We’ll revisit ₹8L EWS quota criteria: Centre

We’ll revisit ₹8L EWS quota criteria: Centre

Decision In 4 Weeks, Govt Tells The SC

AmitAnand.Choudhary@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:26.11.2021

After facing a barrage of questions from the Supreme Court over fixing an annual income limit of ₹8 lakh for determining economically weaker sections (EWS), the Centre on Thursday agreed to “revisit” the criteria for the “economically backward among forwards” to get reservation benefits in government jobs and educational institutions.

Appearing before a bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud, Surya Kant and Vikram Nath, solicitor general Tushar Mehta said he had been instructed to make a statement before the bench that the government has decided to revisit the criteria, adding that a committee will be set up to examine the issue and sought four weeks time to take a final decision.

An immediate fallout of the decision to re-examine the criteria for determination of EWS is that counselling process for PG admissions would have to be deferred — at least for the month-long period sought by the Centre — till a decision on EWS eligibility is taken. “The Solicitor General states that a period of four weeks would be required for this exercise and pending its conclusion, the date for counselling shall stand postponed in view of the assurance which was tendered at an earlier stage of these proceedings. In view of the above position, the hearing of the proceedings shall be listed on January 6, 2022,” the bench said.

The court was hearing a batch of petitions filed by MBBS doctors challenging Centre’s decision to implement 27% reservation for OBCs and 10% reservation for EWS in admission in PG courses in medical colleges in All India Quota.

Panel to see if NEET question is correct

The NTA has agreed before the SC to set up a panel of three experts to decide the correctness of a physics question in the Hindi version of NEET(UG) question paper after a discrepancy was pointed out by some students. In the Hindi version of the question, words “amplitude of current” had been omitted, students said. P 12

‘Govt should take a decision on EWS in 2 weeks’

Though the litigation pertains to admission in PG medical courses, admission process in all governmentrun institutions and recruitment of government jobs will be affected.

When the matter was being argued in court in October, the apex court expressed displeasure over Centre not adequately explaining the basis for fixing income limit of ₹8 lakh for granting reservation to EWS, and directed it to file an affidavit to disclose whether any exercise was done and what was the rationale behind fixing the limit. The court had also questioned the uniform income criteria adopted for the entire country and suggested cost of living or per capita income be considered.

The Centre has referred to the Sinho commission recommendations for fixing the income limit and argued that it would not be easy or practicable to consider differentiated criteria given disparities in urban and rural settings.

The court asked how ₹8 lakh could be fixed for both EWS and OBC category to be eligible for reservation. It had said there was a social and educational backwardness attached with OBC category and it was presumed that their backwardness comes to an end with economic advancement. It had said the EWS category was different with no social and educational backwardness as a constitutional criteria and fixing the same income limit for both categories looked unreasonable.

Agreeing to examine the concern raised by the bench, the Centre has now sought four weeks time to re-examine the criteria and to take a final decision.

As the admission process for PG courses is getting delayed, senior advocate Arvind Datar contended that the government should implement its decision to enforce OBC and EWS reservation in All India Quota from next academic year or government should take a decision on EWS criteria within two weeks.

Experts to study if NEET question in Hindi got lost in translation

Experts to study if NEET question in Hindi got lost in translation

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi:26.11.2021

The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Thursday agreed before the Supreme Court to set up a committee of three experts to decide the correctness of a Physics question in the Hindi version of NEET (UG) question paper after a discrepancy was pointed out by some candidates who took the exam in the Hindi medium.

A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud, Surya Kant and Vikram Nath said only those who are experts in Physics and also well-conversed in both Hindi and English could decide whether there was any discrepancy in the question paper. Some of the medical aspirants who chose the Hindi medium in the MBBS entrance examination alleged that there was an error in question number 2 of the Physics section.

They alleged that in the Hindi version of the question, words “amplitude of current” had been omitted and candidates who attempted the question based on the Hindi translation arrived at a different answer. Solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for NTA, said the best way to deal with the issue was to take the help of experts and agreed to set up a panel. The bench posted the case for November 30.

“During the course of the hearing, Tushar Mehta, solicitor general, has submitted that in order to allay the apprehensions of students who appeared for NEET (UG) 2021 with Hindi as the medium, the solutions to both the Hindi and English versions of Question No 2 of Section-A in Physics Paper (Code P2) shall be evaluated again by a committee consisting of three experts. After this process is done, it has been submitted that an affidavit would be filed setting out the result of the evaluation of the solutions,” the bench said.

Some of the medical aspirants who chose Hindi medium in the MBBS entrance examination alleged that there was an error in question two of the Physics section

Offered easy money through an app? It could well be a trap

Offered easy money through an app? It could well be a trap

Multi-level marketing scams have donned an online avatar. Instead of pamphlets and posters, scammers use messages, audio and videos to trap people.

Published: 25th November 2021 06:58 AM 

EXPRESS ILLUSTRATION

By Gautham Selvarajan

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Multi-level marketing scams have donned an online avatar. Instead of pamphlets and posters, scammers use messages, audio and videos to trap people. For example, there are apps that promise high returns on investments. On registering, you get a referral code to share with your friends. And once they register, you get paid. Then they, in turn, invest and get referral codes to share.

These apps claim your investment goes towards a particular project, and the returns will be given to you. But that doesn’t always happen, explains Srikanth Lakshmanan, a researcher tracking digital payments and fraud. The scammers go to great lengths to make their companies appear legitimate. They pay the first level of people who join or sign up, and through them, attract others. But once more people join and invest, the returns stop, says Lakshmanan.

One such company used the name ‘World Bank’ to cheat people in the guise of angel funding. It created several groups on online messaging platforms, and uploaded pictures of people and pamphlets to convince victims. Once it was found to be a scam, the World Bank had to put out a warning to caution people, he points out.

Recently, a software engineer from Chennai invested in a similar app, received a referral code, and shared it with his friends, who then followed his footsteps. He received returns in his account on the app for each person who used his code. But when he sought to withdraw the money, the app and company stopped responding. Ultimately, he had to pay back the people he led to invest in the app.

Many such apps are available on online app stores, but most of the ones used by scammers can only be downloaded from the links they send, says a senior cyber crime officer, adding that the only way to be immune to such frauds is to stay aware. This means being cautious about apps and links that scammers may ask you to use.

And if you happen to fall prey to such frauds, report it immediately, says the officer. “The quicker you report it to the police, the easier it is to freeze the culprit’s account.” Once an issue is reported, network providers, banks, and cybercrime officials work together to crack the case. “Even if the culprit is not apprehended, at least there’s a chance of tracing the funds,” the officer adds.

(To report any kind of cyber crime, dial 155260)

CM announces ₹240cr grant for cash-starved Pbi varsity

CM announces ₹240cr grant for cash-starved Pbi varsity

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Patiala:25.11.2021

Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Wednesday announced to increase the annual grant to the Punjabi University from Rs 114 crore to Rs 240 crore. Channi visited the university, which had been facing a financial crisis for the past several years and demanding a loan debt waiver, along with the finance minister and announced to “take over” the financial laibilities, including its bank loan of Rs 150 crore.

In the budget presented in March this year, the state government had announced a special grant of Rs 90 crore for the university against the demand of Rs 400 crore. In April, the finance committee of Punjabi University had passed a deficit budget of Rs 129 crore approximately for the current financial year (2021-22) whereas last year it passed Rs 296 crore of deficit budget.

“We are implementing a new model of education ‘Navi Soch Navan Punjab’. Each year, the state government will give Rs 240 crore as annual grant to this university. Rs 20 crore is monthly expense of Punjabi University that it needs from the state government, but the government was giving it Rs 9.5 crore monthly grant... It is our responsibility to provide quality education to students and ensure that universities do not face any financial crisis. Thus, we decided to provide Rs 20 crore monthly grant to Punjabi University. Besides, we have taken over Rs 150 crore of bank loans from Punjabi University,” he said.

Channi said, “The incumbent VC (Prof Arvind) and his predecessor (Prof B S Ghumman) too had approached me (during his term) for financial assistance. But actually decisions are taken by those running the government and not under the chief minister. So I am thankful to the finance minister who came here along with me to resolve this issue of financial crisis.”

Addressing the gathering at the university, Channi said it was set up to promote of Punjabi language. “I thank those who established this university and gave Punjab this good institution that is serving both Punjabi language and its people. We should take pride in our mother tongue Punjabi and both this institution and state government.”

Later, he inaugurated the Centre for Rural Entrepreneur and Skill Training and Centre for Restoration of Ecosystem of Punjab, saying it speaks volumes about the untiring efforts of the university to explore new avenues in entrepreneurship to generate employment, especially in the Malwa region.

CM Charanjit Singh Channi with finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal with VC Dr Arvind at Punjabi University in Patiala

VC-MLA ROW

Congress MLA from Ghanaur assembly segment in Patiala district, Madan Lal Jalalpur refused to share a seat with the university vice-chancellor, alleging he was appointed on the behest of RSS during Capt Amarinder Singh’s term as CM. The VC was about to sit along with the chief minister and others for a press conference but Jalalpur refused to join them. “I am planning to file a defamation case against MLA Madan Lal Jalalpur, who publicly misbehaved and levelled baseless allegations. I am an international scientist and do not want to engage with him at his level,” the VC said.

CM ON ‘FAKE KEJRIWAL’

Replying to a media query over AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal’s ‘fake Kejriwal’ remark, Channi said, “When pain intensifies, then such replies are expected from them. Now they have gone hallucinating and gone off the track. They themselves are fake. They want people to go out of the track by uttering such things to provoke others, but now their this system has failed. We are carrying forward a positive and good thinking for Punjab and moving on this track. I would not blame anyone for copying me or criticizing them (our rivals). We are improving ourselves and bringing all that which is requirement of people of Punjab. ” On guarantees announced by Kejriwal in Punjab, Channi said, “We are not just giving guarantees, but doing the work in reality.

IGI was busier than Dubai airport in Nov

IGI was busier than Dubai airport in Nov

Saurabh.Sinha@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:25.11.2021

The pandemic has flipped the pecking order of world airports. This month, Delhi’s IGI Airport was busier than Dubai International Airport in terms of combined domestic and international seat capacity deployed by airlines.

At close to 30.9 lakh, IGIA is the seventh busiest airport globally this month, ahead of Dubai at a little over 30.7 lakh, according to UK-based air consultancy firm OAG. In pre-pandemic November 2019, Dubai was at number 3 and IGIA at number 10.

While Dubai remains the world’s busiest international airport by seats, IGIA does not figure in the list of top 10 international airports due to continued restrictions on scheduled foreign flights by India. The revival of domestic air travel in India has led to a revival of footfall at airports, making IGIA overtake Dubai in overall seat capacity.

Decision on resuming int’l flights soon: Govt

India will soon decide on resuming scheduled international flights. While there are chances that it could happen before the yearend, the worsening Covid situation in Europe has led to a rethink. Union aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said: “I am working on the issue with other ministries.”

Only half of current Top 10 airports were in 2019 list

In pre-pandemic times, nearly 60% of the international traffic between India and the rest of the world flew foreign airlines. Of them, Gulf carriers took the lion’s share in terms of both point to point and connecting traffic. “If India is able to take steps to lower the steep operating cost structures for its airlines and the latter are able to mount more nonstops to the rest of the world, including distant continents, then the blow to airlines of nearby hubs will be big. Transit traffic to and from India is a big source of filling the planes of these airlines,” said an airline official.

Thanks to traffic recovery, India’s busiest and second busiest airport, Delhi’s IGI and Mumbai airport, respectively, are now using all their terminals. Meanwhile, the 10 busiest airports overall this month, according to OAG, are Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson, Dallas Fort Worth, Chicago O’Hare, Guangzhou, Denver, Los Angeles International, Delhi IGIA, Dubai DXB, Tokyo Haneda and Shenzhen. The 10 busiest airports by international seat capacity alone this month are Dubai DXB, London Heathrow, Amsterdam, Paris CDG, Frankfurt, Istanbul, Doha, Madrid Adolfo Suarez-Barajas, New York JFK and Dublin.

“Only half of the current Top 10 airports were in the Top 10 in November 2019. Still missing are Singapore (23), Hong Kong (27), Incheon (45) and Bangkok (63) as recovery in Asia continues to falter,” says OAG.

Be Careful, India

Be Careful, India

US and Western Europe are a cautionary tale of Covid dangers despite brisk vaccination

25.11.2021

The Covid surge in Western Europe and the US, including in some countries where around 70% of the population is fully vaccinated, sends a message to India – be very careful. India cannot be swayed by comforting assumptions. It must focus on upping disease surveillance and expediting vaccination. Just 30% of Indians are fully vaccinated; and decisions on child immunisation as well as booster shots for 2.5 crore senior citizens and healthcare workers who received second doses over six months ago are still awaited. Reopening educational institutions have triggered a few Covid clusters, evidence that the virus is transmitting even when unable to wreak much damage.

The national serosurvey in July had revealed Covid antibodies in 67% of the population even when single-dose coverage was just 28%. Subsequent serosurveys in Delhi, Kerala and Haryana had revealed over 90%, 80% and 70% seropositivity respectively in the general population. But as the Kerala seven-day Covid trajectory of over 5,000 daily cases, despite 95% single-dose adult vaccination, indicates, only speedy universal full vaccination can mitigate infection risks. High seroprevalence is a comforting prospect but in a situation where immunity is waning, India’s propensity for rapid infection transmission – evident during the Delta second wave in April-June – poses a nightmarish scenario to be avoided at all costs.

Scientific studies to glean actionable intelligence are needed. Regular serosurveys could signal the duration of seroprevalence by vaccine type besides societal-level protection. Hospitalisation data can reveal concrete evidence of waning immunity based on vaccination status, age, sex and location. NTAGI, the apex technical advisory group having the mandate to recommend the booster dose, should requisition all-out support from research bodies under ICMR to pursue studies that further our understanding of vaccines. Mix-and-match trials of vaccines to establish safety and immunogenicity are also necessary: Those wishing to switch out of Covishield or Covaxin must get that option with booster doses.

Concurrently, NEGVAC, the expert group on Covid vaccine administration, must debate the merits of rolling out booster doses in the private sector for those receiving medical advice to take the third dose, while governments steadfastly focus on the community medicine aspect of accelerating first and second doses. From 61% three months ago, the UK’s fully vaccinated population has inched up to just 68% now. With over 20 crore doses lying unused and nearly 10 crore people overdue for their second doses, the vaccination effort is entering a complicated stage in India too. Scientific rigour and state capacity are on test.

Why colleges may continue with online classes for now

Why colleges may continue with online classes for now

New Delhi:25.11.2021

While colleges and other educational institutions have been allowed to reopen, they are likely to continue holding classes in the online mode for now. Ensuring 50% capacity may be difficult for them, said officials.

Yogesh Singh, vice-chancellor of Delhi University, said, “Our concern is with the DDMA guidelines that allow 50% capacity. It is difficult to ensure that, so we are working on something concrete. However, that will take some time. For the final year students' practicals, the project work is already ongoing offline. We will soon have a meeting with the principals and decide for the first-and second-year students as well”.

For first-year students, the online classes at DU began on November 22.

At Delhi Technological University (DTU), the concern is about providing the students with hostel facilities. An official said, “First-year classes will begin from December 27 in the online mode. If offline classes are to be done in 50% attendance, the issue becomes that many of our students are outstation ones and there aren’t sufficient hostels. We may start with offline practical classes and continue theory classes online.”BR Ambedkar University Delhi will take a decision on reopening in a few days’ time. Anu Lather, vice-chancellor of the university, said, “We will have a consultation with the deans and take a call. Reopening is long-awaited and a welcome step. In between also, we tried to open 50% of the capacity of classrooms.” TNN

6k half-empty vials of Covid vaccines found in garbage pit

6k half-empty vials of Covid vaccines found in garbage pit

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bhopal:25.11.2021

As many as 5,500 half-empty vials of Covishield vaccine and 550 halfempty vials of Covaxin were found in a garbage pit in Mauganj community health centre of Rewa district on Wednesday.

Pictures of these vials went viral, triggering an allout administrative response. The district’s chief medical and health officer, Dr BL Mishra, set up a probe team and sent it the town, around 65km from Rewa HQ. He too rushed to the spot at night, and said the vials contained unused doses.

“Not even one of these vials of Covishield and Covaxin was sealed. These are actually last doses that were left over as patients did not turn up. Suppose, a vial is opened and only seven patients show up, then the remaining three doses are not used the next day. The only irresponsibility in this case pertains to improper disposal of medical waste,” the CMHO told TOI.

“Before the new waste disposal norms were put in place in the state a few years ago, medical wasted used to be dumped in garbage pits. This is one of the same garbage pits. Notices will be issued to all concerned over improper disposal,” he added.

Pictures of the vials in a garbage pit went viral on Wednesday

Singapore Airlines to resume flights on Nov 30

DOUBLE JAB MUST

Singapore Airlines to resume flights on Nov 30

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru:25.11.2021

Singapore Airlines will restart its Bengaluru to Singapore City and return flights on November 30, after the country recently announced it will allow entry to fully vaccinated people, including Indians. Flights will be four days a week now, and from December 17, there will be daily flights from Bengaluru.

Flight SQ511 will take off from Kempegowda International Airport at 11.10 pm on November 30 and Flight SQ510 will land from Singapore. Return flights will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays till December 16.

Travel to Singapore has been categorised as vaccinated travel lane (VTL) and non vaccinated travel lane. Flights from Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai to Singapore fall under VTL, and those from Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kochi and Kolkata come under non-VTL category.

Int’l flights may resume by year-end

Int’l flights may resume by year-end

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi:25.11.2021

India will soon decide on resuming scheduled international flights that remain suspended since last March. While there are chances the same happens before the yearend, the worsening Covid situation in Europe has led to a rethink on the issue.

Union aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia told TOI on Wednesday: “I am working on the issue of resumption of scheduled international flights with other Union ministries like home and health. There is no definite decision as of now due to the resurgence of Covid in some countries. The inter-ministerial discussions on the issue will hopefully arrive at a decision shortly.” Earlier in the day, aviation secretary Rajiv Bansal told reporters that international flight services would normalise “very soon”, possibly by the end of this year. “This is still work in progress,” he told TOI.

The government wants to weigh in the Covid situation very carefully before deciding on scheduled international flights that were suspended in March 2020. Since last summer, international flights operate under air bubbles India has so far created with 31 countries. But the limited capacity has led to exorbitant international fares.

Nurses shunted over ants on patient’s face

Nurses shunted over ants on patient’s face

25.11.2021

Vadodara:

Months after a video of ants crawling on a 47-year-old paralytic woman’s mouth in the Covid ICU of SSG Hospital went viral, the state government shunted two nurses out of Vadodara. Sources said that the state health department has relieved them from their services at the hospital. While one staff nurse has been transferred to community health centre (CHC) at Balasinor in Mahisagar district, the other has been transferred to Ranjitnagar CHC in Panchmahal.

Transfer orders issued by the state health commissioner states that the services of the two nurses cannot be continued at SSG Hospital after the reports of ants crawling on the paralytic female patient. They have been transferred citing public interest. TNN

Need govt job? Sign affidavit against dowry in UP’s Bijnor

Need govt job? Sign affidavit against dowry in UP’s Bijnor

Harveer Dabas TNN

Bijnor:25.11.2021

The sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) in Bijnor “in an initiative to fight the social evil of dowry” has started asking youths visiting his office, for verification of various documents required for applying to or joining government jobs, to first sign an “anti-dowry” affidavit. “If you want documents verified for government job, you will have to give it in writing that you will not take dowry,” announces the notice by SDM Devendra Singh issued in his personal capacity.

Youths coming in for the attestation of their documents have no option but to sign the pledge. Singh said, “The aim is to weed out dowry from society. The Dowry Prohibition Act is already in force. Under it, dowry includes property, goods or money given during marriage by parents of either party or by anyone else. Despite the Act, many people still indulge in it.”

Full report on www.toi.in

Will 2022 be the year we stop worrying about Covid waves?

Will 2022 be the year we stop worrying about Covid waves?

Immunity from widespread infection and vaccination could mean future outbreaks will resemble those of the flu rather than April’s catastrophic second Covid wave

25.11.2021

Going into its third year, Covid-19 seems to be entering the endemic phase, meaning it will continue to circulate in the population but in a more predictable and less severe way. With time, the disease could even become similar to routine illnesses, such as the flu and common cold, experts say.

But the transition will happen at different times in different places, and the disease’s impact on the population will broadly depend on two factors: vaccination coverage and mutation of the virus.

The first countries to emerge from the pandemic are likely to be those with either high inoculation rates, such as the US and the UK, or widespread immunity among people from exposure to the coronavirus, like India. In that light, India’s high case count could be a silver lining.

In July, Indian Council of Medical Research’s nationwide serological survey showed over 70% of the surveyed population in eight states had been exposed to the virus (Table 1). “We can say we’ve reached the endemic stage not due to vaccination but due to natural infection,” Dr T Jacob John, retired professor and head of the departments of clinical virology and microbiology at CMC, Vellore, told TOI recently. In New Delhi, which was ravaged by the second wave, a serological survey report published by the government last month indicated over 90% of the population had been exposed to the virus, meaning the city is unlikely to witness a surge in cases unless a new variant emerges. The survey further showed vaccination provided a strong immune response, irrespective of any previous history of symptomatic infection (Table 2).

Variants and virulence

To measure the transmissibility of a virus, scientists often use R0 (or R naught) to denote the number of people a sick person is likely to infect when a population is vulnerable or without immunity. Flu has an estimated R0 of two (one person is likely to infect two others, on average), which rises to between six and seven for the Covid-19 Delta variant.

The Delta variant has affected countries like Singapore and China, which have high inoculation rates but little natural immunity because of strict lockdown measures. In Russia, which still has low vaccination coverage, the variant has wreaked havoc in recent months.

Epidemiologist Neil Ferguson of Imperial College London recently told Reuters that for the UK, which was also hit by the variant, the “bulk of the pandemic as an emergency is behind us”. But he expects above-average deaths from respiratory diseases due to Covid-19 to continue for the next 2-5 years. “It’s going to be a gradual evolution. We’re going to be dealing with this as a more persistent virus.”

For the US, Trevor Bedford, a computational virologist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center who has been tracking the evolution of SARS-COV-2, said he sees a milder winter wave and then a transition to the endemic stage in 2022-2023.

Getting a grip on the virus

“We think between now and the end of 2022, this is the point where we get control over this virus... where we can significantly reduce severe disease and death,” Maria Van Kerkhove, an epidemiologist leading the WHO Covid-19 response, told Reuters earlier this month.

But reaching a goal of zero Covid-19 cases worldwide might be a tough ask in the near future. The virus’s high transmissibility, potential to mutate and associated unpredictability make eradication and management efforts more challenging.

Currently, the best bet is to inoculate as many people as possible and give governments the elbow room to tinker with Covid-19 management strategies in preparation for a long-term endemic phase, experts say. Meanwhile, antiviral pills, which will work together with vaccines, might become critical for treatment, and booster shots targeted at the latest variants could provide additional protection. For the larger population, a behavioural shift is needed where Covid-19 is not seen as a one-time threat but as part of day-today life. It would mean a change in the way we think about building, restructuring and operating in shared spaces.

“We are in the endemic stage for the long haul,” said retired professor John.

Text: Sweta Chatterjee

Sources: ICMR, Co-WIN, WHO, Reuters, media reports

On express trains, no one cares to wear a mask

On express trains, no one cares to wear a mask

Ayyappan.V@timesgroup.com

Chennai:25.11.2021

On Tuesday, most people who boarded the Chennai Egmore-Kollam express removed their masks and kept them in their bags as soon as they settled into their seats just after the train left Chennai Egmore railway station.

It looked like passengers thought that they need not wear a mask once inside the coaches. Ticket checking staff and the RPF keep their masks on but do not reprimand errant passengers, though the state government notifications still stress on masks being mandatory in public.The situation in air conditioned coaches is no different.

As life returns to normal, mask compliance in express trains from Chennai has declined considerably.

More than 70 % to 80% of travellers used to wear masks on express trains till a few weeks ago. This has changed in the last couple of weeks.

“A majority of passengers, including women and children and senior citizens, did not wear masks while travelling in an AC coach of a train that reached Chennai on Kollam. The passengers behaved as if the pandemic was over and talked loudly, coughed, sneezed without wearing masks. The ticket checking staff had his mask near his chin. The RPF personnel who walked by many times did not bother to tell passengers to mask up,” said Prakash Kumar, a passenger.

Travellers also find it inconvenient to wear a mask for more than 10 to 12 hours but do not realise that the train is an enclosed space much smaller than office rooms.

A senior railway official said that the administration is continuously appealing to passengers to follow covid appropriate behaviour. Regular announcements are being made where facilities are available. Both TTE and RPF collect fines from violating passengers.

"The zone has collected ₹1.98 crores as penalty for not wearing masks from 39,822 passengers. On Tuesday, 147 passengers were fined," he added.

A senior railway official said that the administration is continuously appealing to passengers to follow covid appropriate behaviour while travelling by trains

ACB ‘drains’ lakhs of rupees from pipes in K’buragi house

ACB ‘drains’ lakhs of rupees from pipes in K’buragi house

₹54L Cash Seized During Raids On Junior Govt Officer In K’taka

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru:25.11.2021

Lakhs of rupees meant for laying public roads had not gone down the drain as it usually does. Instead, it had been hidden away in a drainage pipe of a junior government official’s house in north Karnataka. That is precisely what Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) sleuths found during the raid on a three-storey residence of Shanthagouda M Biradar, a junior engineer in the state public works department, in Kalaburagi on Wednesday morning.

The sleuths had to collect wads of currency notes, totaling ₹13.5 lakh, in a bucket after cutting open the drainage pipe where the illegal money had been stored. The engineer had also concealed currency notes in the false ceiling of the house, ACB sources said. The cash seized from the pipe and ceiling added to ₹54.5 lakh.

Not just cash, Biradar reportedly owned two houses in Kalaburagi, a site in Bengaluru, five vehicles, 36 acres of farmland and gold jewellery. “This is for the first time that we found cash hidden in a drainage pipe,” a senior ACB official said.

Besides Biradar, 14 other government officials were searched at 68 places across the state. A total of 503 ACB personnel swooped down on the residences of government officials, who are suspected to possess assets disproportionate to their known sources of income. The ACB raids come in the backdrop of an increase in complaints from ordinary people over rising corruption levels in the state.

At the end of the raids on the 15 officials, the ACB seized 16.5kg gold, 45kg silver, documents on sites and hundreds of acres of farmland reportedly amassed by the officials. A joint director of agriculture department in Gadag district, TS Rudreshappa, was found to be in possession of 9kg gold (including biscuits), 3kg silver and ₹16 lakh in cash, apart from owning houses and sites.

Five of the raided officials were from Bengaluru. The agency found ₹43 lakh cash from the house of KAS officer LC Nagaraj, who came under the radar after being booked by the CBI in the IMA scam. Nagaraj is serving as an administrative officer in Sakala Mission. ACB sleuths said he owned 11.3 acres in Nelamangala and 1.8kg gold jewelry.

What baffled the ACB officials was the king-size life led by GV Giri, a group ‘D’ worker and driver with the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike. ACB officials said he owned six houses in Bengaluru and four cars, apart from gold jewellery.

DOWN THE DRAIN: Wads of ₹500 notes collected from a drainage pipe during a raid in Kalaburagi on Wednesday. (R) Gold biscuits & jewels among the 9kg gold seized from a government official’s home

Hry’s recruitment scam is bigger than Vyapam: Surjewala

Hry’s recruitment scam is bigger than Vyapam: Surjewala

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chandigarh:24.11.2021

AICC general secretary and former Haryana minister Randeep Singh Surjewala on Tuesday said the cash-for-job scam of dental surgeons and HCS has emerged as a bigger scam than that of Vyapam.

Seeking a judiciary-monitored probe by an independent agency, Surjewala categorically sought disbanding of the current set of HPSC and HSSC team with immediate effect. He also demanded the review of recruitments and tests which were held in Haryana Board of School Education and other departments under the direct supervision of Anil Nagar HCS.

Questioning Nagar’s credentials, Surjewala categorically said the scam is linked to higher ups in politics and state government who were getting the major pie.

“Hence, we simply want entire investigations under the close monitoring and supervision of chief justice of Punjab and Haryana high court. Besides, the circumstances in which Nagar had been assigned the responsibilities by surpassing the seniority of IAS officers too should be probed,” said Surjewala.

“HPSC has become ‘Haryana Post Sales Counter’ under Khattar-Chautala government, the senior Congress leader said.

Now, one thing is absolutely clear that Khattar saheb had been misleading crores of youth of Haryana for the past seven years by raising false slogans of getting job ‘Bina Parchi, Bina Kharchi’. Under the BJP-JJP government, even the size of ‘kharchi’ has inflated into ‘suitcase’, Surjewala added.

Rlys allows tour operators to run Bharat Gaurav trains

Rlys allows tour operators to run Bharat Gaurav trains

Dipak.Dash@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:24.11.2021

The Indian Railways has opened its doors to travel and tour operators, state tourism entities and any interested party to run theme-based “Bharat Gaurav” trains. They can run these trains on any route of their choice and will be free to determine the fares as well. This means like the railways’ IRCTC, private players like Makemytrip, Cleartrip etc can run such trains.

Announcing that the railways has started accepting applications from interested parties, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday said the railways has earmarked 3,033 coaches — both AC and non-AC — an equivalent of 150 trains, which such players can take on lease, refurbish and can run them for tourists. Sources said some of the rail coaches which were converted as “Covid coaches” and are still idle can also be utilised for this purpose. Over 3,000 such coaches are deployed across different zones. He said these trains will be different from the railways’ plan to allow private players to operate trains on regular routes.

The operators can procure trains, if they wish, do branding and advertisement inside and on the exterior. The minimum lease period would be two years and maximum up to 10 years.

Singapore Airlines to resume flights on Nov. 29

Singapore Airlines to resume flights on Nov. 29

To start non-VTL flights ‘progressively’

24/11/2021

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT NEW DELHI

The Singapore Airlines Group announced resumption of passenger flights from India from November 29. These will include daily Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) services for quarantine-free entry from Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai.

The airline group, which includes its low-cost arm Scoot, will also start non-VTL flights from Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Kochi, Amritsar and Tiruchirappalli “progressively” from November 29. The VTL and non-VTL flights will be operated under an “air bubble” pact.

Only fully vaccinated passengers are allowed on VTL flights. They are exempt from quarantine but have to take a PCR test two days before departure and on arrival at Changi airport.

Unvaccinated or partially vaccinated passengers can travel on non-VTL flights after a PCR test two days before departure, and will have to quarantine at the traveller’s declared place of stay. On completion of quarantine, they will have to undergo another PCR test.

After Airtel, Voda Idea raises call, data rates

After Airtel, Voda Idea raises call, data rates

24.11.2021

Beleaguered telecom operator Vodafone Idea on Tuesday announced an increase in mobile call and data tariffs across plans by 18-25% for prepaid customers with effect from November 25, the move coming a day after a similar move by Bharti Airtel. Vodafone Idea increased the minimum value of recharge by 25% for 28 days to Rs 99 from the existing Rs 79. Market leader Reliance Jio is yet to announce a revision in mobile rates, though analysts and the broader industry expects it to happen soon. TNN

Colleges struggle to make room for students

Colleges struggle to make room for students

Sukshma R & Ragu Raman TNN

Madurai/Chennai:24.11.2021

A day after the higher education department directed all colleges to conduct physical classes for all students, universities and colleges across the state are trying to find ways to accommodate more students on campus while following Covid-19 protocols.

Though the state government removed the shift system, professors and principals said it would be difficult to maintain social distancing inside classrooms and hostels when institutions call full strength back to campus. With most first year students unvaccinated, there is also concern of mixing them with vaccinated students.

Anna University is mulling ways to accommodate all students on campus and hostels following the government order.

“We may allow 30 to 40 students per classroom and will accommodate more than one student per room in hostels. After finalising the details, we will call first year students to campus,” said vice-chancellor R Velraj. The university is already conducting physical classes for second and third year students while online classes are going on for first year students. Final year students finished their classes entirely in physical mode in the current semester.

Madras University is also renovating hostels to accommodate more students. “We have informed all colleges to conduct physical classes for all students. First year PG students will join physical classes after completing their induction programme in online mode,” said S Gowri, vice-chancellor.

Colleges in Chennai like Women's Christian College issued circulars asking all students to attend physical classes. A professor from the college said they will make sure there is no crowding inside the campus.

In Madurai, colleges like Thiagarajar College of Arts and Science and The American College said they would call students back to campus. “We won’t have much of an issue in case of space. The syllabus for this semester will be continued in the physical classes,” said Davamani M Christober, principal of The American College. D Pandiaraja, principal of Thiagarajar College of Arts and Science, said they will revise the syllabus and conduct the exam according to the government’s directive.

Colleges with higher student strength are a little worried about holding all classes offline. But college managements say they can only follow what the government says and it might not be possible to have only a restricted number of students in a classroom and that relaxation is needed.

Students meanwhile also expressed some concerns over Covid-19 vaccination and hostellers also being affected.

“First year students have to come to the campus without being vaccinated. We just wanted this semester exam to be held online. We could have then proceeded to have offline exams from next semester without any delay or confusion. Hostel students who stay in distant areas still have to attend online classes only,” said a second year UG student who took part in the recent protests against offline exams

15 districts see marginal rise in Covid cases

15 districts see marginal rise in Covid cases

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:24.11.2021

Fifteen districts including Chennai reported a marginal increase in new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, when the state reported a drop to 741 cases from 750 on Monday. There were 13 deaths that took the cumulative toll since March 2020 to 36,401. At the end of the day, after 808 patients were discharged from the state registry, there were 8,536 patients seeking treatment for the viral infection.

While Coimbatore (119) reported the maximum number of new cases in the state, Chennai reported 114 new cases compared to 110 on Monday.

The sharpest increase was reported from Vellore. The district reported 15 cases compared to 10 on Monday. At least 22 districts reported fewer than 10 cases each, while Tuticorin reported zero new cases.

Active cases were the highest in Chennai and Coimbatore ( both at 1274) on Tuesday. While Erode had 830 patients, Chengalpet had 659 and Tiruppur had 555. All other districts reported fewer than 500 active cases. T,enkasi (9) and Theni(10) had the least number of active cases in the state.

Of the 13 deaths, there were three each in Chennai and Coimbatore, two in Tiruppur and one each in Trichy, Thanjavur, Kancheepuram, Sivaganga and Villupuram.

Meanwhile, 3.5 lakh people took the Covid-19 vaccine on Tuesday. This pushed the dosage tally at government vaccination centres to 6.4 crore. Since May 1, 27.2 lakh doses have been administered in private vaccination centres.

No deaths in Pondy for 2nd day

Puducherry:

The Union territory of Puducherry did not report any Covid-19 death for the second consecutive day on Tuesday and the death toll remained at 1,870. Puducherry headquarters has the maximum fatalities with 1,463 followed by Karaikal

(250), Yanam (108) and Mahe  (49). The fatality rate of the infection remained at 1.5%.

TNN

Anna university to charge 18% GST for migration certs

Anna university to charge 18% GST for migration certs

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:24.11.2021

Anna University on Tuesday announced that all candidates applying for migration certificates, certificate verification and seeking photocopy of answer sheets need to pay 18% GST as the university adopted the Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. "The services which are part of the curriculum are exempted under GST. All other services are taxable as per GST Act 2017," a circular from controller of examinations said. Students who graduate need to pay GST for provisional certificates, consolidated mark statements, grade sheets and degree certificates. They also need to pay the tax for getting duplicate certificates of grade sheets, provisional certificates and consolidated marksheets.

There will be no GST on examination fees, revaluation fees, transcript fees and degree certificate, rank certificate of current students.

"The beneficiaries are requested to pay the GST as mentioned above along with the regular fees prescribed for each item," the circular further said.

Professors from the university said the GST council wanted the university to collect tax for all services.

Earlier, speaking to reporters after inaugurating a book exhibition, Anna University vice-chancellor R Velraj said the university will form a committee to review the revaluation fees following representation from the students. The university is collecting ₹700 per answer sheet for revaluation.

He further said the syllabus for the first year students has been trimmed to reduce the burden. More than one lakh books have been displayed in the exhibition. The university asked the faculty members, research scholars and students to recommend engineering and non-engineering books for the library.

Tamil Nadu lost 14 lakh mobile phone subscriptions in September

Tamil Nadu lost 14 lakh mobile phone subscriptions in September

People Find It Hard To Keep Multiple SIMs

Yogesh.Kabirdoss@timesgroup.com

Chennai:24.11.2021

Mobile phone subscriptions in Tamil Nadu fell by about 14 lakh in Tamil Nadu in September. Nationally, all states recorded a significant drop in two crore wireless subscriptions in just a month. The difficulty in sustaining multiple numbers due to mandatory recharge tariff and return to offices after the second wave of Covid-19 are attributed as key reasons by telecom experts. With telecom operators announcing a fresh hike in tariffs, the numbers are likely to crash further.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) latest report on telecom subscriptions shows a net reduction of 14 lakh wireless subscriptions in Tamil Nadu, from 8.29 crore in August to 8.15 crore in September. Tamil Nadu including the Chennai telecom circle lost the third highest number of wireless subscriptions after Mumbai and Kolkata telecom circles. Except for Bharti Airtel, all other telecom operators reported a decrease in customer base in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the highest declines in a single month in recent years.

This has also cut the teledensity by around 1%. Currently, Tamil Nadu has a teledensity of 107.2%; it was more than 108% in June. Teledensity is based on the number of telephone connections (fixed lines and mobile phone subscribers) per 100 inhabitants within a geographical area. Official telecom sector sources say a SIM card is deactivated if not recharged for three months continuously.

On the other hand, wireline subscriptions including fibrenet services in TN rose by 10,485 from August to September.

T Sadagopan, president of the Tamil Nadu Progressive Consumer Center, said retaining multiple numbers has become expensive because subscribers must spend a fixed amount every month. “So, people prefer one convenient number to avoid unnecessary spending on two SIM cards,” he added.

V K Sanjeevi, chief general manager of BSNL Chennai Telephones, said the decrease in wireless subscriptions was a regular phenomenon that would be compensated by the entry of new subscribers. “But, this time, a considerable number of subscriptions have fallen within a month across the networks and it needs to be studied.”

Two express trains to resume

Two express trains to resume

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: 24.11.2021

Two express trains linking Chennai and Mumbai with Salem will resume after the Railway Board gave its approval.

According to a press release, train No. 22158 Chennai Egmore – Mumbai CSMT Tri-Weekly Superfast Express will leave Chennai Egmore on Saturdays, Mondays and Thursdays at 06.20 hrs on and from December 4and reach Mumbai CSMT at 05.50 hrs the next day.

Train No. 22153 / 22154 Chennai Egmore – Salem – Chennai Egmore Tri-Weekly Superfast Express train will leave Chennai Egmore on Thursdays, Saturdays and Tuesdays at 23.55 hrs on and from December 2 and reach Salem at 06.10 hrs the next day.

Advance Reservation for the above Tri-Weekly Superfast Express Special Trains will open at 08.00 hrs on November 24 the release added.

Reservation opens on Nov 24

MBBS cut-off may dip by up to 10 marks for first time since NEET

UG MED SEATS UP

MBBS cut-off may dip by up to 10 marks for first time since NEET

1,500 Additional Medical Seats At 11 New Colleges Is Affecting Cut Off Marks: Experts

A Ragu Raman & Pushpa Narayan | TNN

24.11.2021

Cut-off for MBBS admissions in Tamil Nadu is likely to come down by at least 10 marks in various categories in 2021 making the process easy despite a marginal improvement in performance by TN students in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET). This is because the number of undergraduate medical seats – both in government and private sector – have gone up.

This is the first time the cut-off has dropped since 2017. This year, 235 TN students scored more than 650 marks in NEET compared to 205 last year, according to National Testing Agency data. The number of TN students who scored above 500 was 5,148 in 2021 against 5,240 in 2020 and those who scored above 450 was 8,319 in 2021 against 8,316 in 2020.

“The difference is not stark enough to impact the cutoff,” said students’ counsellor Manickavel Arumugam. “But the additional MBBS seats this year will make all the difference. The open category cut-off for government medical colleges may come down to 585 from 598 in 2020. Likewise the cut-off for other categories including BC and MBC also will come down by up to 15 marks.”

The 11 new government medical colleges in TN will add 1,450 MBBS seats to the seat matrix. In addition, the Coimbatore government medical college will admit 200 students in 2021 – 50 more than in 2020. In addition, at least three self-financing medical colleges, a private university and deemed universities have been permitted to start undergraduate medical programmes.

Several top scorers from TN are now eyeing seats in central institutions such as AIIMS and JIPMER. “I thought it was best to study in a college closest to home. But my nephew now has scored more than 600. So he is exploring the option of studying in AIIMS in other states,” said S Senthil Kumar, who works for a pharmaceutical company.

If more toppers choose seats from the all India basket, cut-off could fall further, experts say. “But they may not get the college of choice unless they score high. The cut-off for top institutions like Madras Medical College will be high because there is no change in the number of seats there,” said Nandhini V, who coaches students for NEET.

The cut-off for government school students, under the special 7.5% quota, is unlikely to come down, says Dr Prasad Mane, secretary of Kilpauk Medical College Alumni Association which trains government school students for NEET. “Of 1,500 government medical seats, around 100 will be added to 7.5% special reservation. So, it will not bring down the cut-off drastically.”

However, more government school students may join private colleges under special reservation as the government has promised to pay their fee. Last year, 400 government students joined MBBS under special reservation.