HC issues notice to TN govt to probe corruption in Annamalai University

Chennai: Times of India 16.05.2018

The Madras high court has ordered notice to the state government on a PIL seeking to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe into the allegations of irregularities and corruption in Annamalai University before the administration was taken over by state government.

A vacation bench of Justice V Parthiban and Justice P D Audikesavalu passed the interim order directing the authorities to file their response by June 6 on the PIL moved by A Narayanan. According to petitioner, Annamalai University was rocked by serious allegations of widespread irregularities, rampant corruption and maladministration because of the indulgence of the private management and their agents.

“ To access and quantify the loss due to the financial crisis and other irregularities in the university, the government constituted a special audit team. The team found that there were irregularities and placed the then vice chancellor under suspension and appointed Shiv Das Meena IAS as the administrator,” the petitioner said. Though the government had taken over the administration, so far, no legal action has been initiated against the then private management and their associates. TNN

SRM launches performing arts centre

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: 16.05.2018
SRM Institute of Science & Technology launched center for performing and fine Arts on its Kattankulathur campus.

The center offers degrees for music, dance, and fashion technology and certificate courses in performing arts. The center will be headed by musician and musicologist Shobana Vignesh. The centre will provide several recital and concert venues for students, faculty, visiting artists, and for the students of performing arts.

It will also provide opportunities to exhibit designs and merchandise for the fashion designing students. To extend knowledge on related field, arts students will also be trained with supportive courses like event management, sound engineering.

Trains run at 80kmph in metro rail inspection

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: 16.05.2018

The commissioner of metro rail safety (CMRS) has given a few suggestions including completion of passenger amenities at Central metro, as the last leg of inspections needed for authorising operations of one of the largest underground transit hubs in the country along with Egmore metro line on Poonamallee High Road was completed on Tuesday. Trains were operated at a maximum speed of 80kmph from midnight on Monday to 4am on Tuesday.

CMRS K A Manoharan said the authorisation to officially open the downline from Central Metro to Nehru Park

(2.5km) and upline from Shenoy Nagar to Central Park

(5.62km) is likely to be given in a week's time. “One of the suggestions after we conducted the inspections is to complete certain passenger related facilities at Central Metro. The safety parameters for passengers are all in place,” the commissioner said. “We will try to give CMRL the authorisation to operate the line in a week's time as we have some more work to do before we approve. But it may subject to one or two conditions like completion of the service station before opening to the public.”

Manoharan also said they found infringement in the schedule of dimensions, which requires structures like walkway to be at a certain distance from the centre of the tracks, in a few places. “It is not so serious but we have told CMRL to correct them,” he said. At Central Metro, the concourse and upper track level linking Egmore metro and other underground stations along Poonamallee will be operational after CMRS approval. The lower track linking Washermenpet on one side and Anna Salai on the other is yet to be ready.

As the inspections are complete on corridor 2, the team will inspect a part of Anna Salai line linking five underground stations on Anna Salai from AG-DMS to Little Mount and the tunnels linking these stations on May 18 and 19.

On Tuesday, the commissioner and his team inspected the tunnels linking the downline from Nehru Park station to Central Metro via Egmore metro station. Several critical systems like tracks, tunnel ventilation, over-head equipment (OHE), civil and operational and system reqdiness among others were inspected.

The team later visited the Operational Control Centre (OCC) at CMRL Admin building, Koyambedu to check the integration of the entire system. CMRL officials said the CMRS team inspected all stations linking the upline from Shenoy Nagar to Central metro and associated tunnels on Monday.

Once Central metro is open, commuters will be able to board a train to CMBT or a direct train to the airport. 


SAFE ON TRACK: Commissioner of metro rail safety K A Manoharan (on the left of the trolley) and other officials during Tuesday’s inspection

Medical aspirants crunch numbers in NEET hopes
Agents Rake In Cash But Can’t ‘Reserve’ Seats

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:
16.05.2018

In the run-up to Wednesday’s release of the Class XII results, R Ramesh and his family have been making back-of-the-envelope calculations to see if he will make it to a government medical college in the state. His parents have already started talking to banks for educational loans in case they need to pay high tuition fees for admissions to deemed universities.

Admissions to state medical colleges, ESCI, Annamalai University and self-financing colleges affiliatedto the state university are made by the state selection committee of the directorate of medical education based on NEET scores and 69% reservation. WhiletheofficialNEET answer key is yet to be made public by the CBSE, almost all private tutorials released it by May10.

“My nephew lost close to 80 marks for marking wrong answers, especially in physics. Many students in the BC category made it to selffinancing colleges last year with a score of 270. If more students lose out like him, he could stand to gain,” said Ramesh’s uncle Rajendran Kumar said.

Rajendran says that unlike last year, all students and parents know there is no escape from the national entrance exam. But counsellors andtraining institutionssay competition may gettougher this time.

“Many students who did not make it last year have repeated NEET and some smart kids have ensured they get no negative marks,” said Mahalakshmi S, a tutor at one of the city’s NEET training centres. “Many are in the 275-310 bracket and are not sure if they will make it to government colleges,” she added.

Agents have been using this period to make a killing — at least three agents TOI approached promised to “reserve” seats in deemed universities and self-financing colleges of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka although most colleges have said on their websites that admissions would be centralised.

“Seats can’t be reserved in advance easily because admissions are not in the hands of colleges anymore,” But selection committee secretary G Selvarajan said.

The directorate of health services, New Delhi, will conduct admission to deemed universities by online counselling, he said.

“Seats are returned only after two rounds of counselling and mop-up. The colleges will have to fill them based on the merit of the rank list released by the state or central authorities,” said Selvarajan. 

KARNATAKA: DRAMA’S JUST BEGUN 

TIMES OF INDIA 16.05.2018

The first few hours of counting in Karnataka clearly pointed to a BJP majority, and the humiliating loss of yet another state for Congress. But as the possibility of a hung assembly began to loom on the horizon, Sonia Gandhi, in a stunning move aimed at keeping the BJP out at any cost, called JD(S) chief H D Deve Gowda and offered to support a government formed by his son H D Kumaraswamy — setting off a constitutional firestorm over whether the governor should first invite the hastily formed post-poll alliance which claims to have a majority, or BJP, the single-largest party eight seats short of the magic mark
Votes Counted, Now It’s The Governor’s Vote That Will Count
Naheed Ataullah & Rakesh Prakash TNN

Bengaluru

: A day of high drama — where election fortunes of all three main contenders in the fray, incumbent Congress, main rival BJP and regional powerhouse JD(S) see-sawed — ended with former PM H D Deve Gowda and Sonia Gandhi agreeing to form a government to keep BJP out. But the game may not be over as BJP has also staked claim. The party exuded confidence, with PM Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah claiming that it had won big and would not let down Karnataka's voters.

In a dramatic turn of events, Congress moved swiftly to offer support and the CM's post to JD (S) after it became apparent that it was in no position to retain office. So, having slid to 78 seats after losing more than 40 seats it had held, Congress offered unconditional support to JD(S), which won 38. Their tally of 116 seats is ahead of the simple majority of 112.

BJP also swung into action, despatching central ministers Prakash Javadekar, Dharmendra Pradhan and J P Nadda to Bengaluru to consult CM-nominee B S Yeddyurappa and other state leaders on options that could include getting MLAs from the rival camp to absent themselves or vote for BJP in defiance of party whips. This would bring down the majority mark.

This will not be an easy task for BJP, but it is probing discontent in Congress ranks over the

likely elevation of Kumaraswamy while also exploring vulnerabilities in JD(S), reviving speculation of a repeat of "Operation Lotus" that the party undertook to gain numbers after forming a government in 2008. Congress leaders said they will work to ensure that such plans do not work and are looking to secure their flock.

The action has conclusively shifted to Raj Bhavan, where governor Vajubhai Vala, a former RSS functionary and Modi’s erstwhile cabinet colleague in Gujarat, holds all the cards. His decision on who to invite first to form the government for a floor test will set the tone for events to follow.



Karnataka election result a disappointment for all three

The results were, actually, a disappointment for all three main players. Earlier on Tuesday, it seemed certain that the BJP would form a government on its own as it raced to 118 clear leads. Later, its momentum stalled and it halted at 104. The BJP had hoped that Shah’s poll management combined with Modi’s highly successful blitzkrieg before polls would do the trick. It almost did.

The results are more or less in tune with exit polls (a majority of which predicted an inconclusive verdict with the BJP ahead) though the Congress was shocked to have lost 43 seats, being caught in a pincer between a resurgent BJP and a determined JD(S) that held on to its areas of strength.

Kumaraswamy had apparently favoured an alliance with the BJP in the belief that the saffron party would be inclined to consider such an arrangement as the main target for both was the Congress. Besides, he was upset with Siddaramaiah for targeting the Gowda family during campaigning. But the offer of being made CM was a big hook and the senior Gowda, who is open to the prospect of being an important part of an anti-BJP coalition for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, had his way. His emotional appeal to his son that “I want to die a secular man” added to the persuasion. Interestingly, Deve Gowda’s 86th birthday is on May 18, so he will be hoping for his son to clinch office to add to the celebrations.

According to sources, the JD(S) was also miffed that the BJP, once it felt it would get a majority on its own, made no effort to make contact. Efforts were made only after its figures started dropping late in the afternoon.

The Congress was better prepared for this verdict. In fact, as soon as the exit polls were out, trouble-shooters Ghulam Nabi Azad and Ashok Gehlot — both old warhorses in the game of coalition politics — were dispatched to Bengaluru to work out a formula to keep the BJP at bay even at the cost of having to placate the JD(S).

According to Congress sources, the backroom discussions were between Azad and JD(S) secretary-general K Danish Ali in New Delhi late on Sunday night. “We discussed all hypothetical situations and mutually agreed to come together without any conditions,” Ali told TOI.

The action was put in place on Tuesday around 12.30pm, when Ali called Siddaramaiah, who is reported to have agreed to go along. Kumaraswamy was contacted soon after he landed from Singapore in the early hours of Tuesday.

Meanwhile, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi spoke to Gowda, requesting him to agree to the pact. The BJP is reported to have sent advocate Dore Raju for negotiations with the JD(S) as they had in 2006. Gowda declined to entertain him. 

வரச்சொல்லு பழனிசாமியை: திருப்பதியில் முதல்வர் எடப்பாடி முன் ஆவேசமாக சாமி ஆடிய பக்தரால் பரபரப்பு

Published : 15 May 2018 15:32 IST

சென்னை
 


திருப்பதி கோவிலில் எட்ப்பாடி குடும்பத்தார் சாமி தரிசனம், பரபரப்பு ஏற்படுத்திய பக்தர்.

திருப்பதியில் சாமி கும்பிடச்சென்ற முதல்வர் எடப்பாடி பழனிசாமி எதிரில் சாமி ஆடிய பக்தரால் பரபரப்பு ஏற்பட்டது. பாதுகாப்பு போலீஸார் அவரை குண்டுக்கட்டாகத் தூக்கிச் சென்றனர்.

முதல்வர் எடப்பாடி பழனிசாமி குடும்பத்தாருடன் சேலத்திலிருந்து திருப்பதி திருமலைக்கு சாமி கும்பிட வந்தார். அவரை தேவஸ்தான அதிகாரிகள் வரவேற்றனர். பின்னர் திருமலையில் உள்ள விருந்தினர் மாளிகையில் தங்கி ஓய்வெடுத்தார். அதிகாலையில் வராக சுவாமி, ஹயக்ரீவர் கோயிலில் சுவாமி தரிசனம் செய்தார்.

வராக சாமி கோயிலில் சாமி கும்பிட்டு விட்டு லட்சுமி நரசிம்மன் கோயிலில் தனது குடும்பத்தாருடன் எடப்பாடி பழனிசாமி சாமி கும்பிட்டார். அப்போது அவருக்கு சன்னிதானம் சார்பில் சால்வை அணிவிக்கப்பட்டது. முதல்வர் அருகில் அவரது மனைவி, மகள் உள்ளிட்டோர் சாமி கும்பிட்டனர். சில பக்தர்களும், பாதுகாவலர்களும் உடனிருந்தனர்.

அப்போது புரோகிதர் போல் இருந்த பக்தர் ஒருவர் திடீரென ஆவேசமாக பயங்கரமாக கூச்சலிட்டார். இதைப் பார்த்தவுடன் அங்கிருந்தவர்கள் அதிர்ச்சி அடைந்தனர். சாமி வந்து உடலெல்லாம் பதற ஆட்டம் போட்ட அந்த பக்தரை எடப்பாடி பழனிசாமியும், அவரது மனைவியும் அதிர்ச்சியுடன் பார்த்தனர். உடனடியாக செயல்பட்ட பாதுகாவலர்கள் அந்த பக்தரை சூழ்ந்துகொண்டு ஆசுவாசப்படுத்தினர்.

அப்போது சாமி வந்து உடலெல்லாம் பதற ஆடிய அந்த பக்தர் திமிறினார். 'நான் சாமி வந்திருக்கேன்டா, எடப்பாடியை என்னை வந்து பார்த்து விட்டு போகச்சொல்லுடா' என்று கோஷமிட்டார். அப்போது எடப்பாடி இதைப் பார்த்துக் கொண்டிருந்தார்.

உடனடியாக அவரைப் பாதுகாப்புடன் அதிகாரிகள் அழைத்துச் சென்றனர். அதன் பின்னர் ஏழுமலையான் கோயிலில் வழிபாடு நடத்திய அவருக்கு, தேவஸ்தானம் சார்பில் பிரசாதம் வழங்கப்பட்டது. பின்னர் கோயிலுக்கு எதிரே உள்ள ஆஞ்சநேயர் கோயிலில் தேங்காய் உடைத்து வழிபட்ட பின்னர் எடப்பாடி பழனிசாமி சென்னை புறப்பட்டார்.

கோயிலில் சாமியாடிய பக்தர் ஸ்ரீவில்லிப்புத்தூரை சேர்ந்த ஸ்ரீராம சாமி என்பது தெரியவந்தது. அவர் வழக்கமாக வரும் பக்தர்தான் அவருக்கு வேறு எந்த நோக்கம் இல்லை என்று தெரிந்தவுடன் போலீஸார் அவரை விடுவித்தனர். பின்னர் வெளியே வந்த அவரை அங்கு வந்திருந்த பக்தர்கள் பாராட்டிக் கைகொடுத்தனர்.

அப்போது தனியார் தொலைக்காட்சிக்கு பேட்டியளித்த அந்த பக்தர், 'பகவான் என்னை அழைக்கும் போதெல்லாம் நான் வருவேன். தமிழ்நாடே சீரழிஞ்சு போய் கிடக்கு, அவர் குழப்பத்தில் இருக்கிறார். அவர் இங்கு பக்தராக வந்ததால் அவரை அழைத்து அவருக்கு அருள்பாலித்துள்ளார். அவன் யாரு என்னன்னு கேட்டான், அவன் ஒரு மாயையில் இருக்கிறான்' என்று ஸ்ரீராமுலு பேட்டி அளித்தார்.

கோமா'வில் பெண் டாக்டர் சொத்துக்கு பாதுகாவலர் யார் : உயர்நீதிமன்றம் உத்தரவு

Added : மே 16, 2018 00:18


மதுரை: 'கோமா' நிலையில் உள்ள பெண் டாக்டரின் சொத்துக்களுக்கு பாதுகாவலராக கணவர் இருக்கலாம்' என உயர்நீதிமன்ற மதுரைக் கிளை உத்தரவிட்டது.துாத்துக்குடியைச் சேர்ந்த டாக்டர் தம்பதி, சில சொத்துக்களை வாங்கினர். உடல்நலக் குறைவால் மனைவி 'கோமா' நிலையை அடைந்தார். கணவர் பராமரித்து வருகிறார். மனைவியின் சில சொத்துக்களை பாராமரிக்க, தன்னை பாதுகாவலராக நியமிக்க உத்தரவிடக்கோரி, உயர்நீதிமன்றக் கிளையில் கணவர் மனு செய்தார்.நீதிபதி எம்.எஸ்.ரமேஷ் விசாரித்தார்.மனுதாரர் வழக்கறிஞர், 'மனுதாரர் மனைவி 'கோமா' நிலையில் உள்ளார். எப்போது, உடல்நிலையில் முன்னேற்றம் ஏற்படும் என உறுதியாக கூற முடியாது' என்றார்.

நீதிபதி உத்தரவு: கோமாவில் உள்ளவருக்கு பாதுகாவலரை நியமிக்க சட்டத்தில் வழிவகை இல்லை. இவ்விவகாரத்தில் சிவில் நீதிமன்றம் மூலம் தீர்வு காண வேண்டும். மனைவி இக்கட்டான சூழ்நிலையில் உள்ளதால், இந்நீதிமன்றத்தை மனுதாரர் நாடியுள்ளார். மனைவியின் சில சொத்துக்களை பராமரிக்க, மனுதாரர் பாதுகாவலராக இருக்க அனுமதிக்கப்படுகிறது, என்றார்.