AI Express to resume Abu Dhabi flight from March

TNN | Feb 12, 2020, 04.11 AM IST

Trichy: Air India Express will resume its service to Abu Dhabi from Trichy international airport from the last week of March, after a gap of eight years, apart from launching new services to Doha, Delhi and Madurai.

With these new additions, the total number of international destinations from Trichy will increase to seven and number of services to 98( from 91). In terms of domestic services, it will increase to 70 from the existing 63.

It may be noted that among the tier-2 airports, Trichy airport connects all the major airports in UAE – Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi, after Cochin and Ahmedabad airports, authorities said.

When contacted, a senior official from Air India Express at Trichy International Airport told TOI an official announcement will be issued within few days.

Till 2009, Air India Express had two (Thursdays and Saturdays) weekly services to Abu Dhabi. It was withdrawn from October 27, 2012, citing operational reasons.

Ever since its withdrawal, Tamils working in Abu Dhabi have been demanding to resume the service.

“Around five to six lakh Tamils hailing from Trichy and surrounding districts are working here for years. They have to reach Sharjah or Dubai first to reach Trichy. It takes three to four hours more than direct travel to Trichy from Abu Dhabi. We have also spent more money on that. Hereafter, our ordeal to reach our home town comes to an end. We thank Air India Express for resuming the service”, said N Malik Mohammed, native of Adhirampattinam in Thanjavur, working with National Petroleum Construction Company (NPCC).

Dip in passengers from Singapore, says health dept

Feb 12, 2020, 04.28 AM IST

Coimbatore: The number of passengers arriving in the city from Singapore has reduced by nearly a half following the coronavirus outbreak, public health department officials said.

The number of passengers arriving from Singapore, which is usually around 170, has drastically reduced because they fear quarantine and movement restriction, deputy director of public health Dr Ramesh said. “Some days, only 50 people arrive from the island nation. We believe it is because of the coronavirus. Singapore is restricting exit and we are also restricting entry and movement if they show symptoms,” he told TOI.

The department has deployed four teams at the airport to screen passengers showing symptoms of the coronavirus, the official said. “I have received enquiries from people planning to fly into the city from Singapore and Malaysia on the quarantine conditions and restrictions in Tamil Nadu. Of the three people who called me, two cancelled their plans after I told them that we will quarantine them for 28 days if they have flu symptoms.”

However, airport authorities said that the fluctuation in the number of passengers flying into the city from Singapore is normal and could even be seasonal, with February and March being exam season in many places. “We are not noticing a sharp drastic decline,” airport director K Mahalingam said.

The seven Indians, who returned from China, have completed their quarantine period, said the director. “Now we are monitoring everyone landing from abroad displaying flu symptoms. The four medical health teams at the airport are ensuring that all passengers walk through the thermal scanner before leaving the airport. Since Singapore seems to have almost the second highest number of cases after China, we are monitoring patients who are flying in from the city.”

Meanwhile, 12 people continue to be under quarantine in the district, including a Chinese woman and her two children from Yunan. But none of them have tested positive for the virus.

Though most viruses die out during the summer, health officials said the behavior and viability of the coronavirus cannot be predicted. “We will have to wait for the peak summer to set in and see if the virus dies out like others and stops spreading,” said a health officer.

4 booked for enrolling student in unapproved Ukraine med institute

TNN | Feb 12, 2020, 04.44 AM IST

Madurai: The chief executive officer (CEO) of a city-based academy, which helps students get admission in educational institutions abroad, and three others were booked on charges of cheating a candidate who was enrolled in a medical institute in Ukraine without required approval, after collecting hefty money on the promise of getting him admission in an approved institute.

M Barathimohan, CEO of Nest Abroad Studies Academy in Kalavasal, a native of Cumbum in Theni district was booked along with his assistant Damodaran and two others - D Thirulogasundar from Ramanathapuram and S Harisudan from Udumalpet – who are running a hostel in Ukraine.

The city crime branch police booked them on Monday on charges of forgery and cheating based on a complaint from T Seenivasan, 53, from Melur. In his complaint, he stated that he had approached Barathimohan in 2016 for his son S Senthamizhdasan. In various instalments, he had paid Rs 21.50 lakh towards various charges including passport, institution and hostel fees. While he completed three years of education, they came to know that the institution is not approved by the Medical Council of India.

When he approached Barathimohan last year, he said that he can transfer his son to an approved institute and demanded more money. Although he paid it, the transfer did not happen. Two more candidates from Tamil Nadu P Vignesh and R Indrajith were also cheated by him. When the complainant questioned, the accused, cancelled the students’ visas without their knowledge, leaving them in the lurch.

The complainant approached the ministry of external affairs and paid a fee for visa cancellation to enable the students to return to India. Seenivasan had petitioned the Madurai city police commissioner S Davidson Devasirvatham and based on his instruction a case was registered by the sub-inspector of city crime branch P Kasirajan.

Stray dogs kill 12 sheep in TN village

TNN | Feb 11, 2020, 07.08 PM IST

THANJAVUR: Stray dogs killed 12 sheep near Peravurani in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu in the early hours of Tuesday. Ten other sheep sustained grievous injuries.

Revenue officials said the sheep belonged to Solairajan of Sornakadu village.

Around five dogs entered the sheepfold in the early hours of Tuesday and started to bite the sheep. On hearing the bleating of the sheep, Solairajan and his wife came out from the house and found stray dogs attacking the sheep.

On being informed, Peravurani revenue inspector Killivalavan, veterinary doctor Ravichandran and police rushed to the spot and conducted an inquiry.

Solairajan told the officials that he had incurred a loss of Rs 10 lakh. He said there was no chance for saving the injured sheep. He sought a compensation from the government.

Man sets college student’s motorcycle on fire after fight

TNN | Feb 11, 2020, 09.03 PM IST

CHENNAI: A catering contractor set a two-wheeler on fire near Koovathur on the East Coast Road after a quarrel with two college students. The two-wheeler that was set on fire belonged to one of the students. The Koovathur police arrested contractor and the two students.

Catering contractor Dhanasekaran of Kanathur was heading to Kottaipatnam on his two-wheeler. College students Dinesh and Surya stopped him and told him that there was no fuel in Dinesh’s motorcycle. They demanded that he either give them fuel or tow Dinesh’s two-wheeler to a nearest petrol pump.

The catering contractor, who didn’t like the students’ behaviour, picked up a quarrel with the college students. This led to a fisticuff between him and the students.

Local people started gathering around them. Dinesh and Surya abandoned their two-wheeler and ran away.

Unbale to control his anger, Dhanasekaran set the two-wheeler on fire. On hearing the incident, the Koovathur police rushed to the spot.

The police received complaints from the students as well as from the catering contractor. Subsequently, all the three were arrested and remanded in judicial custody.

Senior citizen couple beats son to death, surrenders

TNN | Feb 12, 2020, 04.04 AM IST

Puducherry: Police have arrested a senior citizen couple in Puducherry on charges of murdering their son following a quarrel over inheritance of the family business.

K Ranjith Kumar, 40 died of injuries after the couple, P R Kumar, 70 and K Annakodi, 61, attacked him with an iron rod in the early hours of Tuesday. P R Kumar walked into a Ariyankuppam police station in the morning and narrated the crime.

Superintendent of police (south) Chintha Kothandaraman said Ranjith Kumar, an engineering graduate, did his higher education in the UK. He worked in a private firm for a few years in London. He returned to India cutting short his professional assignment and married a French national from Kurchikuppam.

The couple settled in France after he acquired French nationality by virtue of his marriage. He could not get a suitable job in France.

Ranjith visited Puducherry in January and told his parents that he was settling down there permanently. He demanded that his parents hand over to him the family business of exporting seafood.

“His parents refused, leading to frequent quarrels between him and his parents,” the police officer said.

In the early hours of Tuesday, Ranjith reached home drunk and picked up a quarrel with his parents over the inheritance. When they refused, he attacked his mother.

His father hit him with an iron rod.

Ranjith sustained severe head injuries and fainted. Police said the couple probably feared he would attack them when he regained consciousness. They sprayed insecticides on his mouth and nostrils and tied his limbs with a sari. They hit him repeatedly with the rod, killing him. Kumar went to the police station in the morning.

Onion prices drop to Rs 25/kg in Chennai

TNN | Feb 12, 2020, 04.06 AM IST

CHENNAI: An additional dash of onions sprinkled over chats or uttappams is no longer a luxury. After months of soaring prices, touching almost Rs200 a kilogram, it is now selling at Rs 25 in most retail markets and online stores. And if you shop in Koyambedu, the prices could be up to Rs 5 less.

Besides import, the new onion crop has brought down the prices drastically. The exhorbitant cost of the kitchen staple had affected food prices in eateries and even led to onion thefts. Since the onion yield now is good, the market is again getting supplies from Nasik, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. “We are back to normal. We have more supply than the demand. So, cost has come down,” said R Sounderrajan, head of the Koyambedu Onion Trader Association.

Cost of other veggies such as tomatoes, beans, carrots, capsicum and cauliflower are also low. While a kilogram of radish and bottle gourd is retailing at Rs10, tomatoes and okra cost Rs12 per kg, premium quality of cauliflower and a kilo of beans is sold at Rs20. “They cost up to Rs5 lesser in Koyambedu,” said Rajesh Kumar, who has a retail shop at Koyambedu market.

Almost nearing the end of season, peas is being sold at Rs35 a kg, butter beans at Rs100 and double beans at Rs80. Spicy ingredients like green chillies and ginger are also easy on the pocket at Rs15 per kg.

The only vegetable still causing a heartburn for households is the drumstick at Rs110 per kg. “One stick costs Rs12 even in Koyambedu,” said Sounderrajan. “But in a few weeks it will come down to Rs10 for three to five sticks. Soon, we will have a good harvest within the state,” he said.