Guest lecturers in Tamil Nadu disappointed as government refuses to revise their wage

The government on June 21, ordered the Higher Education Department to pay each guest lecturer Rs 15,000 a month as per previous pay norms.

Published: 01st July 2019 07:16 AM

By Sushmitha Ramakrishnan

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Guest lecturers from government arts and science colleges in Tamil Nadu are disappointed after the State refused to revise their wages in over three years.

The government on June 21, ordered the Higher Education Department to pay each guest lecturer Rs 15,000 a month as per previous pay norms.

This has irked guest lecturers particularly because the higher education department had recently promised to come up with a permanent employment solution for them.


Mangat Ram Sharma, principal secretary, Higher Education, was not available for comments. However, he had told Express in May that the department was working on regularising the services of guest lecturers. “We are working on a more permanent solution. We are strategising ways to make them permanent employees,” he had said.

“Despite doing as much work as regular lecturers, we get paid only Rs 15,000, without scope for performance-based appraisal,” charged Venkatesan Thangaraj from Tamil Nadu All Government College UGC Qualified Guest Lecturers Association. Guest lecturers are often victims of delayed or irregular payment of salaries, he said.

In January this year, UGC hiked the salary for guest lecturers in colleges and universities to ` 1,500 per lecture subject to a maximum of Rs 50,000 per month. In February 2010, the UGC made a similar announcement and fixed the maximum pay for guest lecturers as Rs 25,000. Haryana government recently revised the wages of guest lecturers to Rs 57,700 a month.

The Tamil Nadu government is yet to implement the hike in wages, said Thangaraj. “Colleges use us to compensate for their vacancies. Therefore, we teach the same number of hours as regular faculty does and still do not get the pay mandated by UGC,” said a guest lecturer from Thiruvannamalai Government Arts and Science College, on condition of anonymity.

Bundle of joy and mountain of debt: Tale of costly child deliveries at private hospitals in Telangana Sky-high costs involved in institutional deliveries at private hospitals in Telangana are pushing families into debt and poverty, finds a study by Mumbai-based IIPS.

Published: 30th June 2019 10:22 AM Maternity Leave is paid holiday of 26 weeks.

By V Nilesh
Express News Service

HYDERABAD: For an average woman in Telangana, the pain of childbirth seems to no longer end in the hospital room. Once the child is born, there is another kind of pain for her to deal with: coming up with the cash to pay for the delivery. The sky-high costs involved in institutional deliveries at private hospitals in the State are pushing many a family into indebtedness and poverty.

A study by the Mumbai-based International Institute of Population Sciences (IIPS), based on data from National Family Health Survey-4, has reported that Telangana has the highest proportion of mothers who sell their assets or borrow money, in order to be able to pay for institutional delivery.




The study titled ‘Out-of-pocket expenditure and distress financing on institutional delivery in India’, published this month in the International Journal for Equity in Health, reports that around 29 per cent of the women surveyed for NFHS-4 in the State had either sold their assets or borrowed money to pay the bills out of their pockets for institutional delivery. ‘Paying out of the pocket’ here refers to not taking up the services at government maternity hospitals, where deliveries are performed for free.

According to the study, the average expenditure incurred by a mother, who has sold her assets or borrowed money to undergo institutional delivery in the State is second highest in the country at Rs 17,618, only after Kerala (Rs 20,621). In fact, there are many in the State who pay much more than this. According to the study, almost 35 per cent of mothers in the State spend Rs 20,000 or above for institutional delivery, and around 33 per cent pay Rs 15,000-Rs 20,000, and 32 per cent people pay around Rs 10,000-Rs 15,000.

The high costs of institutional deliveries, unfortunately, hurt the most socio-economically impoverished people and communities in the society. The IIPS researchers found that the percentage of mothers who pay out of their pockets for institutional deliveries at private hospitals is the highest among less educated, poor and socially disadvantaged groups.

Bundle of joy and mountain of debt: Tale of costly child deliveries at private hospitals in Telangana

Sky-high costs involved in institutional deliveries at private hospitals in Telangana are pushing families into debt and poverty, finds a study by Mumbai-based IIPS.

Published: 30th June 2019 10:22 AM Maternity Leave is paid holiday of 26 weeks.

By V Nilesh
Express News Service

HYDERABAD: For an average woman in Telangana, the pain of childbirth seems to no longer end in the hospital room. Once the child is born, there is another kind of pain for her to deal with: coming up with the cash to pay for the delivery. The sky-high costs involved in institutional deliveries at private hospitals in the State are pushing many a family into indebtedness and poverty.

A study by the Mumbai-based International Institute of Population Sciences (IIPS), based on data from National Family Health Survey-4, has reported that Telangana has the highest proportion of mothers who sell their assets or borrow money, in order to be able to pay for institutional delivery.





The study titled ‘Out-of-pocket expenditure and distress financing on institutional delivery in India’, published this month in the International Journal for Equity in Health, reports that around 29 per cent of the women surveyed for NFHS-4 in the State had either sold their assets or borrowed money to pay the bills out of their pockets for institutional delivery. ‘Paying out of the pocket’ here refers to not taking up the services at government maternity hospitals, where deliveries are performed for free.

According to the study, the average expenditure incurred by a mother, who has sold her assets or borrowed money to undergo institutional delivery in the State is second highest in the country at Rs 17,618, only after Kerala (Rs 20,621). In fact, there are many in the State who pay much more than this. According to the study, almost 35 per cent of mothers in the State spend Rs 20,000 or above for institutional delivery, and around 33 per cent pay Rs 15,000-Rs 20,000, and 32 per cent people pay around Rs 10,000-Rs 15,000.

The high costs of institutional deliveries, unfortunately, hurt the most socio-economically impoverished people and communities in the society. The IIPS researchers found that the percentage of mothers who pay out of their pockets for institutional deliveries at private hospitals is the highest among less educated, poor and socially disadvantaged groups.

KMC cannot act against nurses for medical negligence: HC 

Special Correspondent 
 
Bengaluru, July 01, 2019 00:00 IST

Observing that “nurses cannot be categorised as medical practitioners”, the Karnataka High Court held that the Karnataka Medical Council (KMC) has no jurisdiction to initiate proceedings or pass direction to take action against them in cases of medical negligence.

Justice B. Veerappa passed the order while setting aside an order passed by the KMC directing the medical superintendent of a private hospital in Manipal to take action against two nurses in a medical negligence case.

The KMC, in its August 2, 2012 order, had said that a boy died in the hospital in 2010 owing to the negligence of the nurses. The KMC had passed the order on a complaint by the boy’s parents.

While analysing the provisions of the KMC Karnataka Medical Registration Act, 1961 and the Indian Medical Council (IMC) Act, 1956, the court said the KMC can initiate action against only those medical practitioners who are registered in the State medical register. However, the nurses cannot be registered as they do not possess the qualification prescribed under IMC Act for such registration.

The court also noted that the hospital had paid a compensation of Rs. 7 lakh to the boy’s parents.

Karur Medical College ready to function soon

Special Correspondent 
 
KARUR, July 01, 2019 00:00 IST


Transport Minister M.R. Vijayabhaskar inspecting progress of construction of medical college in Karur on Sunday.

MCI has accorded sanction for admission of 150 students

The Karur Medical College will start functioning within a few weeks, according to Transport Minister M.R.Vijayabhaskar.

Speaking to reporters here on Sunday after inspecting the hospital and administrative blocks of the medical college at Sanapiratti, Mr. Vijayabhaskar said construction that began in March last was progressing well. Classrooms, faculty and staff rooms and administrative blocks were being built at an estimate of Rs. 269 crore. Most of the works had been completed. Officials had been asked to expedite the remaining works so as to start the college as early as possible.

The Medical College of India (MCI) had already accorded sanction for admission of 150 students in 2019-20 and the State government had begun the process. All basic infrastructure for students and faculty members would shortly be ready and Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami would inaugurate the college.

Mr. Vijayabhaskar said the medical college would have 850 beds. The college would have 11.78 lakh sq ft built-up area. Hospital buildings would come up on 5.58 lakh sq ft at an estimate of Rs. 122 crore. A sum of Rs. 71 crore would be spent on building hostels for students on 2.99 lakh sq ft and Rs. 75 crore on classrooms. Construction of compound wall and establishment of a public park had also been taken up. They would also be completed shortly,.

Students who never enrolled in MKU got mark sheets: DVAC 

Sanjana Ganesh 
 
MADURAI, July 01, 2019 00:00 IST 

  It suspects that Rs. 1 lakh was taken as bribe for each mark sheet and provisional certificate

Bogus mark sheets and provisional certificates were given to 500 students, who never enrolled in Madurai Kamaraj University’s Directorate of Distance Education centres, a preliminary probe by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption (DVAC) has revealed.

The examination scam, according to the DVAC, allegedly happened with the connivance of M. Rajarajan, Additional Controller of Examinations, DDE, MKU, R. Sathiyamoorthi, Superintendent, Electronic Data Processing Section, DDE, and J. Karthigai Selvan, Computer Programmer, EDP section.

In a recent letter to the university, the DVAC said that records were forged in a backdated manner to show as if candidates had registered for the course in the academic and calendar years of 2014 and 2015. However, they had neither joined the course nor appeared for any examination.

According to the DVAC, majority of students admitted that they had not paid registration fee or tuition fee to the university for their courses. Some Demand Drafts in the university records, as evidence of payment of fees by these students, were found to be fake.

In the records of these students, details such as parent name, phone number, address and photos were not available. Instead, only names of candidates were mentioned. Majority of the candidates were shown as if they got admitted to the course on the last date to submit application.

For instance, while a total of 321 students registered for the B. Com. course prior to the last day for admission on December 31, 2013 for the academic year 2014, 253 students were shown as registered on the last day without details like photographs and address, according to the DVAC.

A special syndicate meeting of MKU on Wednesday gave nod to the DVAC to conduct a preliminary enquiry into the matter.

The initial enquiries by DVAC revealed that the candidates who were issued fake certificates were mainly from four centres partnering with MKU - Future Institute of Technology, Karunagappally, AIECT Distance Education Campus, Malapuram, SIMS (Saga Institute of Management Studies), Malapuram and Sarovaram College of Higher Studies, Thrissur. The DVAC said that it would conduct investigation at these centres.

The agency has expressed suspicion that Rs. 1 lakh was taken as bribe for the issue of each consolidated mark sheet and provisional certificate.

The usual procedure demands the receipt of a course completion certificate as a prerequisite in order to receive the provisional certificate and the consolidated mark statement. However, most candidates whose documents were fabricated bypassed the process of procuring the provisional certificate and directly received the other two documents.

When contacted, Mr. Rajarajan said that he was not in-charge of admitting candidates into courses or issuing of mark sheets. “We have never issued mark sheets if candidates did not present course completion certificates,” he said and denied any such charge.

Commenting on the issue, R. Murali, coordinator of the ‘Save Higher Education Movement,’ said that the arraigned officials should not be vested with any role in the DDE until the investigation is completed so as to prevent tampering of records.

High court judge does self-assessment, releases report card

Srikkanth.D@timesgroup.com

Chennai:1.7.2019

In a positive step towards judicial accountability, Justice G R Swaminathan of the Madras high court has come out with a performance card with details of the number of cases he has disposed in his past two years as a judge.

“I believe in judicial accountability,” Justice Swaminathan said in a letter dated June 27, addressed to members of the bar.

Justice Swaminathan, who took oath on June 28, 2017, at the Madurai bench of the Madras high court and has been serving there ever since has disposed of a total of 21,478 cases, of which 18,944 cases were disposed while on a single bench and 2,534 while on a division bench.

Apologizing to counsel and litigants for not being able to dispose almost 75 cases which he had reserved, Justice Swaminathan said he shall dictate all judgments in open court to avoid such a situation.

“I have introspected and I wonder if things could have been a little different and far better. My conscience says ‘Yes’. I have been impatient, sometimes even rude. I hope to put on better behaviour henceforth,” Justice Swaminathan said and added that he was more bent on disposal and hence could not afford to write long orders.

Stating that he has great expectations from members of the bar, Justice Swaminathan said he can write a good judgment only if the advocacy is good and cited some of his recent judgments that received widespread attention. In April this year, Justice Swaminathan held that the term ‘bride’ found in the Hindu Marriage Act would also mean a transgender and directed the authorities to register a marriage between a man and a transwoman after the registration department cited the act and said ‘bride’ can only refer to a 'woman on her wedding day'.

He had also directed the Tamil Nadu government to issue a GO banning sex reassignment surgeries on infants and children.

Earlier, this month, Justice Swaminathan passed an order recognizing the rights of asylum seekers (65 Indian origin Tamil refugees) to apply for Indian citizenship.

“Bad advocacy will breed only bad judgment. I am critically dependent on you,” Justice Swaminathan said expressing happiness at the conduct of counsel so far and sought suggestions from members of the bar to serve the institution and cause of justice better.

Justice Swaminathan’s gesture received a positive response from lawyers, said Madurai-based advocate K.Samidurai, secretary, Indian Association of lawyers (TN Chapter). This is the first time in the more than 15-year existence of the Madurai bench that a judge had come forward with a performance report, he said.

“Appeal to the bar is an innovative step. Pendency can be reduced by proactive measures like this,” Samidurai said. 



I have introspected and I wonder if things could have been a little different and far better... I have been impatient, sometimes even rude. I hope to put on better behaviour henceforth

JUSTICE G R SWAMINATHAN
High court judge