in generating funds for development of the university, the alumni can also help present students in getting good placement opportunities.

Besides, they can also help in improving the ranking of the institute in the assessment by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC).

Officials said as per NAAC parameters, the alumni should give their feedback about the institute. Alumni can provide crucial insights and help in improving the curriculum.

“Whenever we plan any change in the curriculum or want to update it, according to market needs, we need to consult academicians, other stakeholders. Our alumni will be the best persons to give their feedback as they are working in diverse fields and know the market needs well,” said a senior faculty member.

Guest lecturers in Tamil Nadu disappointed as government refuses to revise their wage

The government on June 21, ordered the Higher Education Department to pay each guest lecturer Rs 15,000 a month as per previous pay norms.

Published: 01st July 2019 07:16 AM

By Sushmitha Ramakrishnan

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Guest lecturers from government arts and science colleges in Tamil Nadu are disappointed after the State refused to revise their wages in over three years.

The government on June 21, ordered the Higher Education Department to pay each guest lecturer Rs 15,000 a month as per previous pay norms.

This has irked guest lecturers particularly because the higher education department had recently promised to come up with a permanent employment solution for them.


Mangat Ram Sharma, principal secretary, Higher Education, was not available for comments. However, he had told Express in May that the department was working on regularising the services of guest lecturers. “We are working on a more permanent solution. We are strategising ways to make them permanent employees,” he had said.

“Despite doing as much work as regular lecturers, we get paid only Rs 15,000, without scope for performance-based appraisal,” charged Venkatesan Thangaraj from Tamil Nadu All Government College UGC Qualified Guest Lecturers Association. Guest lecturers are often victims of delayed or irregular payment of salaries, he said.

In January this year, UGC hiked the salary for guest lecturers in colleges and universities to ` 1,500 per lecture subject to a maximum of Rs 50,000 per month. In February 2010, the UGC made a similar announcement and fixed the maximum pay for guest lecturers as Rs 25,000. Haryana government recently revised the wages of guest lecturers to Rs 57,700 a month.

The Tamil Nadu government is yet to implement the hike in wages, said Thangaraj. “Colleges use us to compensate for their vacancies. Therefore, we teach the same number of hours as regular faculty does and still do not get the pay mandated by UGC,” said a guest lecturer from Thiruvannamalai Government Arts and Science College, on condition of anonymity.

Bundle of joy and mountain of debt: Tale of costly child deliveries at private hospitals in Telangana Sky-high costs involved in institutional deliveries at private hospitals in Telangana are pushing families into debt and poverty, finds a study by Mumbai-based IIPS.

Published: 30th June 2019 10:22 AM Maternity Leave is paid holiday of 26 weeks.

By V Nilesh
Express News Service

HYDERABAD: For an average woman in Telangana, the pain of childbirth seems to no longer end in the hospital room. Once the child is born, there is another kind of pain for her to deal with: coming up with the cash to pay for the delivery. The sky-high costs involved in institutional deliveries at private hospitals in the State are pushing many a family into indebtedness and poverty.

A study by the Mumbai-based International Institute of Population Sciences (IIPS), based on data from National Family Health Survey-4, has reported that Telangana has the highest proportion of mothers who sell their assets or borrow money, in order to be able to pay for institutional delivery.




The study titled ‘Out-of-pocket expenditure and distress financing on institutional delivery in India’, published this month in the International Journal for Equity in Health, reports that around 29 per cent of the women surveyed for NFHS-4 in the State had either sold their assets or borrowed money to pay the bills out of their pockets for institutional delivery. ‘Paying out of the pocket’ here refers to not taking up the services at government maternity hospitals, where deliveries are performed for free.

According to the study, the average expenditure incurred by a mother, who has sold her assets or borrowed money to undergo institutional delivery in the State is second highest in the country at Rs 17,618, only after Kerala (Rs 20,621). In fact, there are many in the State who pay much more than this. According to the study, almost 35 per cent of mothers in the State spend Rs 20,000 or above for institutional delivery, and around 33 per cent pay Rs 15,000-Rs 20,000, and 32 per cent people pay around Rs 10,000-Rs 15,000.

The high costs of institutional deliveries, unfortunately, hurt the most socio-economically impoverished people and communities in the society. The IIPS researchers found that the percentage of mothers who pay out of their pockets for institutional deliveries at private hospitals is the highest among less educated, poor and socially disadvantaged groups.

Bundle of joy and mountain of debt: Tale of costly child deliveries at private hospitals in Telangana

Sky-high costs involved in institutional deliveries at private hospitals in Telangana are pushing families into debt and poverty, finds a study by Mumbai-based IIPS.

Published: 30th June 2019 10:22 AM Maternity Leave is paid holiday of 26 weeks.

By V Nilesh
Express News Service

HYDERABAD: For an average woman in Telangana, the pain of childbirth seems to no longer end in the hospital room. Once the child is born, there is another kind of pain for her to deal with: coming up with the cash to pay for the delivery. The sky-high costs involved in institutional deliveries at private hospitals in the State are pushing many a family into indebtedness and poverty.

A study by the Mumbai-based International Institute of Population Sciences (IIPS), based on data from National Family Health Survey-4, has reported that Telangana has the highest proportion of mothers who sell their assets or borrow money, in order to be able to pay for institutional delivery.





The study titled ‘Out-of-pocket expenditure and distress financing on institutional delivery in India’, published this month in the International Journal for Equity in Health, reports that around 29 per cent of the women surveyed for NFHS-4 in the State had either sold their assets or borrowed money to pay the bills out of their pockets for institutional delivery. ‘Paying out of the pocket’ here refers to not taking up the services at government maternity hospitals, where deliveries are performed for free.

According to the study, the average expenditure incurred by a mother, who has sold her assets or borrowed money to undergo institutional delivery in the State is second highest in the country at Rs 17,618, only after Kerala (Rs 20,621). In fact, there are many in the State who pay much more than this. According to the study, almost 35 per cent of mothers in the State spend Rs 20,000 or above for institutional delivery, and around 33 per cent pay Rs 15,000-Rs 20,000, and 32 per cent people pay around Rs 10,000-Rs 15,000.

The high costs of institutional deliveries, unfortunately, hurt the most socio-economically impoverished people and communities in the society. The IIPS researchers found that the percentage of mothers who pay out of their pockets for institutional deliveries at private hospitals is the highest among less educated, poor and socially disadvantaged groups.

KMC cannot act against nurses for medical negligence: HC 

Special Correspondent 
 
Bengaluru, July 01, 2019 00:00 IST

Observing that “nurses cannot be categorised as medical practitioners”, the Karnataka High Court held that the Karnataka Medical Council (KMC) has no jurisdiction to initiate proceedings or pass direction to take action against them in cases of medical negligence.

Justice B. Veerappa passed the order while setting aside an order passed by the KMC directing the medical superintendent of a private hospital in Manipal to take action against two nurses in a medical negligence case.

The KMC, in its August 2, 2012 order, had said that a boy died in the hospital in 2010 owing to the negligence of the nurses. The KMC had passed the order on a complaint by the boy’s parents.

While analysing the provisions of the KMC Karnataka Medical Registration Act, 1961 and the Indian Medical Council (IMC) Act, 1956, the court said the KMC can initiate action against only those medical practitioners who are registered in the State medical register. However, the nurses cannot be registered as they do not possess the qualification prescribed under IMC Act for such registration.

The court also noted that the hospital had paid a compensation of Rs. 7 lakh to the boy’s parents.

Karur Medical College ready to function soon

Special Correspondent 
 
KARUR, July 01, 2019 00:00 IST


Transport Minister M.R. Vijayabhaskar inspecting progress of construction of medical college in Karur on Sunday.

MCI has accorded sanction for admission of 150 students

The Karur Medical College will start functioning within a few weeks, according to Transport Minister M.R.Vijayabhaskar.

Speaking to reporters here on Sunday after inspecting the hospital and administrative blocks of the medical college at Sanapiratti, Mr. Vijayabhaskar said construction that began in March last was progressing well. Classrooms, faculty and staff rooms and administrative blocks were being built at an estimate of Rs. 269 crore. Most of the works had been completed. Officials had been asked to expedite the remaining works so as to start the college as early as possible.

The Medical College of India (MCI) had already accorded sanction for admission of 150 students in 2019-20 and the State government had begun the process. All basic infrastructure for students and faculty members would shortly be ready and Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami would inaugurate the college.

Mr. Vijayabhaskar said the medical college would have 850 beds. The college would have 11.78 lakh sq ft built-up area. Hospital buildings would come up on 5.58 lakh sq ft at an estimate of Rs. 122 crore. A sum of Rs. 71 crore would be spent on building hostels for students on 2.99 lakh sq ft and Rs. 75 crore on classrooms. Construction of compound wall and establishment of a public park had also been taken up. They would also be completed shortly,.

Students who never enrolled in MKU got mark sheets: DVAC 

Sanjana Ganesh 
 
MADURAI, July 01, 2019 00:00 IST 

  It suspects that Rs. 1 lakh was taken as bribe for each mark sheet and provisional certificate

Bogus mark sheets and provisional certificates were given to 500 students, who never enrolled in Madurai Kamaraj University’s Directorate of Distance Education centres, a preliminary probe by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption (DVAC) has revealed.

The examination scam, according to the DVAC, allegedly happened with the connivance of M. Rajarajan, Additional Controller of Examinations, DDE, MKU, R. Sathiyamoorthi, Superintendent, Electronic Data Processing Section, DDE, and J. Karthigai Selvan, Computer Programmer, EDP section.

In a recent letter to the university, the DVAC said that records were forged in a backdated manner to show as if candidates had registered for the course in the academic and calendar years of 2014 and 2015. However, they had neither joined the course nor appeared for any examination.

According to the DVAC, majority of students admitted that they had not paid registration fee or tuition fee to the university for their courses. Some Demand Drafts in the university records, as evidence of payment of fees by these students, were found to be fake.

In the records of these students, details such as parent name, phone number, address and photos were not available. Instead, only names of candidates were mentioned. Majority of the candidates were shown as if they got admitted to the course on the last date to submit application.

For instance, while a total of 321 students registered for the B. Com. course prior to the last day for admission on December 31, 2013 for the academic year 2014, 253 students were shown as registered on the last day without details like photographs and address, according to the DVAC.

A special syndicate meeting of MKU on Wednesday gave nod to the DVAC to conduct a preliminary enquiry into the matter.

The initial enquiries by DVAC revealed that the candidates who were issued fake certificates were mainly from four centres partnering with MKU - Future Institute of Technology, Karunagappally, AIECT Distance Education Campus, Malapuram, SIMS (Saga Institute of Management Studies), Malapuram and Sarovaram College of Higher Studies, Thrissur. The DVAC said that it would conduct investigation at these centres.

The agency has expressed suspicion that Rs. 1 lakh was taken as bribe for the issue of each consolidated mark sheet and provisional certificate.

The usual procedure demands the receipt of a course completion certificate as a prerequisite in order to receive the provisional certificate and the consolidated mark statement. However, most candidates whose documents were fabricated bypassed the process of procuring the provisional certificate and directly received the other two documents.

When contacted, Mr. Rajarajan said that he was not in-charge of admitting candidates into courses or issuing of mark sheets. “We have never issued mark sheets if candidates did not present course completion certificates,” he said and denied any such charge.

Commenting on the issue, R. Murali, coordinator of the ‘Save Higher Education Movement,’ said that the arraigned officials should not be vested with any role in the DDE until the investigation is completed so as to prevent tampering of records.

High court judge does self-assessment, releases report card

Srikkanth.D@timesgroup.com

Chennai:1.7.2019

In a positive step towards judicial accountability, Justice G R Swaminathan of the Madras high court has come out with a performance card with details of the number of cases he has disposed in his past two years as a judge.

“I believe in judicial accountability,” Justice Swaminathan said in a letter dated June 27, addressed to members of the bar.

Justice Swaminathan, who took oath on June 28, 2017, at the Madurai bench of the Madras high court and has been serving there ever since has disposed of a total of 21,478 cases, of which 18,944 cases were disposed while on a single bench and 2,534 while on a division bench.

Apologizing to counsel and litigants for not being able to dispose almost 75 cases which he had reserved, Justice Swaminathan said he shall dictate all judgments in open court to avoid such a situation.

“I have introspected and I wonder if things could have been a little different and far better. My conscience says ‘Yes’. I have been impatient, sometimes even rude. I hope to put on better behaviour henceforth,” Justice Swaminathan said and added that he was more bent on disposal and hence could not afford to write long orders.

Stating that he has great expectations from members of the bar, Justice Swaminathan said he can write a good judgment only if the advocacy is good and cited some of his recent judgments that received widespread attention. In April this year, Justice Swaminathan held that the term ‘bride’ found in the Hindu Marriage Act would also mean a transgender and directed the authorities to register a marriage between a man and a transwoman after the registration department cited the act and said ‘bride’ can only refer to a 'woman on her wedding day'.

He had also directed the Tamil Nadu government to issue a GO banning sex reassignment surgeries on infants and children.

Earlier, this month, Justice Swaminathan passed an order recognizing the rights of asylum seekers (65 Indian origin Tamil refugees) to apply for Indian citizenship.

“Bad advocacy will breed only bad judgment. I am critically dependent on you,” Justice Swaminathan said expressing happiness at the conduct of counsel so far and sought suggestions from members of the bar to serve the institution and cause of justice better.

Justice Swaminathan’s gesture received a positive response from lawyers, said Madurai-based advocate K.Samidurai, secretary, Indian Association of lawyers (TN Chapter). This is the first time in the more than 15-year existence of the Madurai bench that a judge had come forward with a performance report, he said.

“Appeal to the bar is an innovative step. Pendency can be reduced by proactive measures like this,” Samidurai said. 



I have introspected and I wonder if things could have been a little different and far better... I have been impatient, sometimes even rude. I hope to put on better behaviour henceforth

JUSTICE G R SWAMINATHAN
High court judge

Stick to UGC norms in appointment: HC

Madurai:1.7.2019

The Madurai bench of the Madras high court directed the authorities concerned to follow the UGC regulations in appointing assistant professors at government colleges in the state.

A batch of petitioners moved the court to direct the authorities to strictly comply with the UGC in Minimum Standards and Procedure for Awards of MPhil and PhD Degree Regulation, 2009, pertaining to the eligibility criteria for appointment of assistant professors at government colleges.

Justice S M Subramaniam observed that the court is of the opinion that the grievance expressed by the petitioners are undoubtedly a concern and the minimum standards of educational qualifications and other criteria fixed by UGC are to be followed scrupulously.

The judge observed that the nature of degrees, the mode of undergoing the UG and the PG courses are also to be verified before appointing candidates. If any post graduate or other degrees are obtained through open university, then those with such degrees, which are not prescribed under UGC, are not eligible for appointment.

“A teacher must know classroom craft and they must have the experience of witnessing the art of teaching. Thus, the candidates who studied and possess the requisite educational qualifications through regular pattern of education in college alone are to be selected and appointed for the post of assistant professors,” observed the judge. The judge also stated that all those officials responsible for not implementing the UGC regulations are to be punished by initiating disciplinary proceedings. TNN

UGC warns univs against caste discrimination complaints
Action Taken Report To Be Sent Within A Month

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:1.7.2019

As the number of suicide cases reported from institutions due to caste-based discrimination is on the rise, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has directed all universities to direct their employees to be more sensitive while dealing with incidents of caste discrimination.

In a circular to all the vicechancellors of universities, Rajnish Jain, secretary of UGC, has urged the officials and faculty members to desist from any act of discrimination students on grounds of their social origin.

He further directed higher educational institutions to develop a separate page on their websites for lodging such complaints of caste discrimination by SC/ST students and also a complaint register in the office of the principal or registrar. “If any such incident comes to the notice of the authorities, action should be taken against the erring official or faculty members promptly,” the circular said.

The universities and colleges are also directed to constitute a committee to look into the discrimination complaints received from SC/ST/ OBC students, teachers and other staff. It also urged the varsities to send action taken reports within 30 days.

Many professors said caste-based discrimination is still existing on many higher education campuses and welcome the move by the UGC.

“We welcome the move by the UGC as many staff members and students are facing such discrimination even now. The faculty members from particular group are being victimized by the dominant caste groups on the campuses,” said N Pasupathy, president of Association of University Teachers. He also urged the commission to put checks and balances to prevent any possible misuse by the vested interests.

Colleges to develop a separate page on their websites for lodging such complaints

Engg list out, med pending, students in fix

State Medical Rank List Deferred, MBBS Aspirants Have Little Choice

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:1.7.2019

The Tamil Nadu Engineering Admissions committee announced on Sunday that the online admission process for engineering in the state will begin on July 3, leaving medical aspirants in a fix as the state medical committee, which was supposed to release the rank list on Tuesday, said the list will not be out till July 4.

Payments for engineering admissions have to be made between July 3 and July 10. Candidates can select their college of choice from July 8 to 10, and they will be given a tentative allotment on July 11.

Students from rank 1 to 9,872 will participate in the first round. A total of 1,01,692 candidates will participate in the counselling for more than 1.5 lakh seats, so the struggle will be for the best colleges. Counselling will be held in four rounds.

Engineering students in the first round get another two days to lock their choices and the final allotment order will be released on July 13.

Likewise, three more rounds will be held before the counselling concludes on July 28. “General category students have to pay ₹5,000 and students from SC, SC(A) and ST category have to pay ₹1,000. The amount will be deducted from their tuition fees,” said TNEA secretary T Purusothaman.

“Hundreds of students who have secured high scores in NEET may end up paying for the engineering counselling as a backup option because they don’t yet know if they stand a chance of getting admissions in medical colleges. They will also be blocking seats in good colleges for meritorious candidates wanting to study engineering,” said R Satheesh, who coaches students for competitive exams.

On Monday, the results of the all-India quota medical admissions will be released by the Directorate General of Health Services.

Students will be given time till July 6 to join the colleges or apply for an upgrade. “We will be releasing our rank list on July 4 because we wanted to schedule it close to the end of round 1,” said selection committee secretary Dr G Selvarajan.

Several parents and students across the state are apprehensive and said they were in the dark about medical admissions.

Students use their rank and the number of undergraduate medical seats available to calculate which college they may land, if they opt for seats for online counselling through the all-India quota or offline counselling for the state quota.

While some states have already released rank lists, Tamil Nadu has not managed to the release the provisional rank list too ahead of the counselling.

“Delaying it further will adversely affect students,” said Senthil N, father of an aspiring medical student. 

NAT’L DOCTORS’ DAY

Guv to felicitate outstanding docs

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:1.7.2019

State governor Banwarilal Purohit will give awards to more than 10 doctors at a function organised by the Tamil Nadu Medical Council on National Doctors’ Day on July 1.

The list of awardees include obstetrics and gynaecologist Dr T Radha Bai Prabhu, paediatrician Dr Chitra Ayyappan, neurologist Dr R Lakhsmi Narasimhan, physician Dr P S Nagendran, surgical gastroenterologist and liver transplant surgeon Dr Jaswanth S, plastic surgeon Dr Ramadevi, orthopedician

Dr R Sivakumar, ENT, head and neck surgeon Dr C N Raja, TN consultant Dr Capt M Kamatchi and surgeon Dr Chinnadurai Abdullah.

Medical council president Dr K Senthil said a panel of doctors went through profiles of all nominees and selected the winners based on the contributions they have made. “One of them has done the first hand transplant,” he said.

DOCTORS’ DAY

For 90-plus docs, age is just a number

Pushpa.Narayan@timesgroup.com

Chennai:1.7.2019

For nearly seven decades, Dr M Natarajan has been listening to patients, not lab reports. The 94-year-old dermatologist is one of the oldest medical practitioners listed in the Tamil Nadu Medical Council registry and he continues to see patients every day between 10am and1.30pm at his clinic in Kilpauk.

“The medicine I practice is man-toman and soul-to-soul. I talk to my patients and do a thorough examination. I trust my stethoscope and my intuitions more than any other instrument,” said Dr Natarajan. The doctor who graduated from the Madras Medical College in 1947 joined medical service in the same college. A few years later, he travelled to London to do his post-graduation. He continued to work in the government sector after returning with a degree. “I don’t do cosmetology because I am not trained in it. I tell my patients that. But I have kept up with advances in medical sciences. I even do tele-consultations as follow-up for many of my patients who live abroad,” he said.

A few kilometres away, 93-year-old Dr V L Rangan, an ENT specialist, says he sees anywhere between 30 and 50 patients between 9.30am and 1.30pm. “Most of my patients come to me because I prescribe medicine only for the disease I diagnose. I believe it’s not worth it to make your patients invest on a broad spectrum of drugs just because you can’t make the diagnosis right,” he said.

Until some years ago, most patients did not raise their voice against doctors or even go for a second opinion because they never doubted their doctors. Doctors’ profession was considered noble and violence against a doctor or hospital was never heard of. “Things have changed,” Dr Rangan said. Cases of violence against doctors have increased and many states have a special legislation to protect doctors and hospitals.

That’s one of the reasons why, the state’s oldest doctor, Salem-based Dr A J Arunagiri, 99, hung up his boots in April this year. In 2018, Tamil Nadu Medical Council had asked doctors over the age of 70 to update their credentials by March 31. Dr Arunagiri sent his credentials and prefered to remain on the active medical list. “But he has a small clinic and he may not be able to fulfil the new norms mandated by the clinical establishments act. So, he has decided not to practice,” said his daughter Jayanthi Visanathan.

He continues to meet some of his patients and medical representatives, reads medical journals and sometimes offers expert opinion.

The oldest doctors in Tamil Nadu trust their instincts, are sure of their diagnoses and don’t prescribe a battery of tests and medicines

Vellore doctor parks his cars over 60K litres of water

Kamini.Mathai@timesgroup.com
1.7.2019

Hit by the water crisis in 2015, Dr Kandasamy Subramani decided he was not going to be caught off guard again. So the professor and head of intensive care at Christian Medical College, Vellore, got started on building a sump under his car park. And now, says Dr Subramani, the car park supplies the water his family needs for at least nine months of the year, while allowing for two cars to be parked in the space.

“In 2015 we had to buy water. In our gated community, we started rainwater harvesting to recharge the groundwater. And that’s why I decided to increase the amount of rainwater conserved at my house,” says Dr Subramani. “We have 100sqm of roof area, and according to the research I did, I found that for every 1sqm of roof area you get 1 litre of water if there is 1mm of rain. The average rainfall in Vellore is 800 to 900mm a year, which means I get 70-90,000 litres a year,” he says.

“We use this water for eight to nine months a year. Even when we have a lot of guests staying over,” says his wife Sathya, a professor of physiology.

Drainage pipes from the roof and gutters over the car shed are connected to the 60,000-litre capacity tank under the car park. Dr Subramani uses a two-step filtration method. “We have two separate tanks at different heights. One has charcoal and the other has gravel and river sand. The first removes the organic matter and the second filters the water further,” says Dr Subramani who also uses solar power and grows a roof top garden. 



HIDDEN TREASURE: The car park of Vellore resident Dr K Subramani has a sump below it

Bird-hit delays Vaigai Express by 40 minutes

Trichy:1.7.2019

In a strange bird-hit, the Chennai-bound Vaigai Express on Sunday was held up for 40 minutes at the Trichy junction due to technical snag after a peahen got stuck to the pantograph, an equipment mounted on the locomotive to draw power from an overhead line, of the engine.

Railway Protection Force sources said the loco pilot of the train coming from Madurai sensed that something had got stuck to the engine after the train crossed Manapparai station in Trichy district. By the time the train arrived at Trichy station, the engine had started developing trouble. The loco pilot halted the train and informed his higher-ups and the RPF. Some RPF personnel later climbed atop the train and removed the carcass of the bird, which was handed over to the forest department. TNN