8 foreign universities keen to set up campuses in India

8 foreign universities keen to set up campuses in India

5 Of Them From US & 1 Each From UK, Australia & Canada: Survey

Manash.Gohain@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:18.07.2021 

Eight foreign universities, including one each in the top 50 and 100 of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2021, said that they would be interested in setting up their international campuses in India. Five of these are US universities and one each from the UK, Australia and Canada.

In a survey, where 43 internationally ranked universities participated, 16 said they are not considering a campus here, and another 16 are undecided. The eight which expressed interest claimed they would prefer Indian students to begin with to ensure sufficient enrolments and sustainability of their venture.

The survey “Establishing International Branch Campuses in India,” by the National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA), a central government funded deemed to be university, was conducted between December 21, 2020 to February 12, 2021 to elicit responses from the top 200 universities of the THE World University Rankings 2021 on their views on setting up their international campuses in India. The respondents include three from the ‘top 10’.

As per the report, all the eight respondents that indicated ‘definitely consider’ India as a potential destination for establishing international branch campuses said that there is a need for liberal regulatory framework for improving the attractiveness of India. This is of particular significance because the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 had recommended to allow only universities from the ‘top 100 category’ in the world university rankings to operate in India.

According to Eldho Mathews, deputy adviser, Unit for International Cooperation, NIEPA, “Contrary to popular view, foreign universities in the top category are also interested in establishing their campuses in India. But most of them are adopting a wait and watch approach as the government rules and regulations are yet to be framed.”

Of the 43 universities which participated in the survey, 14 are from the UK, 13 from the US and 6 are from Canada. Nine of these universities are in the top 50 of the Times Higher Education World Rankings and 30 are in top 150 rankings.

The survey also sought the views on preferred campus model and the report suggested that the number of universities preferring some kind of tie-up with government-run institutions or assistance directly from the government is higher than setting up with private assistance or no external assistance.

“Promoting various models of branch campuses would be helpful in attracting more universities. Similarly, universities that are willing to offer programs that are relevant for the skill needs of the country should be given priority,” said Mathews.

Some of the models suggested in the report are the US-based Webster University in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom’s University of Nottingham in Ningbo, China and Singapore Institute of Management’s partnership with the University at Buffalo (UB) School of Management, located at the State University of New York at Buffalo for its Bachelor of Science degree program in business administration offered in Singapore, among others.

Full report on www.toi.in

In a survey, where 43 internationally ranked universities participated, 16 said they are not considering a campus here, and another 16 are undecided. The eight which expressed interest claimed they would prefer Indian students to begin with to ensure sufficient enrolments and sustainability of their venture

50 students to get into Madurai AIIMS this year

50 students to get into Madurai AIIMS this year

Madurai:18.07.2021

Preliminary work on the AIIMS facility for Madurai will begin this year and 50 students are to be enrolled from this academic year. However, construction work on the project will begin only in 2023 and is expected to be completed in 2026, Virudhunagar MP Manickam Tagore has said. The MP, who attended the first virtual meeting of Madurai AIIMS held on Friday and presided by the president of JIPMER Dr V M Katoch and president of the AIIMS institute committee, said one of the takeaways of the meeting was the handing over of 220 acres to the Union government. The Centre has allowed the appointment of 180 faculty members and 120 non-faculty staff for the AIIMS facility, he said. TNN

First year admissions to start after July 31 & end by Sept 30: UGC

First year admissions to start after July 31 & end by Sept 30: UGC

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:18.07.2021 

University Grants Commission (UGC) on Friday directed all colleges and higher educational institutions to commence the admission process only after July 31 by when all boards are expected to declare Class XII results.

Tamil Nadu Directorate of Government Examinations (TNDGE) said Class XII results would be declared on July 19. Though UG admissions would commence after Class XII results for state board students are released, the TN higher education department asked all colleges to commence admissions for 2021-22 on August 1 after the declaration of CBSE Class XII results.

As per UGC’s academic calendar for 2021-22, colleges must wind up admissions before September 30 and the academic session must commence latest by October 1.

However, the UGC left the planning of semester exams, break, commencement of next semester and exams with concerned universities and autonomous colleges. The next academic year for the 2021-22 batch will begin on August 1, 2022.

“In view of the financial hardships faced by parents due to lockdowns and related factors, the commission asked all colleges to refund full fees for cancellations of admissions or migrations up to October 31 as a special case. It said there should be zero cancellation charges till October 31 and thereafter, the college should refund full fee after deducting process fee not more than ₹1,000,” the UGC said in its guidelines.

Loyola College principal Thomas Amirtham said arts and science colleges may not need two months for the admission process and online classes for first year students may commence much earlier. “In the present academic schedule, it is not possible to have a long summer break. The schedule also allows each state to adapt according to their local Covid-19 situation,” he said, adding that the online classes are likely to continue for a few more months.

D G Vaishnav College principal S Santhosh Baboo said colleges may be looking to wind up the admission process quickly. “Even if colleges are allowed to reopen, science students will be called to do practicals in person while theory classes will be online,” he said.

As per UGC’s academic calendar for 2021-22, colleges must commence the academic session latest by October 1

All FIRs of CB-CID, CCB uploaded online, police inform HC

All FIRs of CB-CID, CCB uploaded online, police inform HC

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:18.07.2021 

Nudged by the Madras high court, the Chennai city police have uploaded all FIRs registered by the central crime branch (CCB) and the CB-CID on the crime and criminal tracking network system (CCTNS).

Filing a status report, the Chennai city commissioner of police informed the court that it had now complied with the order passed by the Supreme Court in 2016 making it mandatory to upload FIRs to the tracking system.

Recording the submission, the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy said, “in the light of such a report, it appears that the local authorities are alive to their obligation in terms of the order of the Supreme Court.”

The issue pertains to a PIL moved by advocate M Balaji alleging that the 2016 order of the apex court had not yet been complied by the state government.

On April 2, the court directed the Tamil Nadu government to indicate measures taken to upload all the FIRs registered in the state online in the website of the police or any other official website as directed by the Supreme Court in 2016.

“If appropriate measures have not been taken already, such measures should be devised expeditiously…” the court had said.

The petitioner alleged that FIRs once registered have to be uploaded to the website within 24 hours, however, the department fails to do so.

Replying to an RTI application seeking details of such FIRs, the police said FIRs had not been uploaded due to sensitivity of cases. Facilities to view the FIR of CCB in the official website are not programmed right from the beginning, the petitioner said.

The commissioner of police informed the court that the department had complied with the order passed by the SC in 2016

Record rain for a July day floods roads, hits traffic

Record rain for a July day floods roads, hits traffic

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:18.07.2021

Rain buffeted the city for the second consecutive evening, breaking the record of highest 24-hour rain for July since 2018 and leaving many streets waterlogged. Nungambakkam recorded 69.5mm, highest since the 84mm recorded on July 10, 2017. While both Nungambakkam and Meenambakkam recorded excess rain since June 1, weathermen have forecast thunderstorms with light to moderate rain in the next two days.

“There is an upper-air circulation between 3.1km and 4.6km altitude and south-westerly winds are pushing moisture below which brought the rain. The circulation supported the convective activity and brought thunder along with rain,” said N Puviarasan, director, Area Cyclone Warning Centre, IMD, Chennai. Nungambakkam station recorded more rain on Friday (60.5mm) and Saturday (69.5mm) than Meenambakkam’s 14.4mm and 23mm. Between June1 and July 16, Nungambakkam recorded 176.2mm and Meenambakkam 171.7mm, which are 51.7mm and 32.4mm excess for the period. Chennai subdivision registered with 171.6mm against a normal 130.6mm, an excess of 31%.

West Tambaram recorded 24mm, Villivakkam 57mm, Taramani 15mm and Chembarambakkam 16mm as of 7.30pm on Saturday. The downpour left many roads in north Chennai and a few in the south like Velachery inundated forcing motorists to tread slowly. Joint commissioner of police Lalitha Lakshmi and her team monitored waterlogging on streets and field staff cleared them with the help of corporation staff. “We are taking action based on posts on social media by road users,” said Pradip Kumar, additional commissioner of police (traffic).

On Friday evening, heavy rain had caused waterlogging and kept policemen and corporation staff on their toes. Two uprooted trees were cleared within 20 minutes. On Saturday, the corporation operated pumps to push out water from subways like Ganesapuram in Royapuram and the one opposite Loyola College in Nungambakkam. A senior corporation official said Saturday's spell was one of the biggest this season, but in most areas, stagnant water cleared off soon.

DELUGED: Bazzar Road near Madipakkam on Saturday

Five school employees involved with Sankar Baba case go missing

Five school employees involved with Sankar Baba case go missing

A.Selvaraj@timesgroup.com

Chennai:18.07.2021

The CB-CID police who are probing the sexual harassment case of Siva Sankar Baba have summoned five school teaching and non-teaching staff to inquire about Baba, who is now detained in Puzhal prison. But all five could not be traced.

Baba, founder of the Sushil Hari International Residential School, is facing three Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act cases, police said.

Police who went to deliver the summons found all five residences were locked. Police said they would have got the wind of the investigations and dissappeared.

An investigating officer said, “We have planned to summon all teaching and non-teaching staff in the school.” Police asked the school administration to hand over details of the staff. “We are yet to get their credentials,” he said.

Headmistress Gayathri, a teacher Praveena and three non-teaching staff who gave an interview to reporters recently claiming “Baba is great” and the sexual harassment reported was not within the school premises.

Police are trying to trace the absconding members, while another police team is gathering information on the the school management and staff on their rolls.

A police officer said, “We will inquire 10 staff on a daily basis to get their statement which will be included in the first information report (FIR).

The Mamallapuram allwomen police based on three complaints on June 12 booked Siva Sankar Baba and the case was transferred to the CB-CID on June 13. Police apprehended Baba from a lodge at Chittaranjan Park in Delhi on June 16.

Police are trying to trace the absconding members, while another team is gathering information on the the school management and staff on the rolls

Admission in colleges only after July 31

Admission in colleges only after July 31

18.07.2021

UGC has directed all colleges to commence admission only after July 31 by which date all boards would have declared Class XII results. TN state board results will be declared on July 19. TN higher education department has already asked colleges to start admissions only from August 1. The UGC in its new academic calendar guideline for 2021-22 said that final-year exam (2020-2021) be compulsorily conducted in offline (pen and paper)/ online/ blended (online and offline) mode. The new academic year for fresh batches will start from October 1, 2021

Tamil Nadu's Attempt To Circumvent NEET

Tamil Nadu's Attempt To Circumvent NEET: Lately, the State of Tamil Nadu had been mulling over on the aspects of circumventing the NEET exams to enable admissions in medical institutions. However, such an object of the State is most...

Right To Be Forgotten- An Acquitted Accused Entitled To Redact His Name From The Judgment, To Protect His Privacy: Madras High Court

Right To Be Forgotten- An Acquitted Accused Entitled To Redact His Name From The Judgment, To Protect His Privacy: Madras High Court: The Madras High Court observed on Friday that an accused person who is eventually acquitte

Pondicherry University to conduct all examinations online from July 19

Pondicherry University to conduct all examinations online from July 19

The university has directed principals to send question papers through e-mail. After three hours, students are expected to scan the papers written by them and send them to the principals.

Published: 16th July 2021 07:18 PM 

By Express News Service

PUDUCHERRY: Pondicherry University on Friday announced that it would conduct all theory examinations scheduled from July 19 online.

According to a release from the Controller of Examination of the University, this will not be applicable to undergraduate and post graduate medical and dental courses as well as examinations which are not yet to be scheduled. The practicals can be conducted online, only when simulation is possible, otherwise practical exams are to be conducted offline.

The university has directed the principals to send question papers through e-mail and students can write in A4 size white paper with black ink. After three hours, students are expected to scan the paper written by them and send it to the principals within 30 minutes of the scheduled time of examination.

The principals have to print out the papers submitted, authenticate by affixing the college seal on the first page, bundle them and sent them to the university on the same day, said the release.

Private colleges fixing targets for faculty to enrol students?

Private colleges fixing targets for faculty to enrol students?

Exploiting their ‘helplessness’, several private colleges are allegedly forced their faculty members to enroll students through telecalling and have fixed targets for each of them.

Published: 17th July 2021 04:02 AM

By Express News Service

COIMBATORE: Exploiting their ‘helplessness’, several private colleges are allegedly forced their faculty members to enroll students through telecalling and have fixed targets for each of them. A faculty member of a private college, on condition of anonymity, said, “Violating State government order, many private colleges are conducting student admission on seat-booking basis and collecting fees ranging from Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 depending on courses.

Besides, authorities have given target of calling at least 100 parents daily and ensure at least three students are admitted every day. Professors have turned into telecallers in second-grade colleges, and are chasing students and parents for admission.”

Saying that telecalling was stressful, he said the authorities treated them badly in front of others if they did not meet their target. “The Higher Education Department should intervene in this issue and protect us,” he demanded. A woman faculty member said, “When we call parents and solicit admission, they invariably scold us for disturbing them during work hours. Some even abuse us. As a result, a few professors felt depressed. If we took it up with the authorities, they would say the target should be completed. We continue work here as we don’t have other options to earn a livelihood.”

A HoD in a private college said, “We face this issue every year. Colleges treat us like slaves, and State government is silent.” According to sources, online classes have been stopped temporarily for the second and third-year students, as professors are engaged in admission work.

NR Ravishankar, a former professor and president of Consumer Awareness and Protection Association, said, “Director of Collegiate Education should send a circular that colleges should not involve professors in admission work and conduct an online meeting with the principals about it. The Regional Joint Director of Collegiate Education should monitor and inspect the colleges directly to check whether professors are involved in the admission work or not.”

He alleged that many joint directors were being lethargic in their duty without inspecting the colleges, and if it continued, a bad name would come up on the new government. When asked about it, Higher Education Secretary D Karthikeyan said that he would look into the issue through Director of Collegiate Education.

TNSTC bus conductor uses saliva to tear ticket, passengers create ruckus

TNSTC bus conductor uses saliva to tear ticket, passengers create ruckus

Old habits die hard, some could prove deadly in this pandemic situation.

Published: 17th July 2021 04:28 AM 

By Express News Service

TIRUPPUR: Old habits die hard. Some could even prove fatal during an ongoing pandemic. Passengers travelling on a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus from Coimbatore on Friday freaked out on seeing the conductor wet his finger using saliva to tear up the tickets. Driven by fear of Covid spread, the passengers reported the incident to the health officials, who warned him and collected his swab samples.

An official from the health department said that the bus was moving towards Tiruppur city and the conductor used his saliva to tear the tickets. The passengers reportedly asked him not to do that but he refused and continued with his work. Following this, health officials arrived intercepted the bus in front of the Collectorate and collected swab samples from the conductor.

The results would be announced in two days, the official added. An official in TNSTC (Coimbatore) said, “We have instructed about the Covid norms to conductors and drivers to be implemented in the bus. Besides, we have also issued instructions not to tear tickets with saliva. But the conductor has violated the instruction. An inquiry will be formed.”

Exams will be conducted in offline mode too

Exams will be conducted in offline mode too

However, some students were willing to write the paper in offline mode. Taking note of it, the university has taken such a decision.

Published: 17th July 2021 05:47 AM 

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Dr Ambedkar Law University has decided to conduct all its semester examination for 2020-21 in offline mode also, said the university in a statement. Earlier, in view of the prevailing Covid- 19 situation, the university had announced to conduct all semester examinations through online mode from July 19.

However, some students were willing to write the paper in offline mode. Taking note of it, the university has taken such a decision. The university has said in its statement, that candidates who have already registered for online semester examinations may take their online examinations as per schedule.

If any of the registered candidates not willing to appear in the online examinations due to various reasons, candidate is permitted to write their examinations through offline mode, as and when the university schedules the examinations, after normalcy returns. Such candidates will not have to pay any additional fee to appear in the offline examinations as and when conducted.

Madras HC fixes error after ‘semen’ mistype gets man acquitted

Madras HC fixes error after ‘semen’ mistype gets man acquitted

The petitioner said her two-year-old daughter was sexually abused by her neighbour in 2017, after she left the girl with him and went to buy groceries.

Published: 17th July 2021 05:53 AM 

Madras High Court

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Observing that a typographical error in recording the word ‘semen’ as the Tamil word ‘semmann’, meaning red soil, cannot contribute to the acquittal of a man booked under the POCSO Act for sexually assaulting a child, the Madras High Court has set aside a trial court order that acquitted him of all charges. The issue pertains to the victim’s mother moving a plea in the High Court, seeking for the trial court order to be set aside.

The petitioner said her two-year-old daughter was sexually abused by her neighbour in 2017, after she left the girl with him and went to buy groceries. The weeping child told her the neighbour “kissed” her on her private parts. The victim’s mother found semen on the child’s underwear, and then called her husband, who was out of station at the time.

The trial court in 2018 misinterpreted an error made by a typist during the trial. The word ‘semen’ was mistakenly written as ‘semman’. The defence counsel exploited the technical error to suggest that no semen was found in the girl’s undergarments, and the accused was acquitted on those grounds. Justice P Velmurugan, who heard the appeal, in his orders lamented the investigation and the trial court verdict.

“The trial courts also, sometimes not applying their minds and exercising their inherent or discretionary power, either to direct for reinvestigation or summon relevant records... are searching for proof beyond reasonable doubt, and taking advantage of the flaw in the investigation, giving the benefit of doubt to the accused. But (in) cases like this, we cannot give much importance to the technical ground of proof,” he said. The court further said that under Section 29 of the POCSO Act, 2012, it is for the accused to defend himself once the prosecution proved the offence and the court had drawn its presumption.

This Act stands in contrast to the general principle of criminal law, which says a person is innocent until proven guilty. The judge stressed that, “... the trial court misinterpreted the typographical error of ‘semman’ and attributed a wrong meaning to it. Hence, there is danger in writing an English word in Tamil, which totally turned the case of the prosecution, and admittedly, the defence side has taken flimsy defence that the mother stated as “semman colour,” the court observed.

The court added that no mother of a victim, especially an illiterate woman in a rural area, would immediately go to the police in such cases and the prosecution and court failed in their duties when they stressed technicalities such as a delay in lodging the complaint. The high court, ordering the accused to be present before it for sentencing, observed, “... the mere defect in the investigation is not fatal to the case of the prosecution and the second respondent/accused cannot be acquitted on the sole ground of defective investigation.”

மானாமதுரை பேரூராட்சி நகராட்சியாக தரம் உயர்வு

மானாமதுரை பேரூராட்சி நகராட்சியாக தரம் உயர்வு

Added : ஜூலை 16, 2021 23:37

மானாமதுரை-மானாமதுரை பேரூராட்சி உட்பட தமிழகத்தில் 35 பேரூராட்சிகள் நகராட்சிகளாக தரம் உயர்த்தப்பட உள்ளதாக தகவல் வெளியாகியுள்ளது.சிவகங்கை மாவட்டத்தில் வளர்ந்து வரக்கூடிய பேரூராட்சிகளில் மானாமதுரை முதல் இடத்தில் உள்ளது. மானாமதுரையை ஒட்டியுள்ள மாங்குளம், கொன்னக்குளம், கீழமேல்குடி உள்ளிட்ட ஊராட்சிகளைச் சேர்ந்த பகுதிகள் பேரூராட்சி எல்லையை ஒட்டி விரிவடைந்து வருகிறது.தற்போது 40 ஆயிரத்திற்கும் மேற்பட்ட மக்கள் தொகை உள்ள மானாமதுரை பேரூராட்சியை தரம் உயர்த்தி நகராட்சியாக மாற்ற வேண்டும் என்று கடந்த சில ஆண்டுகளாக பல்வேறு அமைப்பினர் கோரிக்கை விடுத்து வந்தனர்.இந்நிலையில் தமிழகத்தில் மானாமதுரை உட்பட 35 பேரூராட்சிகள்,நகராட்சிகளாக தரம் உயர்த்தப்பட உள்ளதாக தகவல் வெளியாகியுள்ளது. மானாமதுரை பேரூராட்சி அதிகாரி ஒருவர் கூறுகையில், மானாமதுரை பேரூராட்சியை நகராட்சியாக தரம் உயர்த்த வேண்டும் என்று அரசுக்கு முன்பே கருத்துரு அனுப்பப்பட்டுள்ளது,அதனடிப்படையில் தற்போது நகராட்சியாக மாற்றும் வாய்ப்பு உள்ளது, என்றார்.

Bus conductor who licked tickets takes Covid test

Bus conductor who licked tickets takes Covid test

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Coimbatore:17.07.2021 

The Tirupur city corporation on Friday collected nasal swabs from a government bus conductor for Covid-19 testing as he was applying saliva on tickets to single them out from the bundle before issuing the same to passengers.

According to an official source, passengers had raised objections when 47-year-old Gunasekaran, a conductor with a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) mofussil bus, used his saliva to single out tickets for issuing the same to them, citing the pandemic situation.

“However, Gunasekaran didn’t pay heed to them. He also didn’t wear the face mask properly. A corporation official was also travelling in the bus. The official alerted an urban primary health centre. Health workers subsequently collected nasal swabs from the conductor from the bus stand opposite to the collector’s office on Palladam Road,” the source said.

Meanwhile, the district chapter of TNSTC has launched an inquiry into the incident. An official said they had directed all the conductors and drivers to maintain hygiene inside the buses to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Passengers had raised objections when 47-year-old Gunasekaran, a conductor with a TNSTC mofussil bus, used his saliva to single out tickets

Sudden showers catch many Chennai residents unwares

Sudden showers catch many Chennai residents unwares

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:17.07.2021 

Many localities of the city recorded light to moderate rainfall for over 30 minutes on Friday evening.

The Met department has forecast light to moderate rain to continue across the city and neighbourhood in the next 48 hours. Bloggers said the city and the neighbouring districts have a high probability of rain till July 20. Meteorologists said the evening showers were due to strong westerlies that drive the southwest monsoon pushing moisture towards the east coast over the already warm zone. This led to convective spells.

Friday evening saw light to moderate rainfall over many parts of the city and suburbs for over 30 minutes in Nungambakkam, West Mambalam, Vyasarpadi, Korattur, Ambattur, Avadi, Chromepet, Iyyappanthangal and Poonamallee. IMD’s rain gauges recorded the highest rainfall at Villivakkam (70mm), Sathyabhama University (46.5mm) and Nungambakkam (48mm) till 7.30pm. Between June 1 and July 16, Chennai subdivision recorded 126.7mm rainfall, which is equal to the normal rainfall of 126.8mm expected in this period.

Blogger Pradeep John, in his online post, said the city and the suburbs may continue to receive sudden evening spells till July 20 before a low pressure is likely to form close to Odisha coast.

Tambaram-Trichy highway to do away with blackspots, get safer

Tambaram-Trichy highway to do away with blackspots, get safer

NHAI Sanctions 105 Crore To Cut Down On Accidents, Improve Infra Along Stretch

Ram.Sundaram@timesgroup.com

17.07.2021 

In a bid to cut down on accidents along the Tambaram-Trichy highway (NH-45), the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has sanctioned `105 crore for constructing bridges, vehicle underpasses, additional lighting facilities and improving road alignment.

The fund allocation comes almost eight years after NHAI identified risky stretches on the NH-45. The highway is one among the top ten most perilous road stretches in the country with 27 accident ‘blackspots’ — a 500m stretch where at least five fatal accidents were reported in a year. At least 40 people died in road accidents at some of these 27 blackspots on NH-45.

NHAI was under fire for failing to take adequate measures to reduce accidents at these places identified in 2012. Tenders were floated but work got delayed due to legal issues and land acquisition hassles.

It was only last year that work started at half-adozen blackspots on the Tambaram-Tindivanam stretch at a project cost of `9 crore. This includes road junctions at Singaperumal Koil, Kattankulathur, Marimalaimagar, Paranur railway bridge and Acharapakkam.

NHAI, which cleared obstacles that caused accidents, put in place metal-beam crash barriers, rumble strips, additional speed breakers, road studs, traffic signals and retro-reflective traffic sign boards.

Construction of pedestrian bridges and installation of pedestrian guard rails were pending at a few locations, an NHAI official from Chennai Regional Office said.

“Blackspot rectification work was delayed due to the lockdown but it has reached the final stage now. We expect to finish it by July-end,” the official added.

However, motorists, who use the Tambaram-Trichy stretch regularly, said their complaints pertaining to street lights have gone unattended.

During the entire lockdown period, road lights near Singaperumal Koil junction were dysfunctional, said G Ganesh from Tamil Nadu Lorry Owners Association. “Several motorists get blinded by the high beam without street lights,” he said.

NHAI had outsourced maintenance work of street lights on the stretch to a private contractor, but were unable to find electricians during the lockdown, Ganesh added.

Tenders have also been floated this month to rectify accident blackspots at Mamandur, Arasur and Ellis Chatram along Tindivanam-Ulundurpet stretch.

NHAI has set a one-year deadline to complete these infra projects.

On the progress of the project, public transport activist R Rengachari said, “The government should also speed up enforcement measures. The Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system proposed for NH-45 has been pending for years now”.

ANPR project aims at installing 56 speed sensors and 168 cameras between Chennai and Trichy to automatically detect vehicles travelling above 100 km per hour and penalise them.

Right to be redacted: HC to study status of an acquitted man

Right to be redacted: HC to study status of an acquitted man

K.Kaushik@timesgroup.com

Madurai:17.07.2021 

As a simple Google search can make or mar a person’s character, his/her name should be redacted (obscured for legal or security purposes) from judgments if he/she is acquitted in a criminal case, the Madras high court has opined.

Invoking an individual’s right to privacy and the right to be forgotten, Justice N Anand Venkatesh said a Google-search would bring up court judgments, and a person’s name would be shown against alleged crimes even after he was acquitted of all judgments. However, considering the deep ramifications a redact order would bring along, the high court has chosen to hear the views of members of the Bar, including the prosecution, before passing a detailed order on the issue.

A man who was tried for rape and cheating, was convicted and sentenced by a trial court in 2011, but he was acquitted of all charges by the high court in 2014. He has now approached the high court for redacting his name from the judgment.

Justice Anand Venkatesh observed that the petitioner is now facing a very peculiar problem as his name gets reflected in the judgment as an accused, though he was acquitted of all charges. “Unfortunately, whoever types the name of the petitioner in Google-search is able to access the judgment of this court. According to the petitioner it causes a serious impact on his reputation in the eyes of the society,” he said.

Agreeing with the man’s contention, the court said, “today, the world is literally under the grips of social media,” adding that the background of a person is assessed by everyone through Google-search and the first impression is created depending upon the data that is provided. “It will make or mar the characteristics of a person in the eyes of the society,” observed Justice Anand Venkatesh.

The existing laws protect the identity of women and child victims, and their names are not reflected in any order passed by a court, the judge said, adding: “This right has not been extended to an accused person who ultimately is acquitted from all charges.”

The judge further observed it is also brought to the notice of this court that when a similar issue came up before the Delhi high court recently, interim orders were passed directing the websites concerned to redact the name of the petitioner. “It is also informed to this court that a new right called the ‘Right to be Forgotten’ is sought to be included in the list of rights that are already available under Article 21 of the Constitution,” he said.

Justice Anand Venkatesh then observed that though the court found that there was a prima facie case made out by the petitioner and that he was entitled for redacting his name, “this court wants to hear counsel appearing for the respondents and also the members of the Bar and understand the various ramifications before writing a detailed judgment on this issue.”

The judge requested the assistance of the Bar members in this case and posted the case to July 28 for further hearing.

Lockdown extended for 2 wks; edu institutes to remain shut: Stalin

Lockdown extended for 2 wks; edu institutes to remain shut: Stalin

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:17.07.2021

The Tamil Nadu government on Friday announced extending lockdown by two weeks ending 6am on July 31.

In an official statement, chief minister M K Stalin said that certain activities, remained prohibited, including inter-state public and private transport except Union territory of Puducherry, international air travel except the purposes permitted by the Union home ministry, cinema theatres, all liquor bars, swimming pools, all social, political gatherings, entertainment, sports and cultural events, schools and colleges and zoological parks.

“A maximum of 50 persons will be permitted for marriage events and 20 persons in funeral/last rites in a bid to contain the spread,” the chief minister said. The already permitted activities will continue in the state, except containment zones.

Stalin said that industrial training institutes (ITIs) and industrial schools, and typewriting/ shorthand institutes shall function with 50% students at a time and on a rotation basis from Monday. Teachers will be allowed to work in schools to facilitate admission of students, distribution of books and preparation of syllabus.

A maximum of 50 persons will be permitted for marriage events and 20 persons in funeral/last rites in a bid to contain the spread

MK STALIN  Chief Minister

Every decimal to count as no rounding off Class XII marks

Every decimal to count as no rounding off Class XII marks

Govt Move To Make College Admissions Hassle-free

Ragu.Raman@timesgroup.com

Chennai:17.07.2021 

A decimal point in Class XII marks can decide the fate of a student seeking admission in a college. That’s because marks will not be rounded off this year. This time, subject marks will have two decimal points to break the tie in ranking for engineering and arts and science seats.

An official in the school education department told TOI that Class XII marks will have two decimal points as per the government order. The department is introducing decimal points to avoid confusion in college admissions.

The directorate of government examinations (DGE) on Friday announced that the Class XII results will be declared on July19 and students can download their marksheets from July 22.

The state government cancelled the Class XII board exams due to Covid-19 second wave. As per the expert committee’s suggestion, it was decided to give weightage to Class X and XI board exams and Class XII practical and internal assessment. The Class X marks will carry a weightage of 50% while Class XI will carry 20% and Class XII will carry 30% weightage while computing marks.

Career consultant Jayaprakash Gandhi said there will be a lot of students in the same cut-off due to the weightage system followed this year for awarding marks to Class XII students.

“We suggested giving decimal points to break ties in deciding rank for admissions to professional courses including engineering, agriculture courses. National Testing Agency is giving JEE (Main) results in up to seven decimal points. State government has decided to give results in two decimal points and I welcome the move as it would partially solve problems during admissions,” he said.

He further suggested looking at Class XI maths, physics and fourth subject marks in addition to Class XII marks in maths, physics and fourth subjects, date of birth and random number to break tie while ranking the students. “There are possibilities that many students in Class XII would have scored full marks in maths,” he added.

G J Manohar, principal of MCC Higher Secondary School in Chetpet, said the move would help the colleges during admissions.

Some principals differed and said many students will lose the advantage of getting two or three extra marks. N Vijayan, principal of Zion Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Tambaram, said students may lose three to four marks by not rounding off their marks in each subject. “The universal rule is to discard marks less than 0.5 and add one mark to more than 0.5 mark. Marks with decimal points may lead to some confusion,” he said.

Agnes Rita, principal of GRT Mahalakshmi Vidhyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Ashok Nagar, too said it would be better to round off the marks.

We suggested giving decimal points to break ties in deciding rank for admissions for professional courses including those in engineering and agriculture. The National Testing Agency is giving JEE (Main) results in up to seven decimal points

JAYAPRAKASH GANDHI

Career consultant

Egmore station gets two more escalators

NEWS DIGEST

Egmore station gets two more escalators

17.07.2021

Southern Railway on Friday opened two escalators at Chennai Egmore railway station allowing people to access the Gandhi Irwin Road. The station has five escalators, and the new ones have been installed in the area near the main entrance where people get down from autos and cabs. The facility was inaugurated by M Selvaraj, a commercial assistant retiring this month. Egmore railway station that has 11 platforms handles around 1.2 lakh commuters daily.

Vax priority for pregnant, lactating women & TB patients: Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has announced that pregnant women, lactating mothers and patients with tuberculosis will be given priority at its Covid-19 vaccine centres. GCC has requested these women and patients to get their jabs soon. According to official data, a total of 733 pregnant women, 2,328 lactating women and 143 TB patients have received vaccinations till date.

Financial aid for unemployed youth: The Kancheepuram district employment exchange has invited applications from unemployed youth for its monthly financial assistance scheme. According to the scheme guidelines, youth who did not pass Class X are eligible to get ₹200 as assistance every month, Class XII passed candidates and graduates can get ₹300-₹600 per month. To apply for the assistance, visit www.tnvelaivaaippu.gov.in

‘Semen’ becomes ‘semman’, rapist almost escapes

HC ORDERS 5-YR JAIL

‘Semen’ becomes ‘semman’, rapist almost escapes

Srikkanth.D@timesgroup.com

Chennai:17.07.2021 

A typographical error of ‘semen’ being recorded as ‘semman’ (which means red sand in Tamil) almost allowed a rape accused to go scot-free, before the Madras high court stepped in and reversed his acquittal by a lower court.

Instead of mentioning that a two-and-a-half-year-old girl’s genitals had traces of ‘semen’, the chargesheet mentioned it as ‘semman’ — meaning red soil in the genitals. Citing the ‘dirt’ that might have got stuck as the child might have been playing around, the Tiruvarur district Mahila court freed the offender from the case. Justice P Velmurugan of the Madras HC, however, sentenced S Prakash of Tiruvarur district to five-year jail term and directed the government to pay ₹1 lakh compensation to the girl. In September 2017, Prakash raped the child when her mother stepped out to buy food. On her return, the mother found the child crying and noticed a white liquid on her private parts. She admitted the child to a hospital and lodged a complaint. The prosecution told the HC that while recording evidence before the trial court, the word ‘semen’ in English was typed as ‘semman’ in Tamil.

‘Culprits are escaping due to tech reasons’

Taking advantage of the mistake committed by a typist during trial, the defence had argued that what the mother found on her child was ‘red colour soil’ (semman) and no semen was found in the child’s undergarments.

Justice Velmurugan said the investigating officer should have made more effort, and added: “Culprits are escaping due to technical reasons and, unfortunately, investigation wing is also not up to the standard. The trial court also, at times, are not applying their minds and exercising their discretionary power either to direct for reinvestigation or searching for proof beyond reasonable doubt, giving benefit of doubt to the accused.”

Justice Velmurugan said in cases like these delay in filing FIR should not be fatal to the case of the prosecution. Pointing out that the police complaint clearly showed that the woman had meant white colour fluid and that it was the typist who wrote the English word ‘semen’ as ‘semman’ in ‘Tamil, the judge said, “admittedly, the defence side has taken flimsy defence that the mother stated as “semman colour.”

₹215 paid for one Covishield vax shot, ₹225 for Covaxin

₹215 paid for one Covishield vax shot, ₹225 for Covaxin

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi:17.07.2021 

The fresh vaccine orders placed by the Centre are at a revised price of ₹215 for Covishield and ₹225 for a dose of Covaxin, according to an official source.

While the Centre was earlier procuring vaccines at ₹150 a dose, it had indicated that it will revise vaccine prices after the changed procurement plan came into effect from June 21. “We are on path to achieving the target of 50 crore doses by July 31, this is crucial towards meeting our target coverage by end of this year,” the senior official said. Nearly 40 crore doses were administered across the country till 10pm Friday. On availability of Moderna vaccine, the government said talks are going on.

Discussions have not yet concluded, says V K Paul

While the Centre has indicated an availability of 13.5 crore doses for July, a fresh order of 66 crore doses for government procurement along with an additional advance payment already made by the Centre to reserve 30 crore doses of Biological E’s Covid vaccine are expected to boost supply.

“The logistic management has to be linked at production and availability at field level, and while we appreciate the concern of states to get more vaccine doses, we must also appreciate how government of India is increasing production and parallelly ensuring that 75% of doses are given free of cost to states,” health ministry joint secretary Lav Agarwal said.

“...to and fro (talks) are going on over the contractual specifics. Discussions have not yet concluded. Currently, they have to respond to some of the points we have made and we will take it forward,” NITI Aayog memberhealth Dr VK Paul said.

Exempt us from giving med seats for all-India quota: TN

Exempt us from giving med seats for all-India quota: TN

Request To Centre May Free Up 1,700 Addl Seats In State

Pushpa.Narayan@timesgroup.com

Chennai:17.07.2021 

Besides demanding exemption from NEET, Tamil Nadu has sought the Centre’s nod to free itself from allocating UG, PG and super-speciality medical seats in state-run institutions to All India Quota (AIQ), health minister Ma Subramanian has said. If the request is accepted, more than 1,700 more medical seats, including 500 MBBS seats, will be available for TN students, he said. But the decision may also deny TN students the option of getting into government medical colleges of other states. Every year, TN surrenders nearly 500 of 3,400 MBBS seats from 25 government medical colleges, 950 of 1,938 postgraduate seats in 14 TN government medical colleges and all the 184 DM seats and 95 MCh seats across 12 colleges to the central pool under AIQ.

Class XII state board results on July 19

TN state board Class 12 results will be declared at 11am on July 19. Students can access their results with DOB and roll number on the following websites: www.tnresults.nic.in, www.dge1.tn.nic.in, www.dge2.tn.nic.in, www.dge.tn.gov.in. Students will also receive their marks through SMS on their mobile numbers. P 3

‘Exemptions from AIQ seat-sharing sought’

A day after meeting Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya in New Delhi, Subramanian told reporters that as a part of the 13 demands from the state, the government has sought exemptions from seat-sharing for AIQ. “We are awaiting permission from the National Medical Commission to sanction the admission of 1,650 students to the11 new medical colleges in Tamil Nadu. Once we get the permission, we will start discussions regarding seatsharing,” he told reporters.

State governments surrender 15% of MBBS seats, 50% of PG medical seats and entire super-specialty seats for All India Quota, to enable the central government to admit students through a common pool. The medical counselling committee, under the directorate-general of medical services, admits students through a centralised online counselling based on marks obtained in NEET. If any of the surrendered seats remain vacant after two rounds of counselling, they are returned to the state.

If the state decides not to share seats with the Centre, then admission to all these medical seats will be done by the state selection committee attached to the directorate of medical education following merit in NEET and 69% rule of reservation. “This way we can ensure all seats in the state are reserved for students belonging to our state,” Subramanian said. “Admission to all super-specialty seats we created in our colleges will also be reserved for our students,” he said.

Doctors’ bodies and several political parties, including AIADMK, have been demanding 50% reservation of seats for OBC students, as per the 69% reservation formula in Tamil Nadu in the centralised counselling. “Many students from our state go to other states to study medicine after clearing PG NEET. They will lose that opportunity,” said former health minister C Vijayabaskar. Tamil Nadu has a large number of seats in government colleges, he said, adding: “We have to study the benefits of not sharing seats before making a policy decision.”

Supreme Court Sets Aside Allahabad HC Direction To Give Retrospective Effect To Enhancement Of Retirement Age In NOIDA

Supreme Court Sets Aside Allahabad HC Direction To Give Retrospective Effect To Enhancement Of Retirement Age In NOIDA: The Supreme Court has set aside a judgment of the Allahabad High Court which directed that retros

More Tamil Nadu cities included for NEET says Centre, as state renews plea to scrap the exam

More Tamil Nadu cities included for NEET says Centre, as state renews plea to scrap the exam

The board exams for class XII were cancelled owing to the pandemic and Tamil Nadu had announced the criteria for admitting students to colleges.

Published: 15th July 2021 08:00 PM 

By PTI

NEW DELHI/CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Minister for Medical and Family Welfare Ma Subramanian on Thursday demanded that the Centre scrap the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and allow the state to fill admissions to all professional courses on the basis of class XII marks.

The board exams for class XII were cancelled owing to the pandemic and Tamil Nadu had announced the criteria for admitting students to colleges.

It urged the central government to cancel all national level entrance exams like NEET, as it did with the CBSE board exams.

During his visit to the national capital, Subramanian called on Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and discussed with him several issues pertaining to Tamil Nadu, including scrapping of NEET.

"During the discussion, we explained about the recommendation of the retired judge A K Rajan committee while putting forth our demands. The union minister assured to examine the demands," Subramanian later told reporters.

The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu last month constituted the panel, headed by retired high court judge AK Rajan, to analyse if NEET had an adverse impact on students from backward classes and if so, the committee would recommend remedial measures to the government.

It had submitted its report on Wednesday, with Justice Rajan saying majority of representations don't want NEET.

Explaining to Subrmanian about the background of the Supreme Court's directions on conducting NEET, Pradhan told him that for the convenience of Tamil Nadu students, four new cities--Chengalpattu, Virudhunagar, Dindigul and Tiruppur have been added for conducting NEET.

"Also, shared with him that to cater to regional aspirations, number of languages being offered this year have been increased to 13 from 11 with the addition of Malayalam and Punjabi. The exam is already being conducted in Tamil language," Pradhan tweeted after the meeting.

Subramanian, referring to Pradhan's explanation, said "the very issue is about conducting NEET and also the syllabus and not about the examination centres. We had said that NEET saw the suicides of 13 students (in TN)". Pradhan had understood Tamil Nadu's concerns as his own state Odisha encountered problems due to NEET," Subramanian added.

Tamil Nadu was in favour of cancelling NEET and all national level entrance exams as conducting such tests during the pandemic was detrimental to the health and well-being of the students.

"Tamil Nadu government may be allowed to fill all professional seats including MBBSDSAYUSH courses on the basis of class XII marks alone," a memorandum submitted to Pradhan by Subramanian said.

It further stated it has been the "consistent and considered opinion" of Tamil Nadu that class XII marks alone be the basis for higher education admission and "conducting NEET deprives opportunities for rural students, majority of whom study in their mother tongue and lack resourcesaccess to coaching institutions."

Abolition of NEET is an election promise of the M K Stalin-led DMK which won the April 6 Assembly polls in the state.

Subramanian, who later called on Union Health minister Mansukh Mandaviya, said he had demanded 12 crore doses of covid vaccine to cover about six crore beneficiaries in Tamil Nadu.

The state had so far obtained about 1.70 crore covid vaccines.

"We told the union minister that we require 12 crore doses of the vaccines to provide two doses to six crore people. He has assured to fulfill the state's requirement," Subramanian said.

During the meeting, he presented 13 demands to the union health minister, including establishing a new AIIMS at Coimbatore besides expediting the Madurai AIIMS project.

The Union Minister had told him that he would look into the matter.

Also, he responded positively to the state's request for drugs to treat Black Fungus and assured to release Rs 800 crore to help the state government to launch appropriate measures to prevent the third Coronavirus wave.

"Health Minister, Government of Tamil Nadu, M Subramanian met me to discuss various issues of Tamil Nadu, including NEET (UG) 2021. Explained to him the background of the Supreme Court's directions in this regard."

"Also, shared with him that to cater to regional aspirations, the number of languages being offered this year have been increased, with the addition of Malayalam and Punjabi. The exam is already being conducted in the Tamil language," Pradhan said in a series of tweets.

The number of cities has increased to 18 from 14 last year.

The number of examination centres will also be increased, he said.

The meeting comes a day after a high-level committee, led by retired Madras High Court judge A K Rajan, handed over its report to Chief Minister M K Stalin on the impact of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) in Tamil Nadu and related issues due to its implementation.

A petition in the Madras High Court, seeking to quash the Tamil Nadu government notification, constituting the high-level committee on NEET, has been dismissed by the court.

Most parties, including the ruling DMK and main opposition AIADMK, are on the same page on NEET and have been demanding that the test be scrapped, arguing that it went against social justice, rural and government school students.

The NEET-UG which was earlier scheduled on August 1 has now been postponed to September 12.

Resistance remains, but it’s a NEET solution this year

Resistance remains, but it’s a NEET solution this year

Students glad their preparation won’t go in vain after Class 12 exams were scrapped

Published: 16th July 2021 04:55 AM 

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Though NEET is being vehemently opposed in the State, students are relieved at the announcement that the exam will be held on September 12 this year.

“We were getting worried as no date was announced. We didn’t know how medical colleges would admit students if the exam was not conducted this year. We have been preparing for it for the past two years,” said V Saraswathy, a NEET aspirant.

Not all students were happy that their Class 12 exams were cancelled and they would be evaluated based on their Class 10 and 11 marks and Class 12 pre-board exams. Many were worried the evaluation formulae decided would create problems in getting admission into professional courses.

Even those who oppose NEET are of the view that cancelling the exam this year would make things worse for students. “The Class 12 exams were cancelled, and the devised evaluation system does not do justice to those who improved their performance in Class 12. If even NEET is cancelled, it would become chaotic and would only add to the students’ burden,” said Parathasarathy D, father of a NEET aspirant.

Staff at coaching centres also feel NEET would be favourable for students this year as the National Testing Agency (NTA) has introduced changes in the exam pattern for NEET-UGUG 2021. The changes were made to rationalise school education boards’ decision to reduce the syllabus this year. In NEET (UG)-2021, each subject will be divided into two sections.

Section A will have 35 questions and Section B will have 15. In Section B, students will only have to attempt 10 questions. The total number of questions remains the same, and all questions will be in the multiple-choice format. “The new pattern will favour average students and they can easily score full marks,” said Sharath Kumar, a faculty at a NEET coaching centre.