Distance edu PG not enough to teach pre-law courses: HC

Distance edu PG not enough to teach pre-law courses: HC

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:21.08.2021

Candidates who obtained post-graduate degree through distance education or correspondence, and those with cross major degrees, are ineligible for appointment as assistant professor for pre-law courses in government law colleges, the Madras high court has ruled.

“Any recruitment to a post of teaching faculty in higher education is not intended to provide job opportunities to the potential candidates, but towards fulfilment of achieving higher academic standards. Although the court is conscious of the fact that distance education has become a social imperative considering the lack of education to vast majority of disadvantaged class, in the larger interest of institutional growth, the degrees obtained through distance education and correspondence cannot be considered as valid degree for appointments,” said a division bench of Justice V Parthiban and Justice N Kirubakaran (since retired).

The judges also directed the state authorities to revisit the entire criteria for appointment to the post of assistant professor or any other post in the teaching faculty in government law colleges in the state.

The notification stated that candidates would be eligible for the post only if they had a masters degree in law with not less than 55% of marks and if they had enrolled as an advocate in the Bar Council. A similar notification was also issued in 2014. These qualifications were prescribed apart from the main qualifications – PG degree in the subject concerned from the universities in Tamil Nadu with not less than 55% of marks and passing the National Eligibility Test (NET).

“The state authorities are to conform to the minimum standards set by the Bar Council of India and expedite the process of recruitment,” the bench said and disposed of a batch of petitions.

The court also ruled that notifications mandating that candidates must have enrolled as advocate and possess a master’s degree in law (ML degree) to be qualified for appointment as assistant professors for pre-law courses in government law colleges are irrational and illegal. The court, however, added that any appointments already made pursuant to the 2014 and 2018 notifications would not be affected by the ruling.

The court was referring to a notification issued in July 2018 by the Teachers Recruitment Board for the recruitment of assistant professors (pre-law) in government law colleges in Tamil Nadu for the year 2017-18.

Those Opting To Write The Test In Tamil Up by 16%

NEET applicants from TN fall by 7%

Those Opting To Write The Test In Tamil Up by 16%

Ragu.Raman@timesgroup.com

Chennai:21.08.2021

The number of students applying for NEET (National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test) 2021 from Tamil Nadu has dropped by 7% compared to previous year. For the second year in a row, the number of applicants from the state has dropped after reaching 1.4 lakh applicants before the pandemic in 2019.

From 1,21,617 applicants for NEET 2020, the number has come down to 1,12,889 for NEET 2021, according to National Testing Agency's registration data. Among the applicants, 71745 (63.5%) are female candidates and 41,144

(36.5) are male candidates.

Experts cite the delay in conducting the common medical entrance test and increase in the cut-off for medical admissions as reasons for dip in the applications.

Meanwhile, the number of students opting to write the exam in Tamil increased by 16% as the number went up from 17,101 in 2020 to 19,867 in 2021.

NEET 2021 is scheduled to be held on September 12, 2021.

"During the last two years, the cut-off for medical admissions increased by 100 marks. The current students are reluctant to take up the exam without coaching as the cut-off for government colleges has gone up to 570 and 580 marks. This year students did not attend even regular classes as the classes were held online. So, students who are mentally not prepared might have decided to apply after preparing for a year," said career consultant Jayaprakash Gandhi.

He further said the quota for government school students could be the reason behind the increase in the number of students opting to write in Tamil.

Students counsellors said the delay in conducting the NEET could be the reason for dip in applicants from Tamil Nadu.

"Due to the pandemic, the NEET exam has been conducted in September for the last two years. The more the medical admissions are delayed, students who are not confident and undecided are joining engineering colleges. If the NEET exam is conducted in May, the registrations will be more from Tamil Nadu," said Manickavel Arumugam, a students counsellor.

From government and government-aided schools, 11,236 students have applied to the exam. Last year, around 10,000 students applied for the exam.

Experts cite the delay in conducting the common medical entrance test and increase in the cut-off for medical admissions as reasons for dip in no. of applications

RTI Act

 

Nursing students from Salem positive for Covid 19

 

HC Judge

 

AIADMK meets guv with plaint on DMK’s ‘corruption, collection’

AIADMK meets guv with plaint on DMK’s ‘corruption, collection’

Says Govt Shows ‘Undue Interest’ In Kodanad Case

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:20.08.2021

A day after a war of words between the ruling DMK and the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu assembly over cases relating to burglary and suspicious deaths at late chief minister J Jayalalithaa’s Kodanad estate, an AIADMK delegation led by party coordinator O Panneerselvam and joint coordinator Edappadi K Palaniswami called on governor Banwarilal Purohit at the Raj Bhavan on Thursday and submitted a memorandum alleging “corruption and collection” by the DMK. The party charged the ruling DMK with “pursuing vendetta politics and showing undue interest in Kodanad estate cases.”

Questioning the way tender rules are being flouted by the government, the memorandum also said that “ultra-constitutional powers”, comprising chief minister M K Stalin’s family members, were controlling the government.

“When the Kodanad case is in court, how can CM Stalin say conducting reinvestigation is part of his party’s poll promise?” asked Palaniswami.

POINT BY POINT: Former CM Edappadi K Palaniswami and AIADMK coordinator O Panneerselvam in Chennai on Thursday

EPS: DMK showing undue interest in protecting accused

Palaniswami said, “All the witnesses in the Kodanad case have been examined and only the final hearing is pending in court. But the DMK is showing undue interest in protecting the accused and maligning the AIADMK.”

He was speaking to reporters after the party delegation met governor Purohit. Former AIADMK ministers S P Velumani, P Thangamani, C Ve Shanmugham and D Jayakumar, besides AIADMK deputy coordinators K P Munusamy and R Vaithilingam were part of the delegation.

The AIADMK delegation’s visit comes against the backdrop of a series of searches carried out by the DVAC on the premises of former ministers S P Velumani and M R Vijayabhaskar and renewed focus on investigation into the Kodanad heist and death cases. Questioning the motive of the DMK government, the AIADMK members had announced boycott of assembly proceedings for two days from Wednesday.

Palaniswami charged that cases were being foisted on former AIADMK ministers. He said the DMK government had sought to divert attention of the people after its white paper failed to cut much ice. “DMK had promised to abolish NEET soon after coming to power. While the parents of students are waiting anxiously, the DMK government has constituted a committee to decide further course of action on NEET,” Palaniswami said.

EPS alleged that the DMK government was under-reporting Covid numbers but going overboard on the Kodanad case. “Instead of focusing on containing the Covid pandemic, when the state is still reporting cases above 1,800 per day and with the threat of a third wave, the DMK government is focusing its attention on vendetta politics,” he said.

Neet-UG gets bigger as over 16L candidates register for it

Neet-UG gets bigger as over 16L candidates register for it

Manash.Gohain@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:20.08.2021

One of the biggest competitive undergraduate entrance exams, the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) or Neet-UG has got bigger, breaching the16 lakh registrations mark for the first time. The number of candidates appearing in Indian languages too increased significantly in the last five years – up from 1.05 lakh in 2017 to 3.4 lakh in 2021.

The exam will be conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on September 12, 2021. Analysing the 2021 registration data accessed exclusively by the TOI, the number of registrations have shown significant growth in the last five years, up from 11.38 lakh in 2017 to 16.14 lakh in 2021. The number of candidates registering increased by nearly a lakh between pre and post pandemic period.

Women have been dominating this field of study and in the last five years the number of female candidates have grown by 40.8%, with more than 9 lakh candidates registering for the latest edition of the Neet-UG.

Neet-UG is administered in 13 languages, including 12 Indian languages. While the number of candidates taking the exam in Hindi has more than doubled in the last five years – up from 1.2 lakh in 2017 to 2.28 lakh in 2021, other languages too have witnessed gradual increase in the number of candidates preferring to appear in their mother tongue.

Apart from Hindi, Gujarati has the highest number with nearly 50,000 aspirants, followed by Bengali with over 35,000 candidates and Tamil with close to 20,000 candidates.

There are six states which have more than two lakh candidates and comprise 53.4% of the total candidates. Maharashtra has been sending the largest number of candidates, registering 2.16 lakh in 2021, followed by Uttar Pradesh with 1.93 lakh aspirants and Rajasthan third with1.16 lakh registrations.

Full report on www.toi.in

Hindi reply to TN MP’s plea: Follow Official Languages Act, HC tells Centre

Hindi reply to TN MP’s plea: Follow Official Languages Act, HC tells Centre

K.Kaushik@timesgroup.com

Madurai:20.08.2021

Allowing Madurai MP Su Venkatesan’s plea that sought a direction to the Centre to ensure that all communications between the Centre and the state of Tamil Nadu and its people be in English alone, the Madras high court on Thursday directed the Centre to strictly follow the provisions of the Official Languages Act.

A division bench of Justice N Kirubakaran and Justice M Duraiswamy observed that once a representation is given in English, it is the duty of the Centre to send a reply only in English as the same would be in consonance with the provisions of the Official Languages Act.

Observing that this is an era of communication and information, the judges said a few languages in the country are thousands of years old and many are 100 years old. The governments should take steps for preservation and development of all languages.

Venkatesan had moved court after he received a Hindi reply from the ministry of state for home affairs to a representation he sent seeking to set up exam centres for the CRPF paramedical recruitment drive in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry last year.

The Centre submitted that the reply was in Hindi inadvertently. The Centre further submitted that there would not be any violation to the Official Languages Act and the Official Language Rules in the future. Recording the submissions, the judges directed the Centre, its officials and other instrumentalities to strictly follow provisions of the Act and Rules.

Justice Kirubakaran, famous for razor-sharp queries, retires

Justice Kirubakaran, famous for razor-sharp queries, retires

Srikkanth.D@timesgroup.com

Chennai:20.08.2021 

Be it his judgments or observations, Justice N Kirubakaran always had a lot to say — and most made headlines more often than not. His last day at office as judge of the Madras high court was no different.

At his farewell event on Thursday, Justice Kirubakaran, feted for his people-oriented judgments, sought regional benches of the Supreme Court and closure of Tasmac shops partially so that total prohibition would become a reality one day.

Justice Kirubakaran is best remembered for his relentless battle against the state’s liquor policy and strove to streamline legal education and practice. It was due to his series of rulings that the procedure to verify antecedents of lawyer-aspirants before enrolment was put in place. He had zero-tolerance when it came to encroachments and land grab by individuals and even corporates. He evolved a unique courtquery system of shooting dozens of questions to bureaucrats in order to unearth irregularities or set right anomalies.

In his farewell speech on Thursday, Justice Kirubakaran was earnest in his appeal to the legal fraternity, generous in complimenting his brother judges and his staff with the right dose of humour throughout.

Thanking his parents, Justice Kirubakaran became emotional and apologised to his wife and daughter for not having had enough quality family time throughout his career. He also recalled the guidance from his senior – the late Habibullah Basha, former advocate general of Tamil Nadu.

Candid in his self-introspection, Justice Kirubakaran said he was not a famous lawyer and that his elevation to the bench was to give representation to the vanniyar community. “However, I was never swayed by any considerations after I became a judge,” Justice Kirubakaran said.

He also heaped praise on the Supreme Court judge-designate Justice M M Sundresh for his guidance throughout his career. He even let down his guard, albeit intentionally, referring to Justice Sundresh as ‘machan’, triggering giggles from the audience. He also noted professional and emotional support from Justice M Sathyanarayanan, who is now NGT member in Pune from where he flew down to attend the function.

“Though I am demitting office today, I have failed in my endeavour to streamline legal profession and education and close down Tasmac,” Justice Kirubakaran said and appealed to the legal fraternity to work towards restoring the image of the lawyer community, which he felt has taken a beating over years.

As for the criticism that he often indulged in ‘judicial overreach,’ Justice Kirubakaran said he acted by his conscience. “Sometimes, I might have conducted a (judicial) kangaroo court, which is necessary in the interests of justice.”

Stating that New Delhi and Mumbai are power centres in judiciary, the retiring judge appealed to the union government to amend the Constitution and set up regional benches of the Supreme Court to serve people from every nook and corner of the nation.

Delhi HC dismisses plea of underage student seeking permission to sit in NEET-2021

Delhi HC dismisses plea of underage student seeking permission to sit in NEET-2021

ANI | Aug 17, 2021, 01.47 PM IST

 NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismisses a plea seeking direction to National Testing Agency (NTA) in order to allow petitioner/student who is 13 months underage for the entrance test NEET-2021 conducted by the testing agency.

The Bench of Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh on Tuesday while dismissing the plea, said we see no reason to entertain the matter, there are no substances. We find no reason to reduce to age criteria. Court also imposed a cost of Rs 10,000 on the petitioner.

The petitioner student also urged the court to direct NTA to amend impugned regulation concerned with minimum age criteria of 17 years as of December 2021 for first-year UG medical course for students appearing in the entrance test (NEET-2021) by replacing with 15 years similar to JEE-2021 for UG Engineering courses, as it is ultra vires to Indian Medical Council Act 1956.

The petition was filed by a minor student through advocate Surendra Kumar Yadav.

Medical Council of India issued an impugned Notification on Graduate Medical Education 1997 concerned with eligible age to appear in the entrance test for MBBS program. In Notification /Regulation, Eligibility Criteria for Admission to the Medical Course in connection with age is mentioned in para point no. 4.1 that "He/she shall complete the age of 17 years on or before 31 st December of the year of admission to the MBBS".

"The requirement of the age of 17 years on or before December 31 of the year of admission to the MBBS is not mentioned in the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956," the plea read.

"The Petitioner is a minor citizen of India. The date of birth of Petitioner as per documents is January 26, 2006 That Petitioner is an intelligent student and passed his matriculation in 2019 and class 12 exam in 2021," the plea added.

The petitioner said that he is suffering a lot mentally and psychologically day by day because he is not able to complete the registration on the website, the petitioner's lawyer argued.

Classmates of the petitioner are appearing for NEET-2021 but due to 13 months issue, Petitioner even cannot fill online form for the entrance test, the petitioner said.

"This shall also be a violation of Fundamental Rights enumerated in Article 14, 16, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India directly or indirectly for Petitioner citizen who is a student and want to peruse a UG Course in medicine," the petition said.

Delhi High Court Dismisses Challenge Against Minimum Age Condition In NEET; Imposes Rs. 10,000 Cost

Delhi High Court Dismisses Challenge Against Minimum Age Condition In NEET; Imposes Rs. 10,000 Cost

Akshita Saxena

17 Aug 2021 2:45 PM

The Delhi High Court dismissed today a student's plea seeking permission to appear in the NEET examination, despite being underage by 13 months. The Court also imposed a cost of Rs. 10,000 on the petitioner, to be deposited with DSLSA within four weeks for use in access to justice program.

The Petitioner, born in 2006, had challenged Regulation on Graduate Medical Education 1997, Rule 4(1) whereof prescribes minimum eligibility age of 17 years to appear in NEET. He stated that he is underage by merely 12 months and 26 days and sought permission to appear in the examination. He also submitted that the impugned Rule is almost 20 years old and does not contemplate that the present generation is "extremely brilliant".

The counsel for the Petitioner, Advocate Surendra Kumar Yadav, argued that the minimum eligibility age should be 15 years, keeping in mind the intellect of the present generation.

"If we allow this, tomorrow someone can come and say now the generation is more brilliant so make it 12 years, 7 years. How can we do it? It's a policy matter," Chief Justice DN Patel remarked at the outset.

However, as Yadav continued to press the petition, the Bench also comprising of Justice Jyoti Singh imposed cost on the petitioner. It observed that setting eligibility criteria is a policy matter which cannot be interfered with by Court. Further, if one underage student is allowed today, the Court will be flooded with similar petitions in the future.

In its order, the Bench said,

"It is ought to be kept in mind that primary role of court is to interpret the law as it is, where the law is explicitly clear and unambiguous. The court is not concerned with law as it ought to be.

The cut off age limit on or before 31st December of the year of admission to MBBS is a policy decision of the respondent. Contention raised by counsel for the Petitioner is that the Petitioner is underage by 12 months and 26 days which may be allowed. This is not permissible. If one Petitioner is allowed who is underage by 12 months and 26 days, tomorrow another Petitioner may come to the Court and he may say that he is underage by 12 months and 30 days and then 3rd Petitioner can come and say he is underage by 12 months and 35 days. The Court cannot allow such type of underage students in NEET exam in violation of the 1997 Rules."

Counsel appearing for the Respondent pointed out that the 1997 Regulations are not archaic, as alleged by the Petitioner, inasmuch as the same were reviewed in the year 2018. He stated that there are a catena of judgments, disallowing such petitions for age relaxation.

Read here:

Case Title: Master Akash Yadav (Minor) v. Union of India & Ors.

Second Covid wave claimed 53 doctors in TN

Second Covid wave claimed 53 doctors in TN

67 doctors died due to Covid in State during the first wave; now toll stands at 120

Published: 18th August 2021 05:35 AM 

By Sinduja JaneExpress News Service

CHENNAI: In the second wave of the pandemic, as many as 53 doctors from Tamil Nadu died from Covid-19 till the first week of August, said data collected by the Indian Medical Association.According to the State IMA members, in the first wave, 67 doctors had died, taking the tally to 120 in the second wave.

Last year in August, doctors deaths due to Covid triggered a controversy after the Indian Medical Association Headquarters released a data showing that 43 doctors in Tamil Nadu had died from Covid and its Tamil Nadu State’s branch said that the numbers were ‘incorrect’.

The issue became political after Udayanidhi Stalin, now MLA, had with data tweeted “A report reveals that TN tops in Covid-19 deaths of doctors. It’s a disgrace caused by the AIADMK government. The government, should clarify the condition of doctors treating infected patients and give them proper protection.”

After the tweet, the then Health Minister C Vijayabaskar, had condemned it and said legal action would be taken on people spreading false and unverified news on social media. Chief Minister MK Stalin has announced a solatium of Rs 25 lakh for 43 families of doctors who died due to Covid.Among them only two received the solatium and for others the government is in the process of giving it.

“Recently a GO has been passed on this. We are regularly updating the death report to the government,”said Dr A K Ravikumar, State Secretary, Tamil Nadu branch, Indian Medical Association.

“We request the government to extend solatium to the doctors who died in the second wave also,” said Dr Ravikumar.

Dr T Ramakrishnan, State President, IMA said,the data was collected from April 15 to till the first week of August. Indian Medical Association Headquarters is giving Rs 10 lakh to the families of the deceased doctors and the State IMA is also giving Rs 2 lakh.According to the Health Department data, 2.49 crore people were vaccinated till Monday, among them only 3.5 percent healthcare workers were vaccinated.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association made a short film under the title “Covid Injustice” and dedicated it to the doctors, healthcare and frontline workers who died from Covid.Dr M Akilan, State President, TNMOA said,”We wanted to tell people how doctors’ lives are put at risk.”

Madras HC judge MM Sundresh among nine to be elevated to SC by collegium

Madras HC judge MM Sundresh among nine to be elevated to SC by collegium

Among the nine judges named by the Supreme Court Collegium for elevation to the apex court is Justice MM Sundresh.

Published: 19th August 2021 05:28 AM |

MM Sundresh Madras HC judge

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Among the nine judges named by the Supreme Court Collegium for elevation to the apex court is Justice MM Sundresh. He is the third senior-most judge of the Madras HC. It was him who delivered the judgment that effectively banned the erection of advertisements, banners and hoardings near traffic signals.

A bench, headed by him, recently directed the CBI to probe into the death of pachyderms in the forest after a PIL alleged they were poached for ivory. Born in Erode, the 58-year-old completed his schooling and pre-university education there.

A graduate of the Loyola College and the Madras Law College, the judge was enrolled as an advocate in 1985 and served as a government advocate from 1991 to 1996. His precise presentation of cases on facts and law was well appreciated by the Bench and Bar.

He was also the Counsel for the TN Small Scale Industries Development Corporation. He was also a member of the Monitoring Committee overseeing the establishment of Reverse Osmosis System to Dyeing Units of Tiruppur, Karur and Erode. He also served as an Additional Judge of the Madras High Court in 2009 and was elevated as a permanent judge there in 2011.

TN not offering first dose of Covaxin any longer: Ma Subramanian

TN not offering first dose of Covaxin any longer: Ma Subramanian

So far, 2,03,07,691 people have received their first dose, and 48,58,628 people the second dose.

Published: 19th August 2021 05:31 AM |

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: With four lakh doses of Covaxin being needed to provide people with their second jabs, Tamil Nadu is no longer offering a first dose of the vaccine, said Health Minister Ma Subramanian on Wednesday.

According to the Health Minister, so far the State had received 39,08,250 doses of Covaxin and 36,31,545 doses had been administered. Private hospitals have a stock of 2,12,937 doses. The State has informed the Union Health Ministry that four lakh doses of Covaxin are needed to provide people with their second doses, he said.

As two doses of Covaxin are administered with a gap of just 28 days, there is a shortage. This is not the case with Covishield which has a longer gap between doses, the minister said, speaking to reporters at the Government Corona Hospital in King Institute, Guindy.

In Tamil Nadu so far 2.70 crore people have been vaccinated. The State had received 2.52 crore vaccine doses, excluding stock in private hospitals. The State has 8,89,877 doses of vaccine currently in stock and is expected to receive 27 lakh doses as part of its August supply from the Union Government in 13 days, the minister said.

So far, 2,03,07,691 people have received their first dose, and 48,58,628 people the second dose. As many as 2,74,011 pregnant women and 1,95,934 lactating mothers have received the vaccine in Tamil Nadu, Subramanian added.

The minister said that in five to 10 days a lab will be opened at the DMS campus by Chief Minister MK Stalin to conduct genome sequence analysis and detect coronavirus variants such as Delta. Equipment worth Rs 3 crore has been purchased for this and five medical technicians from Tamil Nadu were sent to InSTEM, Bengaluru for training.

In the two weeks since the launch of Makkalai Thedi Maruthuvam, 1.28 lakh people have benefited, he said.

Debate over credit for medical colleges

Debate over credit for medical colleges

Published: 18th August 2021 05:26 AM |

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The State Assembly witnessed heated moments on Tuesday with Minister Ma Subramanian and AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami entering into an argument over which party deserved credit for establishing 11 medical colleges in the State.

During a debate on the revised General Budget and the Agriculture Budget, AIADMK member VV Rajan Chellappa claimed that the erstwhile government led by his party was responsible for launching 11 medical colleges in the State within a year.

Replying to his claim, Ma. Subramanian said, “It was former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s decision to establish a medical college in every district, and he had also identified lands for six medical colleges and granted them administration sanction.”

Leader of Opposition Palaniswami intervened and said: “These medical colleges were established with the Centre and State partnership ratio of 60:40 due to the efforts of previous AIADMK-led governments.”

59-yr-old prof held for raping PhD scholar

59-yr-old prof held for raping PhD scholar

Jabalpur:18.08.2021

A PhD scholar at Rani Durgavati University in Jabalpur has accused a professor of raping her for six months on the threat to fail her in the examination.

Belbagh police station registered a case on the basis of her complaint and arrested the accused.

“She has complained that the accused had been harassing her for two years. Around six months ago, he went to her rented home, where she lived alone, and raped her by threatening to fail her in the exam,” said SI Sandhya Chandel.

“Thereafter, he continued to rape her. She complained to police once earlier but withdrew it after the professor apologised. However, on August 16, the professor again went to her house and raped her after which she filed a complaint,” SI Chandelsaid. TNN

Govt wants nod to admit 1,650 med students

Govt wants nod to admit 1,650 med students

Chennai:18.08.2021

Health minister Ma Subramanian on Tuesday said they are confident of getting the Union government’s nod to admit 1,650 students to the new medical colleges this year. As per the chief minister’s (M K Stalin) direction, he met the Union health minister and appealed to him to expedite the inspection of the 11 new medical colleges, said the minister, adding, “The experts' team completed the inspections in the state.” TNN

Stalin will decide on reopening of schools on August 20: Min

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:18.08.2021

Chief minister M K Stalin will take a call on reopening of schools and further relaxations on August 20, school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi told education officials on Tuesday.

The state government already announced that schools for Classes IX to XII will be reopened from September 1.

The government also announced that 50% of students will be asked to attend schools on alternate days. The chief minister will chair a meeting to announce Covid-19 relaxations on August 20. There is a demand from schools to open up for other schools also on a phased manner.

"Bridging learning loss will be a huge challenge when the schools reopen as students come back to schools after a long gap," the minister told the chief educational officers at a meeting in Chennai. The officials also discussed protocols to be evolved when the schools reopened from September1.

"The announcement of transforming education from rote learning to concept based learning was well appreciated. The chief educational officers should concentrate on generating funds for government schools through corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds from industries," the minister said.

He asked the CEOs to take a list of infrastructure needed for government schools in each district. "We are giving basic computer skills training to all teachers to equip them to take online classes for government school students. The hitech labs in government schools also need to be used to enhance the learning of children," he said.

The education officials also discussed developing EMIS (Educational Management Information System) portal, RTE (Right to Education act) admissions among other issues.

The school education department also sought district wise details like distribution of free laptops from 2011-22 to 2019-20 and the laptops kept in the custody of the department and also sought similar details like distribution of atlas, footwear, school bag and other welfare schemes

Irked at ‘spurious gurus’, HC rejects bail of Siva Baba

Irked at ‘spurious gurus’, HC rejects bail of Siva Baba

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:18.08.2021

Society's collective gullibility in matters of faith comes handy for fake godmen and the so-called spiritual gurus to exploit people to the hilt. The reverential faith reposed on such spurious Gurus by their multitude of minions stands betrayed at the eventual exposure of their wickedness hid behind the mask of spirituality, said Madras high court, dismissing a bail petition by C N Siva Shankaran alias Sivashankar Baba, who was arrested by CB-CID on charges of sexual abuse.

Justice M Dhandapani before whom the petition came up for hearing, expressed shock at the manner in which the common man, in spite of his intellect and faculties, is being brainwashed by persons, who, under the guise of spiritual awakening and intellectual liberation, commit perverted acts on the women folk, as is alleged in the present complaints.

Stating that it would not be in the interest of justice if the self-styled god man is granted bail as he is also booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, the court denied bail to the godman.

“Of late, our society has been a hapless witness to the mushrooming of self-styled Godmen and gurus who hold out promises of deliverance or salvation to the people who look upon them for answers for all their inner struggles, who are being driven to the point of despair and despondency. The society that is all-pervasively influenced by myriad religious people, become invariably susceptible to machinations at the hands of the phoney Gurus,” the court said and stated that the society needed to guard itself against the attempts by such gurus in exploiting the people's emotional dependence on external agencies/forces.

These spiritual gurus, the court observed, invariably end up exponentially successful in aggrandizement of their wealth, power and influence, which has a cascading detrimental effect on the common man.

Earlier, counsel for the accused argued that there is a fallacy in the prosecution theory. He said the godman is 74 years old and cited health reasons to enlarge him on bail.

Actor Suriya’s plea for income tax interest waiver junked by HC

Actor Suriya’s plea for income tax interest waiver junked by HC

Srikkanth.D@timesgroup.com

Chennai:18.08.2021

The Madras high court has declined to waive the interest on the income tax slapped on actor Suriya between 2007 and 2009.

Suriya, in his petition, contended that he was facing harassment from the I-T officials for quite some time. In October 2010, the department conducted searches at his office and residence and passed an assessment order a year later for 2007-08 and 2008-09. Counsel for the actor argued that compulsion to pay any unjust dues would cause hardships to the actor and he has been asked to pay interest in an unjust manner and cited previous Madras HC judgments in similar cases.

In its response, the I-T department submitted that the actor had not complied with three conditions stipulated under section 220 (2A) of the Income Tax Act for availing waiver of interest. “The case is not one where regular assessment has been passed. There was a search operation conducted in the actor’s premises, based on which the assessment orders were passed. There was noncooperation on part of the petitioner. Even in such circumstances, the petitioner had no intention to pay the interest based on the demand,” counsel submitted.

In such cases, the assessee is bound to pay the interest and thereafter, is at liberty to file an application seeking waiver of interest, counsel stated. While assessment orders were passed in 2011, application seeking waiver of interest was filed only in 2017. “Once the tax demand was not complied with, the department is entitled to claim interest under section 220 (2A) of Income Tax Act,” counsel stated.

Citing a report from officials which showed that the actor took more than 45 days to file return of income after the search, Justice S M Subramaniam said he had not cooperated in completion of the assessment. “The conduct of the assessee throughout the income tax proceedings is vital for the purpose of claiming waiver of interest,” the court observed and dismissed the petition.

Corpn offers free Wi-Fi at 49 places in city

Corpn offers free Wi-Fi at 49 places in city

Chennai:18.08.2021

The Chennai corporation will offer 30-minute free wi-fi at 49 locations, including Anna Tower Park, CDH, Tondiarpet, Gemini Junction, Marina Beach, Ashok Pillar, T Nagar and CMBT, from Tuesday. The service will be offered near smart poles that have CCTV cameras and emergency call buttons connected to the command centre at Ripon Buildings. Users need to select ‘smart city Wi-Fi’ and enter the one-time password sent to their mobile phones. The connection will stop after 30 minutes. The total list of locations of the smart poles are available in the pdf https://chennaicorporation.gov.in/gcc/images/WiFiSmartPol.pdf. TNN

Two medical students drown

Two medical students drown

TNN | Aug 17, 2021, 04.32 AM IST

Rajkot: Two students of Rajkot’s PDU Medical College drowned in a check-dam on the outskirts of the city late on Saturday evening. The deceased were identified as Dr Chirag Damor (30), a final year student of Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Ravi Rathod (26), an MBBS student.

Damor’s parents who live in Ahmedabad are native of Shyamlaji in North Gujarat, while Rathod is from Ghumli village in Maliya-Hatina taluka of Junagadh.

Damor and Rathod had gone to the check-dam on a bike. They both jumped into the water and later drowned. A passers-by saw the bike and clothes and informed the fire brigade personnel. “Fire brigade personnel fished out both bodies from the check-dam after searching for an hour,” said police.

Rathod was the youngest of four siblings.

Probe reports scam, Jabalpur medical varsity V-C resigns

Probe reports scam, Jabalpur medical varsity V-C resigns

Vice Chancellor T N Dubey, a neurologist, told The Sunday Express, “I was neither able to do justice to my profession as a doctor, nor was able to give time to my family, based in Bhopal. My resignation is completely a personal decision."

Written By Iram Siddique | Bhopal |

August 15, 2021 3:50:15 am

On Saturday, Medical Education Commissioner Warvade told The Sunday Express, “The inquiry committee was sent some queries but a reply is yet to be received. However, it would be best explained by the vice-chancellor, who is dealing with the issue.”

Examinations of over 3,500 students across 30 courses in Madhya Pradesh Medical Science University, Jabalpur, are stuck after an internal inquiry highlighted lapses into working of a Bangalore-based IT firm that was tasked to conduct examinations at the university, leading to the vice-chancellor’s resignationj on Saturday.

While the university authorities had blacklisted the IT firm, Mindlogisticx Infratec, following an inquiry by a government panel, the company moved the Madhya Pradesh High Court, which, in an interim relief to the firm, lifted the blacklisting, restraining the government from any coercive order until August 16, the next date of hearing.

In the midst of allegations, Vice Chancellor T N Dubey resigned, citing personal reasons, even as senior officials claimed that he stepped down after Medical Education Minister Vishwas Sarang set up an inquiry panel to probe the alleged irregularities and had sent Medical Education Commissioner Nishant Warvade to the university to streamline its affairs after receiving multiple complaints.

Dubey, a neurologist, told The Sunday Express, “I was neither able to do justice to my profession as a doctor, nor was able to give time to my family, based in Bhopal. My resignation is completely a personal decision.”

Asked whether his resignation has anything to do with the inquiry set up by the government, Dubey said, “There is nothing beyond the fact that I wanted to be closer to my family. Everything else is baseless.” Dubey refused to comment on the working of Mindlogisticx and the ongoing inquiry, calling it sub judice.

On Saturday, Medical Education Commissioner Warvade told The Sunday Express, “The inquiry committee was sent some queries but a reply is yet to be received. However, it would be best explained by the vice-chancellor, who is dealing with the issue.”

On May 25, Sarang initiated the inquiry after receiving complaints about alleged unauthorised working of Mindlogisticx Infratec. In his letter, the minister stated that students were not getting their degrees, marksheets and the agency tasked to conduct exams did not conduct them in time.

On June 8, a probe team headed by J K Gupta, then university registrar, and comprising two IT experts submitted their report. The report found there was no digital interface created for conducting the examination. All data was exchanged using emails, leading to delay and irregularities in results, as well as mark-sheets, it stated.

It was also pointed out that all passwords and email IDs were handed over to a grade-III employee, identified as Nilesh Jaiswal, giving him complete access. This, the inquiry team noted, was in violation of the secrecy of the process and gave rise to malpractices.

Two months before the inquiry was initiated, the then examination controller in-charge, Trupti Gupta, on April 24 wrote an email to deputy registrar J K Gupta. She pointed out that ntratec without informing the university authorities Mindlogisticx had changed marks.

Based on the committee’s report, registrar Gupta blacklisted the firm on July 5. Gupta also pointed out that despite repeated attempts to call the firm for explanation, they continued to give excuses. The agreement with the company was terminated three years after it was signed in July 2018.

Registrar Gupta along with Trupti Gupta, on whose inquiry the firm was blacklisted, were repatriated to their parent department on July 14, within eight months of being posted at the university on a two-year deputation.

Meanwhile, Mindlogisticx, challenged the order to blacklist it in High Court. The firm contended that all changes made to mark-sheet, as quoted by Trupti Gupta, were done after receiving an official mail. The email, the firm stated, was used by Dr Vrinda Saxena, who held the post of the varsity’s examination controller but was on sick leave at the time.

Medical officer suspended for molesting nurse in Odisha's Paradip

Medical officer suspended for molesting nurse in Odisha's Paradip

Sources said the victim was performing her duty in the hospital on Tuesday night when Badal Singh allegedly grabbed her hand and forced himself on her.

Published: 15th August 2021 10:13 AM 

By Express News Service

PARADIP: The medical officer of Paradip Port Hospital was placed under suspension on Saturday after being booked by police for allegedly outraging the modesty of a nurse while she was on duty.

The accused was identified as Badal Singh. Sources said the victim was performing her duty in the hospital on Tuesday night when Singh allegedly grabbed her hand and forced himself on her. When she resisted, the doctor touched her inappropriately and molested her.

Following the incident, the nurse approached the hospital authorities but no action was taken against the accused. She lodged an FIR with Paradip Model police on Friday. Basing on her complaint, police registered a case. Paradip Model IIC Rajanikant Mishra said police interrogated the accused doctor and released him after serving notice under section 41 of CrPC.

“We are waiting for the report of the hospital’s internal complaints committee and further investigation is on,” he added. Chief medical officer of the hospital Prahallad Panda said the authorities of Paradip Port Trust have suspended the accused doctor.

Hospital salutes UP doctor who worked 20 hours/day for 2 years, names lab after mom

Hospital salutes UP doctor who worked 20 hours/day for 2 years, names lab after mom

TNN | Aug 14, 2021, 04.04 AM IST

MEERUT: The day Dr Atul Srivastava’s mother died, over 300 Covid test reports were lying on his desk, waiting for his approval. It was April 30. The microbiologist at Muzaffarnagar Medical College rushed to his mother’s funeral for just two hours, cremated her and made his way back to the lab he had been painstakingly putting together for over a year.

Since April last year, the Covid research and diagnostics lab at the hospital was all he had worked for — 20 hours a day, testing over 20,000 samples without a single day of leave. On Friday, the hospital formally inaugurated the lab with a salute to the doctor — it was named ‘Smt Jai Shri Sinha Diagnostic and Research Laboratory’ after his mother.

“For me, this is dedicated to all frontline warriors who went down fighting the disease and saving lives,” Srivastava, 40, said. An MBBS from Lala Lajpat Rai Memorial Medical College in Meerut, he did his microbiology postgraduation from Christian Medical College in Ludhiana before joining the Muzaffarnagar Medical College’s microbiology department in April 2016. It was in April last year, when the country had just begun to realise the seriousness of the pandemic, that he was asked to set up the lab.

“We started working day and night to structure the lab … It was difficult. There was no technical knowhow because the labs that were around were either new or working overtime. I had to depend on my instincts and the literature available on the internet. I spoke to equipment manufacturers, learnt about things on my own and, now, we have an 18-room lab,” he said. In October, the Indian Council of Medical Research allowed the lab to start conducting tests. Since then, he has tested 20,662 samples. “I had three assistants and we worked round the clock to ensure there was no report backlog.”

HC: Seeking dad’s info for IVF kids affront to women’s dignity

HC: Seeking dad’s info for IVF kids affront to women’s dignity

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Kochi:17.08.2021

Requiring a single parent or unwed mother who conceived through assisted reproductive technology (ART) such as IVF to reveal sperm donor’s name for registration of baby’s birth violates right to privacy, the Kerala High Court has held.

The ruling was given by Justice Sathish Ninan after considering a petition filed, through advocate A Aruna, by a divorcee who opted for IVF. It was contended by the petitioner that the form for registration of birth requires disclosure of the child’s father’s name.

The identity of the sperm donor has been kept anonymous by the clinic and requiring her to reveal it violates right to privacy, liberty, and dignity, the petition said.

After referring to the Supreme Court’s judgments on right to privacy, including KS Puttuswamy vs Union of India, the court perused a copy of The Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, 2020. The court noted that right of a single woman to maintain confidentiality is being maintained in the bill too. In the judgment, the court said, “Having conceived through ART procedure, the identity of the sperm donor cannot be disclosed except in circumstances as may be compelled for, under law. It falls within the realm of the ‘right of privacy’.”

Bombay HC judge quits, says reasons purely personal

Bombay HC judge quits, says reasons purely personal

Swati.Deshpande@timesgroup.com

Mumbai:17.08.2021

Justice Dama Seshadri Naidu of Bombay high court tendered in his resignation, effective August 17, citing personal reasons. Naidu was appointed a judge of the high court in March 2019 and at 59, he still had three years left to complete his tenure. On Monday, confirming his decision to resign, he told TOI, speaking from Andhra Pradesh, “I had purely personal reasons.’’ Naidu added, “I enjoyed every minute of being a judge and it was my privilege. I did until the end to the best of ability.’’ He also said, “I have learnt a lot along the way and been encouraged both by my colleagues on the bench and the bar in Maharashtra and in Kerala which rendered brilliant assistance.’’ Lawyers expressed surprise as word had spread of the resignation. Once a high court judge puts in his papers to the President, there is no acceptance that is required. With him leaving, the judge strength at the HC will be down to 62. The sanctioned strength is 94. Justice Naidu’s is the third resignation of HC judges in three years. Last year, the senior-most judge of Bombay HC Justice S C Dharmadhikari resigned with effect from February 15.

Air India to fly Goa-London from Aug 26

Air India to fly Goa-London from Aug 26

Panaji:17.08.2021

Spelling good news for students and overseas residents, Air India has announced direct flights between Goa and the UK from August 26. Air India will operate a flight on the London (Heathrow)-Goa sector as part of the air bubble arrangement with the UK.

According to Air India, the flight schedule till August 31 has been released, but further flights could be scheduled in the months to come. At present, passengers have to fly to Mumbai or Delhi to catch an international flight to London.

“The flights can be booked through the Air India website, offices and travel agents,” Air India said.

Daily footfalls cross 11,000

Given the extraordinary situation due to the Covid-19 pandemic, schedules are subject to change,” Air India said.

Air India will also commence direct flights to London from Kolkata and Chennai.

Last December, India enforced a ban on flights from the UK. According to officials at Goa International Airport, Air India used to operate one UK-bound flight every week, which was cancelled when the Union ministry of civil aviation and the Union home ministry decided to restrict UK flights after a steep rise in Covid-19 cases.

Officials said that with cases declining in India as well as in Goa, a calibrated resumption of international flights is being tested out. Repatriation flights continue to operate from Goa International Airport, largely to the middle-east region while domestic flight operations have seen a rise. Daily passenger footfalls have crossed 11,000 with close to100 flights operating on a daily basis from the terminal.

Admission to govt schools without TC not final

Admission to govt schools without TC not final

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Jaipur:17.08.2021

Temporary admission of students in government schools from private schools, without any transfer certificate, will not be made permanent.

Schools’ administration have been asked to register their National Informatics Centre (NIC) ID in Shala Darpan as a routine process, but those students will not be made permanent. During the pandemic, many students found it difficult to pay private schools’ fees and private schools were said to have allegedly harassed them. Hence, government issued a rule to admit students without transfer certificates temporarily, in government schools.

But government has made it clear that those students will not be enrolled in scholar register i.e. enrollment register.

This has come as relief to private school owners who had complained earlier that giving admission to students without transfer certificates will impact them. Anil Sharma, president of School Shiksha Pariwar, has also objected to this rule.

NGO comes forward to help students get edu

Jaipur:

Smile for All, an NGO, has started a new campaign ‘Shiksha Tumhari-Zimmedari Hamari’ intending to provide school education to 1,000 children, who are deprived of education. The campaign run from August15 to August 21 through all types of media platforms. It aims to connect philanthropists with ‘Happiness Subscription’ of Smile for All.

The Happiness Subscription is a page created on the organisation’s website, where philanthropists fund a child’s education by donating just Rs. 500 (per month). Donors will be given all the information related to the sponsored child’s education every month. TNN

2nd marriage not violence against divorced 1st wife: HC

2nd marriage not violence against divorced 1st wife: HC

Vaibhav.Ganjapure@timesgroup.com

Nagpur:17.08.2021

The Nagpur bench of Bombay HC has ruled that the act of a man marrying for the second time can’t be treated as a case of domestic violence against his divorced first wife.

Admitting a petition filed by a Jalgaon resident, his parents and sister, Justice Manish Pitale said the primary appellant's first wife could have filed a case against her ex-husband under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, only if she were still married to him. "But the said fact in itself (the man marrying a second time) would not be enough for her to initiate proceedings under the DV Act since the divorce proceedings have attained finality."

The judge censured the Akola-based woman for filing a case against her in-laws to "harass them", calling it an "abuse of the process of law".

"The wife could not be permitted to keep the husband and in-laws engaged in litigation in this form, when the DV Act’s requirements did not appear to be satisfied. The chronology of events indicates that she sought to invoke provisions after her divorce case attained finality up to the Supreme Court. It was not as if she initiated a proceeding during the matrimonial discord between the parties," Justice Pitale said.

Quashing an Akola court's May 17, 2016, notice rejecting the petition to dismiss proceedings sought by the wife under the domestic violence act, the judge pointed out that it was only after she suffered "adverse orders" in the divorce case that she sought to invoke that law.

Full report on www.toi.in

From now, all GOs to go offline in AP

From now, all GOs to go offline in AP

Gopi.Dara@timesgroup.com

Vijayawada:17.08.2021

In a surprising development, the Andhra Pradesh government has decided not to post government orders online from now. All GOs issued henceforth would not be uploaded on the government’s official portal (goir.ap.gov.in). An order to this effect was issued by principal secretary Revu Mutyala Raju on Monday.

The order, to be implemented with immediate effect, was taken in line with the “system prevailing in other states and Government of India with regard to government orders and office memoranda,” the principal secretary said in the order.

While the reason behind the government’s move to keep the GOs offline is not known, sources say the decision was taken to keep away some ‘trouble makers’, who, the government feels, are filing pleas in the court leading to unnecessary delay in their implementation.