Ceiling for OBCs, EWS: Both ₹8L, but difference is in income components

Ceiling for OBCs, EWS: Both ₹8L, but difference is in income components

Subodh.Ghidiyal@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:26.10.2021

The Rs 8 lakh income-ceiling for OBC ‘creamy layer’ as well as the cap to qualify as economically weaker sections (EWS) for forward caste quotas is same on the face of it, yet different in substance by way of what sources of income are included in the calculations making the math tougher for forward quotas. But, while projecting this substantive distinction between the two caps may help the government duck the charge that “unequals are being made equals”, the BJP regime is actively working to bring them at par.

The Supreme Court’s query to the government on how it arrived at Rs 8 lakh for EWS quota has prised open a tricky debate, the primary being if gradually, a parity is being drawn between the OBC category, which has social backwardness as a key parameter, and the EWS that largely comprises the forward communities with only poverty as criteria.

With all eyes being on the affidavit the social justice ministry will file in the apex court, it is evident that Rs 8 lakh is significantly different in the two categories, the income bar for EWS being a stricter norm than that for Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

The gross family income for EWS, beyond which a candidate is rendered ineligible for quotas, includes ‘income from all sources’ whereas the same in case of backwards excludes ‘salary’ and ‘agriculture income’. According to experts, ‘salary’ is the main difference between the two categories since agriculture income is not verifiable because it is not taxable.

Yet, any attempt by government to project the method of calculation of family income as being different and more exclusionary for EWS then for OBCs maybe fraught with risk — the reason being that the government plans to narrow the gap between the formula for two family incomes and virtually bring them at the same level.

The government has proposed to tweak the criteria for family income of OBCs by including ‘salary’ in the total income, which is a major departure from the governing 1993 memorandum on ‘creamy layer’ which lays down that ‘salary’ will not be part of the total income.

The cabinet proposal last February triggered a major opposition, including from the national commission for backward classes. It is since lying with the government and the issue is being treated as pending.

Though among other differences between OBC and EWS is the family size included in gross family income — which is larger for EWS than for OBCs, it is in practice seen as prone to misrepresentation, which only makes EWS ceiling strict on paper.

NEET-PG counselling will not start without approval: SC

New Delhi:

The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Centre to put on hold the counselling for National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) PG until it decides the validity of the Centre's decision to introduce OBC and EWS reservation in All India Quota (AIQ).

A bench headed by Justice DY Chandrachud said the NEET-PG counselling will not start without its approval as the court is examining a plea against the Centre's decision for medical admission. The Central government also assured the apex court that the counselling process will not commence till the Bench decides the matter.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) KM Nataraj, appearing for the Centre, gave the assurance to the apex court, which the court took into the note. The Bench observed that students will be in serious problems if the counselling process goes ahead as scheduled. The top court was told that it has been announced that the counselling will begin from October 25.

The assurance of the Centre came after senior advocate Arvind Dattar, appearing for some NEET candidates, mentioned that by the time the court decides the pending batch of petitions, challenging the July 29 notification, introducing the quota from this academic year, the entire process of admission will be over and serious prejudice would be caused to the students. The SC was hearing a batch of pleas challenging the July 29 notice providing 27% quota OBC and 10% for EWS category for the admission in the NEET for all medical seats. ANI

Howrah train departs 26 minutes late to help child with brain tumour

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru:26.10.2021

The Howrah Duronto special train on Sunday departed 26 minutes late from its originating station, Yeshwantpur, to ensure that a six-year-old girl who had made a recovery from brain tumour faced no difficulty during travel as she was on a breathing support machine.

South Western Railway officials said train no. 02246 to Howrah, which was supposed to leave at 11am from Yeshwantpur on Sunday, departed at 11.26am.

Jainab Mondal, the patient, had come to Bengaluru in mid-August and was on treatment at St Philomena’s Hospital for over two-and-a-half months. The girl had undergone surgery and also suffered from respiratory paralysis. During her recovery, she was on tracheostomy and a BiPAP (Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure) machine, a respiratory assistive device that also travelled along with her to Howrah.

“With the BiPAP machine the child was stable. As a precautionary measure, the child was also given oxygen cylinders and an oxygen concentrator. As such the girl didn’t require it, but it was kept as a stand-by. The railway authorities wanted to crosscheck if it works given the voltage fluctuation on the train,” said Dr Rajeev V, head of department, pediatrics, St Philomena’s Hospital, Bengaluru. The train covered a distance of 1,953km and reached Howrah at 3.56pm on Monday, ahead of its scheduled arrival time of 4.45pm. SWR chief public relations officer Aneesh Hegde said: “The patient required an oxygen concentrator for the journey. But due to power issues inside the coach, the oxygen concentrator did not function so the kid required oxygen cylinder back-up, which was arranged for at Bangarpet with help from the railways.”

The incident came to light after Kedarnath Reddy, who was at Yeshwantpur station, tweeted. In the video, the child was seen being taken inside the coach on a stretcher.

Test only in Hindi, English: HC suspends central exam

Test only in Hindi, English: HC suspends central exam

Madurai:26.10.2021

The Madras high court has suspended an aptitude test for a centrally sponsored scholarship programme — Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana — slated for November 7 as the examination was to be held only in English and Hindi, reports K Kaushik.

The first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice M Duraiswamy ordered the postponement of the test while hearing a plea which sought the exam in all regional languages. The court also sought response from the Centre on the steps taken to conduct the exam in multiple Indian languages.

KVPY is a national programme of fellowship in basic sciences funded by the Centre’s department of science and technology.

Test can’t be in just Hindi & English: HC

Rejecting \ Centre’s submission that it does not have adequate personnel to assess answers given in various languages and that it may be difficult to find an equivalent term in local languages for scientific words, the judges said: “It would not do for the Centre to say that it does not have qualified assessors to appreciate the material put up by non-Hindi and Englishspeaking aspirants. If at all, it is the deficiency with the Centre and young aspirants from non-Hindi and non-English speaking belts in the country should not suffer on such grounds.”

The main objective of the exam is to identify students with talent and aptitude for research, to help them realize their academic potential and to encourage them to take up research careers in science by providing fellowships.

Even if it is a token scholarship of Rs 5,000, it amounts to recognition of a young mind and every Indian of such age should be entitled to equally participate in the process and exhibit their talent, said the court.

It is possible for a bright young mind groomed in Assamese language or another young prospect from deep in rural Odisha to be able to come up with brilliant ideas that the KVPY project aspires to tap into. Merely because the aspirant may not be adept at Hindi or English languages may not amount to the aspirant being disqualified, observed the judges.

Attack on MSU dean: Court acquits three after 23 years

ORDER IN ABSENTIA

Attack on MSU dean: Court acquits three after 23 years

Complainant, Defendants Didn’t Turn Up For Trial

Jay.Pachchigar@timesgroup.com

Vadodara:26.10.2021

More than two decades after the then dean of MS University’s science faculty was allegedly attacked by three BSc students, the court acquitted the three accused of all the charges.

The dean in his police complaint had claimed that he was attacked after he refused to pass one of the three students who had failed an examination.

A botched up investigation or failure on part of police in gathering evidence wasn’t the reason for the acquittal though. Interestingly, the then dean Bonipailo Beekepailo Christian, who had lodged the case at Sayajigunj police station, and the three students Lakulish alias Lalo Purohit, Vanrajsinh Raj and Vishal Parikh did not appear during the trial.

Only one eye-witness, who was a clerk in the faculty, turned up for his testimony, but he too could not remember the names of the students who had attacked the dean.

As per the details of complaint registered by Christian, on August 20 in 1998 when Christian was present in his office, Parikh, Raj and Purohit stormed into his office and asked Christian to pass Parikh in an examination which he had failed.

When Christian said that he cannot pass Parikh illegally, the trio abused him and attacked him with a chair.

As he moved aside, Christian did not suffer any injuries. Later, Christian lodged an offence of trespassing, assault and insult at Sayajigunj police station against the trio.

When the case came up for trial after the police filed chargesheet, neither of the accused remained present despite summons being issued. The court then decided to continue the trial in their absence. During the trial, the testimony of just one eye-witness Kirit Patel was recorded.

Patel stated that Christian had left Gujarat to settle at his native place long ago. While one witness, who was a senior clerk, passed away and another witness had since changed his home and his new address was not available.

Patel said that the alleged incident did take place inside the dean’s office and some students had abused him and also he had fallen off his chair. However, he failed to recognize any of the students involved in the attack or recollect their names.

The court of additional chief judicial magistrate J A Baxi considered Patel’s statement and also noted that no concrete evidence was presented against the accused to prove them guilty.

The court passed the order of their acquittal in their absence.

The dean was attacked after he refused to pass one of the students

No new self-financed colleges for now: GU

No new self-financed colleges for now: GU

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad  26.10.2021

: The Gujarat University (GU) has decided not to give further permission for new colleges on self-financed basis. At the meeting of the university’s Need committee held on Monday, it was decided to approve new classes in the existing colleges rather than having more colleges.

The university has decided to first fill up the vacant seats in BCom and BA courses the admission for which is going on.

“If students couldn’t get admission, then only the university will think about approving additional classes in the existing colleges,” said an official.

The GU officials said that the meeting of the Need committee is held if a proposal to approve new colleges is moved by the management. The committee takes the decision after evaluating the prevailing situation.

A proposal to convert Gujarati-medium colleges to English-medium was also moved which was kept in abeyance after the committee members opined that they need to discuss the proposal in detail.

10 flights delayed, two cancelled, one diverted

10 flights delayed, two cancelled, one diverted

Ahmedabad:26.10.2021

Ten flights departing from Ahmedabad airport on Monday were delayed ranging from 30 to 200 minutes .

These include flights to Bengaluru, Jaipur, Kolkata, Kishangarh, Delhi, Chennai and Goa. Besides, two more flights to Delhi and Goa, were cancelled. Early on Monday, a Goa-bound flight was diverted to Mumbai.

While the flight operated by SpiceJet departed on time from the city airport around 5am, due to bad weather, it could not land in Goa and as a result, was diverted to Mumbai. The flight reached Goa by 10.30am, confirmed sources. TNN

UP e-rickshaw driver gets ₹3.47cr tax notice

UP e-rickshaw driver gets ₹3.47cr tax notice

Anuja.Jaiswal@timesgroup.com

Agra:26.10.2021

A 40-year-old e-rickshaw driver in Mathura has received a notice from the income tax department directing him to pay tax of ₹3.47 crore for his annual turnover of ₹43.44 crore in 2018-19 financial year. Pratap Singh lodged a police complaint on Sunday but no FIR has not been registered so far.

Superintendent of police (SP), city, MP Singh told TOI that during investigation, police found a Delhibased firm is registered against Pratap Singh’s PAN number. Further investigation is on and an FIR will be registered on the basis of evidence gathered during investigation, the SP said.

In his police complaint, Pratap Singh stated that someone might have stolen his identity as he doesn’t have even a fraction of such a huge turnover. “I have been driving an e-rickshaw for the past four years and earn ₹400-₹500 a day, which is barely sufficient to feed five family members, including our three children. I can’t even think of such a huge amount in my wildest of dreams,” said a shocked Singh to TOI.

Full report on www.toi-.in

IDENTITY STOLEN: Pratap Singh, 40, from Mathura earns around ₹400-₹500 a day

HC not to interfere with medical panel decision

HC not to interfere with medical panel decision

Student not allowed to take FMGE

26/10/2021

Legal Correspondent CHENNAI

The Madras High Court has refused to interfere with a decision taken by the National Medical Commission (NMC) not to allow a student who had pursued medical education in China to write the screening test, Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) required to be cleared before commencing practice here, because she had not studied English as a separate subject during her higher secondary classes.

Justice N. Anand Venkatesh dismissed a writ petition filed by a woman candidate on the ground that court could not sit in judgment over the stipulations prescribed by an expert body. Though it was argued that the petitioner had studied higher secondary in English medium and she also has 7.5 out of 9 in International English Language Testing System (IELTS), the judge refused to allow her plea.

“The individual opinion of a judge cannot come in the way while deciding cases of this nature and this court has to necessarily satisfy itself as to whether a candidate fulfils the qualification prescribed in the regulation. The law on this issue is well settled. In the result, there is no ground to interfere with the impugned communication dated June 14, 2021 issued by NMC,” the judge wrote.

It was brought to the notice of the court that the petitioner was an overseas citizen of India. She had studied under Central Board of Secondary Education stream here up to Class X in Kodaikanal and then pursued her higher secondary course in Sri Lanka after her family moved there.

However, the NMC refused to issue an eligibility certificate to her to appear for FMGE conducted by National Testing Agency on the sole ground that she had not studied English as a separate subject during higher secondary education.

பி.எஸ்சி., நர்சிங் படிப்பு இன்று விண்ணப்ப பதிவு

பி.எஸ்சி., நர்சிங் படிப்பு இன்று விண்ணப்ப பதிவு

Added : அக் 24, 2021 23:58

சென்னை--பி.எஸ்சி., நர்சிங், பி.பார்ம்., உள்ளிட்ட துணை மருத்துவ பட்ட படிப்புகளில் சேருவதற்கான விண்ணப்ப பதிவு இன்று துவங்குகிறது.

நவம்பர், 8 வரை விண்ணப்பிக்கலாம்.தமிழகத்தில், அரசு மற்றும் தனியார் மருத்துவ கல்லுாரிகளில், பி.எஸ்சி., நர்சிங், பி.பார்ம்., உள்ளிட்ட 19 வகையான, துணை மருத்துவ பட்ட படிப்புகள் உள்ளன. இந்த படிப்புகளுக்கு 15 ஆயிரம் இடங்கள் உள்ளன.இந்த இடங்களுக்கு, பிளஸ் 2 மதிப்பெண் அடிப்படையில், மாணவர்கள் சேர்க்கப்பட உள்ளனர்.

மாணவர் சேர்க்கைக்கு www.tnhealth.tn.gov.in, www.tnmedicalselection.org என்ற இணையதளத்தில், இன்று காலை 10:00 மணி முதல் விண்ணப்ப பதிவு துவங்குகிறது.நவம்பர், 8 மாலை 5:00 மணி வரை விண்ணப்பங்களை பதிவு செய்யலாம். விண்ணப்பம் மற்றும் தகவல் தொகுப்பேட்டை, இணையதளங்களில் பதிவிறக்கம் செய்யலாம்.பூர்த்தி செய்யப்பட்ட விண்ணப்பத்தை பதிவிறக்கம் செய்து, தகுந்த ஆவணங்களுடன், 'செயலர், தேர்வுக் குழு, 162, ஈ.வெ.ரா.பெரியார் நெடுஞ்சாலை, கீழ்ப்பாக்கம், சென்னை -- 10' என்ற முகவரியில், நவம்பர்10 மாலை 5:00 மணிக்குள் சமர்ப்பிக்க வேண்டும் என, மருத்துவ கல்வி இயக்கம் அறிவித்துள்ளது.

Teacher booked for touching ex-student inappropriately

Teacher booked for touching ex-student inappropriately

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Jaipur:25.10.2021

A former student of a private school in city’s CScheme area has registered an FIR against a teacher for touching her inappropriately.

This incident is second of its kind to be reported from the school in the last few days.

A case has been registered against the accused under Section 354 (using criminal force to any woman, intending to outrage or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby outrage her modesty) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The SHO of Ashok Nagar police station, Vikram Singh Rathore, said, "The girl had written to the DCP South office and we registered the FIR. The girl is a 2019-20 batch pass out. She was in Class 12, when the teacher took such steps. She did not complain then as her session was about to end. However, when another teacher was arrested on the similar charges, she gathered courage to speak up."

"We are investigating the matter and will talk to the girl soon," he said.

As per the FIR, the girl is 21 years old. When she had informed her parents about the harassment by the teacher earlier, they decided not to proceed with the matter.

Sanyukt Abhibhavak Sangh spokesperson Abhishek Jain said, “This is such a shameful matter that two teachers from the same reputed school are now under scanner for molesting girl students. Our children are not safe in schools even after we pay such hefty fees. The government must take action against the teachers."

Earlier, a girl had lodged an FIR against teacher Nikhil Jose, who was later on arrested and later released on bail.

42 yrs later, man acquitted for ₹40 theft

42 yrs later, man acquitted for ₹40 theft

Vaibhav.Ganjapure@timesgroup.com

Nagpur:25.10.2021

Over 42 years after a man allegedly stole Rs 40 by injuring a person, the sessions court here has acquitted him from the charges of robbery recently. During pendency of the over four-decades-old case, his three accomplices as well as the complainant and four of the seven witnesses died.

The accused, Bhimrao Nitnaware, who turned 65 years old this year, along with co-accused — Ramesh Meshram, Madhukar Patil and Hiraman Dhoke – had allegedly attacked complainant Motiram around midnight on January 13, 1978. After injuring Motiram, they allegedly robbed him of Rs.40 which he had earned after selling milk.

After Motiram lodged a complaint with MIDC police station, Meshram was arrested but the other three accused remained absconding for many years. The police had filed a chargesheet against all the four accused under Section 394 of IPC for dacoity. Subsequently, the trial started before the judicial magistrate first class (JMFC). It was later realized that the accused had also attacked the complainant with a knife and, therefore, the charges were reframed under Section 398 of IPC which is for attempting to commit robbery armed with a deadly weapon.

Revision of creamy layer criteria delayed by over 1 yr

Revision of creamy layer criteria delayed by over 1 yr

Subodh.Ghildiyal@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:25.10.2021

In continuing disappointment for the other backward classes (OBCs), the scheduled revision of the income ceiling for ‘creamy layer’ has overshot by more than one year.

The delay is affecting the ‘Mandal castes’ who are being judged by a lower income bar than they should be for being declared as economically better off and ineligible for reservations.

The income ceiling is the eligibility criteria for OBCs to avail reservations in central government jobs and educational institutions. Candidates from families earning more than the ceiling amount are dubbed ‘creamy layer’ who are not entitled to avail opportunities under the 27% quota.

The income ceiling is to be revised every three years and was last hiked from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 8 lakh in September 2017. The bar was up for upward review in September 2020 but is still hanging fire. The social justice ministry has proposed a hike from Rs 8 lakh to Rs 12 lakh. But the revision is stuck because the government has clubbed the routine hike with the plan to redefine the criteria for ‘creamy layer’, with both the proposals placed in the same cabinet note which was circulated in February, 2020.

While it was expected to sail through, roadblocks came up because the second point about the revision of criteria drew objections from the National Commission for Backward Classes.

The ministry has proposed to include ‘salary’ of an OBC household in its ‘gross annual income’ which is the cut-off mark for creamy layer. This is contrary to the 1993 office memorandum of DoPT which says that ‘salary’ and ‘agriculture income’ are not part of ‘income’ to determine ‘creamy layer’. If the move goes through, it will lower the bar and make it easier for an OBC to be identified as ‘creamy layer’ — thereby ineligible for quotas.

Health insurers see huge surge in non-Covid claims

Health insurers see huge surge in non-Covid claims

Dengue, Cardiac Among Top Cases

Both Amt, Volume Rise

Mayur Shetty & Sumitra Deb Roy TNN

Mumbai:25.10.2021

Even as Covid hospitalisations have dropped from peak levels, insurance companies are witnessing a massive surge in non-Covid claims. While there is a lag in capturing trends, insurers say that there has been a significant jump from September in non-Covid hospitalisations.

“We are seeing an increase in hospitalisations due to dengue, respiratory diseases and other non-Covid claims. The size of these claims has also gone up, perhaps due to the additional protection that has to be taken by hospitals. We will watch this to see whether the increase is temporal or structural,” said ICICI Lombard General Insurance MD & CEO Bhargav Dasgupta, following the company’s results.

Policybazaar, one of the largest distributors of individual health covers, has been seeing an increase in the number of non-Covid calls. The calls are for infectious diseases, dengue and other viral fever. “We are also seeing an increase in accidental injuries,” said Amit Chabra, chief of health business at Policybazaar.

According to Dr Dev Pahlajani, head of interventional cardiology at Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai, incidences of acute coronary syndrome, sudden heart attacks and cardiac arrest have gone up 40% in the last six to eight months. “There is a surge in circulatory conditions which warrants a close evaluation,” he said. He added that even patients who have been stable for years are coming in with acute heart emergencies. The trend is visible in most cardiac departments, he said.

According to Niva Bupa Health Insurance director (underwriting, products & claims) Bhabatosh Mishra, Covid brought down health claims last year as people were locked in, avoided hospitalisation and delayed elective surgeries. “There is no major change in the number of emergency procedures like appendicitis, but cases like gall bladder surgeries, which can be delayed, are going up,” said Mishra. He added that given the higher than usual monsoon in places, there has been a spike in dengue including Bengaluru and Hyderabad, in addition to Mumbai and Delhi.

“People have lost jobs, their source of income and probably sat idle at home for months. Those factors combined with lack of exercise can build up the stress levels, putting them at risk of heart conditions,” said Dr Pahlajani. He added that people have been missing out on routine checks on sugar and blood pressure levels due to the pandemic. Covid survivors too may see symptoms of inflammation after months. In Mumbai, hospital beds are largely occupied by dengue, malaria and chikungunya cases and not Covid at present, said Dr Gautam Bhansali of Bombay Hospital.

Mishra expects cases to remain elevated as the monsoon is not over yet. Also, many of the elective surgeries are usually scheduled for winter as, given India’s weather, surgical wounds heal better and risk of monsoon infections are lower.

Edu official nabbed for issuing fake job letters

Edu official nabbed for issuing fake job letters

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Lucknow:25.10.2021

The UP STF on Sunday arrested a suspended accounts officer in the education department who was accused of issuing fake appointment letters to teachers. The accused, Jagdish Prasad Srivastava, was on the run and carried a bounty of Rs 25,000.

STF said three FIRs were lodged against Jagdish in Deoria since 2018. Till now, 30 fake teachers have been arrested.

The STF took up the case on July 19, after senior block education officer, Birbal Ram, lodged an FIR regarding missing record books of 1987-1989 and 2010-11. He claimed that pages were missing from the record books of 2015-16. Ram had claimed in the FIR that he had lodged a complaint about the appointment of teachers through fraudulent means in two aided government schools in the district.

Inspector (STF) Satya Prakash Singh, who led the operation, said Jagdish was arrested from traffic trisection in Gorakhpur in the wee hours of Sunday.

Jagdish accused of tampering with record books, says STF

Inspector (STF) Satya Prakash Singh said Jagdish was employed in the BSA office in Deoria since 2010.

“Jagdish is accused of tampering with the record books. He used to tear the pages of records and then fed wrong entries on those missing pages,” said Singh. Soon after Jagdish’s name surfaced in internal probe, he was suspended. The record books contain details of all teachers deployed in a district. Sources in the STF said Jagdish made Rs 4 crore by issuing fake appointment letters.

Both divorced parents equally responsible for child’s education: Bombay high court

Both divorced parents equally responsible for child’s education: Bombay high court

Vaibhav.Ganjapure@timesgroup.com

Nagpur:25.10.2021

Both parents should be equally responsible for taking care of their children’s education expenses, ruled the Nagpur bench of Bombay high court after an18-year-old approached it, as he was finding it difficult to pay fees at IIT Dhanbad, where he has secured admission in the mechanical branch.

Dismissing the father’s contention that he is unable to raise the maintenance amount, as he has to look after his old mother, divorced sister and her daughter, the bench also held that “children must be the first priority of a parent in the matter of maintenance”. “Before the petitioner’s birth in 2001, his parents had separated and he has been residing with mother. Both of his parents are serving as teachers, each earning a salary of over Rs 48,000. It is, therefore, apparent that both are equally responsible to share maintenance as well as education expenses of their son,” a division bench comprising Justice Atul Chandurkar and Justice GN Sanap said.

“Even if it is assumed, for the sake of argument, that there are some other persons dependent on the father, the child must be his first priority in the matter of maintenance. If he fails to share the maintenance and expenses, then the mother would be required to bear the unnecessary burden,” the bench added, while asking the father to enhance the monthly maintenance to Rs 7,500 from Rs 5,000, with effect from October 27, 2015, the date on which the student had filed the petition.

The youngster, scoring 93% in Class X exam, had moved the HC after he was finding it difficult to pay the fees of the course at IIT Dhanbad. Till now, his education and other expenses were shouldered by his mother, while his father used to pay him Rs 5,000 a month, as fixed by a court. The petitioner had prayed for enhancing the maintenance to Rs 15,000, so that he could pay the college fees.

“It is seen that the petitioner, who happens to be a meritorious child, has been made to face this unfortunate situation. Considering his plight and needs, he was constrained to knock the judiciary’s doors,” the judges observed. The parents were granted divorce on July 21, 2009, through mutual consent. The petitioner contended that his father, teacher at a zilla parishad school, did not bother to maintain him nor took care of his well-being, after his birth. On the other hand, his mother faced difficulties while bringing him up with her meagre salary, the petition said.

Dismissing the father’s contention that he is unable to raise the maintenance amount, the bench also held that ‘children must be the first priority of a parent in the matter of maintenance’

HC directs AIIMS to pay ₹50 lakh to illegally terminated employee

HC directs AIIMS to pay ₹50 lakh to illegally terminated employee

New Delhi:25.10.2021

Delhi High Court has directed All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to pay over Rs 50 lakh to a former employee, who was illegally terminated from service, noting that the man has been running from pillar to post for the last several years.

Raj Singh, who was appointed as a driver by AIIMS sometime in the 1980s, will also be paid Rs 19,900 as pension every month.

According to the petitioner, he was illegally terminated after which he approached the labour court. The labour court in December 1998 held that the termination of service was an unfair practice, Singh said in his petition.

The labour court’s order was challenged before various forums and finally the special leave petition (SLP), filed by AIIMS, was dismissed by the Supreme Court on June 3, 2016.

Singh, represented through advocate B T Kaul, served a legal notice to AIIMS authorities seeking compliance of the award and payment of the amount, but it was not paid. Thereafter, he approached the high court.

Justice Prathiba M Singh directed that the man be paid Rs 50,49,079 towards salary for the period from December 4, 1998, which is the date of award, and the date of superannuation, which is October 31, 2016, his leave encashment and his gratuity.

This amount was calculated by the authorities and the court was informed about it. However, the basis for the computation has still not been explained.

“However, considering that the petitioner has been running from pillar to post since 2016 when the Supreme Court dismissed the SLP till date, the respondents (authorities) are directed to pay the amounts in terms of order dated March 9, 2021, on or before October 30, 2021, to the petitioner,” the high court said in its October 12 order.

The court was also told by advocate Sonali Malhotra, representing AIIMS, that Singh was also required to deposit Rs 30,000 as a lifetime validation amount for being enrolled under the employees health scheme.

To this, the court said that in view of the long duration for which Singh has been fighting the present litigation, the amount of Rs 30,000 shall now be deposited on his behalf by AIIMS itself, in lieu of costs for the long-drawn litigation. PTI

Several hospitals reopen Covid-19 wards after uptick in number of cases

Several hospitals reopen Covid-19 wards after uptick in number of cases

Sushmi.Dey@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:25.10.2021

Even as the overall Covid situation remains stable, after the onset of the ongoing festival season, some hospitals have already started reporting an uptick in the number of cases.

While the absolute number of patients still remains low, many hospitals have reopened their Covid wards with some seeing even 20-25% more patients this week, as against a week ago. A doctor reported that while there were five cases in his hospital in the past two months, the previous week saw the same number. Some rise in infections is expected as mobility increases and a slackness creeps in, but cases are being watched carefully, the doctor said.

Most doctors maintain that vaccination has helped to keep the situation remain under control and serious cases are few. However, the next two-three weeks will be crucial and actual manifestation of the infection will begin after that, they say. “We are seeing a sudden increase in cases and have reopened the Covid ward this week, which we had to shut down earlier as there were hardly any cases and instead we were witnessing a rush of dengue cases,” says Dr Charu Dutt Arora, consultant physician and Covid-care expert at Asian Institute of Medical Sciences. Doctors also recommend increase in testing to assess the exact situation and keep a watch on any possible mutation. “Delhi is still largely stable but in last one week it has begun to trickle as there is a slight increase in number of cases,” says Dr Suranjit Chatterjee, senior consultant (internal medicine) at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals.

Pilots land flight on ‘wrong’ end of runway, get de-rostered

Pilots land flight on ‘wrong’ end of runway, get de-rostered

Saurabh.Sinha@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:25.10.2021

Two SpiceJet pilots have been de-rostered after they landed a Hyderabad-Belgaum flight on the wrong end of the runway at the destination on Sunday. Aviation authorities have taken a stern view of this lapse as the crew allegedly did not report this and operated the DASH8 Q400 back to Hyderabad.

It was only when Airports Authority of India (AAI) reported this “serious incident” that SpiceJet informed the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) about the same, investigators probing the matter said. However, by then crucial cockpit voice recorder (CVR) recording at the time of this incident was gone as CVR records in a loop, keeping only the last two hours of conversation in the flight deck, they added. “Air traffic control had cleared SpiceJet DASH8 Q400 aircraft (VT-SQC) operating SG-3733 to land on runway 26 at Belgaum. However, the pilots landed on runway 08 (meaning, it touched down on the other end of the runway instead of the designated end),” said a senior official.

The aircraft landed at 11.30am on the unassigned runway. “While this was serious enough, the pilots committed an even bigger mistake by not informing about the same. They flew back to Hyderabad and went home. Only after AAI informed about this, did SpiceJet inform AAIB at 3.37pm (four hours after the wrong landing),” said a senior investigator. Belgaum-Hyderabad journey time is 1 hour and 40 minutes. Operating the return flight meant that the CVR recording at the time of wrong landing may have “washed out as the tape can record up to two hours only”.

The incident has been categorised as a serious one and AAIB will probe this. “Spice-Jet chief pilot spoke to AAIB officials and the latter have asked the crew of this flight to appear for investigation on Monday,” said a source.

Full report on www.toi.in

Engineering Colleges

 

‘Exercise of sexual choices does not give partner right to exploit woman’

‘Exercise of sexual choices does not give partner right to exploit woman’

New Delhi:25.10.2021

A woman exercising sexual autonomy through consent cannot be presumed to have also given consent to violate her reproductive rights, a Delhi court has said while denying bail to a man. The man was accused of raping a woman several times and forcing her to abort her pregnancy.

The court further said that the exercise of sexual choices does not vest any corresponding right in the partner to exploit a woman sexually, and she does not forsake her other rights, including reproductive rights, when she enters into a sexual relationship with a partner.

“While parties in a consensual relationship may be on an even keel when sexual relations are of a consistent and long duration, the act of contravening reproductive autonomy through multiple pregnancies and abortions takes away the element of consent, which may have been given for the sexual act itself,” said additional sessions judge Vishal Gogne in the order.

The court said that this was a “flawed construction” of the concept of bodily/sexual autonomy of a person/female. “The exercise of sexual choices by a woman does not vest any corresponding right in the partner to sexually exploit her. The woman does not forsake her other rights, including reproductive rights either, when she enters into a sexual relationship with a partner,” it added. TNN

‘EWS income criteria linked to Sinho panel’

QUOTA ISSUE

‘EWS income criteria linked to Sinho panel’

Subodh.Ghildiyal@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:25.10.2021

Amid strong criticism by the Supreme Court over the manner in which income eligibility criteria for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) reservations was fixed, the government is linking the decision to peg it at Rs 8 lakh, just as for Other Backward Classes (OBCs), to the Sinho Commission report which had examined welfare measures for the general classes.

A senior official said the Sinho Commission report indicates the eligibility ceiling to qualify for EWS for any reservation measures be linked to the ‘creamy layer’ for the OBCs who avail 27% Mandal reservations.

The income bar for OBCs to qualify for the Mandal quotas is Rs 8 lakh, while the nonreserved classes (mostly forward castes) are dubbed EWS if their annual income is up to Rs 8 lakh. The parity between OBCs and EWS has raised the hackles of the Supreme Court, which has in a case questioned the government if it was not making “unequals, equals” and has asked it to submit the exercise done to arrive at Rs 8 lakh for the EWS.

A social justice ministry official said the ministry will file an affidavit in the apex court for the next hearing. The failure to file the affidavit on the issue at the hearing last week drew negative reaction from the bench seized of the case. “The affidavit is being processed by the law ministry,” the official said.

According to sources, the social justice ministry is relying on the Commission report to substantiate its decision to lay down the income criteria for the EWS, and is confident that its argument will find favour. Backing the decision, the ministry sources said the Sinho Commission held detailed discussions with states on the issue and came up with its recommendations. Thus, an official said, its views have been given the due weightage in arriving at the decision on the EWS qualifying criteria.

The 27% Mandal quotas in central jobs and educational institutions were instituted in 1993, while the Centre made a constitutional amendment to create 10% EWS quota in 2019. A legal challenge questioning the constitutionality of the EWS reservations is also pending before the Supreme Court.

HC notice to MCI, med edu director

HC notice to MCI, med edu director

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bhopal/Jabalpur:25.10.2021

A division bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court has issued notices to director, medical education and Medical Council of India (MCI) in response to a petition by a handicapped girl, who was denied admission in the MBBS course at Shahdol medical college on the ground of her physical disability.

The petitioner, Priyanshi Meena, said that one of her hands was rendered partially disabled due to a rare disease and later at the age of 14, her second hand also had to be severed after she suffered a major electric shock.

Priyanshi had appeared in the NEET for admission into a medical college and was also selected. She was assigned Shahdol medical college for admission into MBBS course.

But Priyanshi was denied admission on the ground that both her hands are crippled. She contended that according to MCI guidelines, admission in the MBBS course can only be denied if a candidate has more than 80% disability but she suffers from only 65% disability.

Besides, India is a signatory to the UK conclave following which the law dealing with rights of a disabled person was enacted in the year 2016.

Still, petitioner Priyanshi was denied admission in the MBBS course, which was also in clear violation to Articles 14 and 19 of the Indian Constitution.

Following preliminary arguments, the division bench of the high court comprising Chief Justice Ravi Vijay Kumar Malimath and Justice V K Shukla issued notices to the respondents, seeking a detailed response to the petition.

Advocate Aditya Sanghi appeared in the case on behalf of the petitioner.

IAS, state officers may run med colleges in MP

IAS, state officers may run med colleges in MP

Antriksh.Singh@timesgroup.com

Indore:25.10.2021

The state medical education department plans to appoint the officers of the Indian Administrative Services and those of the state services as administrators to run daily business of 13 medical colleges, sources said.

The senior officials of the state government, however, warded off any comments on it saying they had no information about such a proposal. Medical education minister Vishwash Sarang allayed any doubts saying that there had been a proposal to appoint administrative officers for 13 medical colleges to boost health services.

Sarang further said, “Any decision to appoint administrators in hospitals and medical colleges will be only taken only after weighing all aspects of the proposal.”

There is a post of administrator in each associated hospital, said Sarang. The Medical Teachers’ Association is against the move. General secretary of the association Dr Rakesh Malviya said that rather than improving the condition of medical colleges such appointments would spoil the system.

“There is no need to do that, because there are already many IAS and SAS officers including divisional commissioners and additional chief secretaries to oversee the health services,” Dr Malviya said.

“There is only one hospital- AIIMS Delhi in the country where a deputy director, who is an IAS officer, looks after administrative work, but that IAS officer works under the director of the hospital,” Dr Malviya said.

Sources said the proposal came up on the heels of the Central Government’s decision to appoint engineers from private sectors to meet the need for technical experts in different departments. Besides the IAS and SAS cadres, the IPS officers are also keen on getting posted to various departments, sources further said.

Medical education minister Vishwash Sarang allayed any doubts saying that there had been a proposal to appoint administrative officers for 13 medical colleges to boost health service

HC stays official’s transfer for daughter’s exam

HC stays official’s transfer for daughter’s exam

Bhopal:  25.10.2021

Madhya Pradesh high court has stayed the transfer of a food safety officer on the ground that her daughter has to appear in her Class X board exam. The court allowed her to join her new posting after the session ended.

The petitioner, Sandhya Marco, was transferred from Balaghat to Dindori, over 200km apart, on August 23, 2021. She moved HC, pleading that her transfer be stayed as her daughter’s studies would be affected ahead of her board exams. She said she had applied to the higher authorities of her department for a stay on her transfer, but no decision had been taken yet. She also pointed out that no one has been posted in her place at Balaghat, and pleaded to be allowed to continue in the post till her daughter’s exams. Justice Vishal Mishra granted her prayer and asked Marco to give an undertaking that she would join her new posting after the end of this academic session. TNN

HC: Divorced parents equally responsible for child’s edu expenses

HC: Divorced parents equally responsible for child’s edu expenses

Vaibhav.Ganjapure@timesgroup.com

Nagpur:25.10.2021

Both parents should be equally responsible for taking care of their children’s education expenses, ruled the Nagpur bench of Bombay high court after an 18-year-old approached it, as he was finding it difficult to pay fees at IIT Dhanbad, where he secured admission in the mechanical branch.

Dismissing the father’s contention that he is unable to raise the maintenance amount, as he has to look after his old mother, divorced sister and her daughter, the bench also held that “children must be the first priority of a parent in the matter of maintenance”.

“Before the petitioner’s birth in 2001, his parents had separated and he has been residing with mother. Both of his parents are serving as teachers, each earning a salary of over ₹48,000. It is, therefore, apparent that both are equally responsible to share maintenance as well as education expenses of their son,” a division bench comprising Justice Atul Chandurkar and Justice GN Sanap said.

“Even if it is assumed that there are some other persons dependent on the father, the child must be his first priority in the matter of maintenance. If he fails to share the maintenance and expenses, then the mother would be required to bear the unnecessary burden,” the bench added, while asking the father to enhance the monthly maintenance to ₹7,500 from ₹5,000, with effect from October 27, 2015, the date on which the student had filed the petition.

The youngster, a meritorious student scoring 93% in Class X examination, had moved the HC after he was finding it difficult to pay the fees at IIT Dhanbad. Till now, his expenses were shouldered by his mother, while his father used to pay him ₹5,000 a month. The petitioner had prayed for enhancing the maintenance to ₹15,000, so he could pay the college fees.

“Considering the fact that both parents are in service and having their own maintenance and responsibilities, the reasonable amount of maintenance is required to be quantified. As far as the education expenses are concerned, both parents shall share it equally. Both must devise a mechanism to obtain the statement of the education expenses and share the same,” the bench said.

Full report on www.toi.in

1st yr engineering classes from today

1st yr engineering classes from today

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:24.10.2021

More than 400 engineering colleges in the state will begin classes for more than 95,000 students, who have joined through engineering counselling, from Monday.

Anna University's College of Engineering, Guindy, Madras Institute of Technology and Alagappa College of Technology have released the time slots for enrolling the students from Monday. These campuses will conduct campus tours, counselling and games during the induction programme this year.

As per the academic schedule, the induction programme will be conducted in physical mode at the university while the theory classes will be conducted in online mode. The semester for university departments will begin with an induction programme on November 1 and end on March 1.

Most of the colleges have planned physical induction programmes for the students.

DME to issue applications from today

DME to issue applications from today

25/10/2021

Special CorrespondentCHENNAI

The Directorate of Medical Education (DME) will start issuing applications for 21 allied sciences undergraduate programmes from 10 a.m. on Monday.

They include nursing, pharmacy, speech and learning programme, ophthalmology, physiotherapy, critical care technology, clinical nutrition, accident and emergency technology, cardiac technology and respiratory therapy among others, a release said.

Candidates may download the applications from www.tnhealth.tn.gov,in and tnmedicalselection.org.

The last date to download the applications is November 8 and the last date to submit the filled application forms is November 10.

KMCH opens 750-bed Medical College General Hospital

KMCH opens 750-bed Medical College General Hospital

25/10/2021

Staff ReporterCoimbatore

Kovai Medical Center and Hospital (KMCH) on Sunday opened a 750-bed facility which has been named ‘KMCH Medical College General Hospital’, located adjacent to the main campus on Avinashi Road, Coimbatore.

Thel Hospital will function as a stand-alone hospital, apart from the existing KMCH Main Centre, said a release.

Chairman and Managing Director of KMCH Nalla G. Palaniswami inaugurated the hospital.

The release said KMCH had established a medical college in the name of ‘KMCH Institute of Health Sciences and Research’ in 2019. Affiliated to Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University, the college has the capacity to accommodate 150 students a year. The 750-bed hospital has been inaugurated on the campus of the medical college.

The infrastructure facilities include 750 general beds, 50 ICU beds, 30 emergency beds, 11 operation theatres and medical equipment such as CT scan, MRI, catheterisation laboratory, ultra sound scan and digital X-ray.

The hospital will offer round-the-clock healthcare services and it has a separate entrance accessible from Avanashi Road, said the release.