TN government alters English names of 1,018 places to match their Tamil pronounciation

TN government alters English names of 1,018 places to match their Tamil pronounciation

Hereafter the district Collectors will take steps for changing the names of these places through the local bodies concerned.

Published: 11th June 2020 12:11 AM | Last Updated: 11th June 2020 08:10 AM 

Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palaniswami (Photo | PTI)

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The state government has issued a notification as per the recommendation of an experts committee for changing the names of 1,018 places, including of many important places, in accordance with how they are exactly pronounced in Tamil.

Hereafter the district Collectors will take steps for changing the names of these places through the local bodies concerned.

The announcement in this regard was made in December 2018. Though the G.O for the changed names was issued on April 1, the government has released it only on Wednesday.

Here's a list of some of these places:

Tondiyarpet - Thandaiyaarpettai

Purasawalkam - Purasaivaakkam

Vepery - Vepperi

Perambur - Peramboor

VOC Nagar - Va.OO.Si. Nagar

Kodungaiyur - Kodungaiyoor

Peravallur - Peravalloor

Siruvallur - Siruvalloor

Konnur - Konnoor

Koyembedu - Koyambedu

Egmore - Ezhumboor

Chintadripet - Chintadaripettai

Triplicane - Thiruvallikkeni

Mylapore - Mayilaappoor

Thiruvanmiyur - Thiruvanmiyoor

Mambalam - Maambalam

Saidapet - Saithaappettai

Ekkattuthangal - Eekkattuththaangal

Guindy Park - Gindi Poongaa

Thiyagaraya Nagar - Thiyaagaraaya Nagar

Pallikaranai - Pallikkaranai

Okkiam Thorappakkam - Okkiyam Thuraipakkam

Sholinganallur - Solinganalloor

Uthandi - Uththandi

Mugalivakkam - Mugalivaakkam

Manappakkam - Manappaakkam

Alandur - Aalandhoor

Meenambakkam - Meenambaakkam

Porur - Poroor

Nanganallur - Nangainallur

Adambakkam - Aadhambaakkam

Ambattur - Ambaththoor

Thiruvottriyur - Thiruvotriyoor

Dharmapuri - Tharumapuri

Madavaram - Maathavaram

Dharapuram - Tharaapuram

Coimbatore - Koyampuththoor

Gudalur - Koodaloor

Puducherry - Puthucherry (A place in TN)

Varagur - Varagoor

Talaivasal - Thalaivasal

Kandalur - Kaanthaloor

Tuvagudi - Thuvakkudi

Manaparai - Manapparai

Chattrappatti - Chatthirappatti

Pudur - Puthoor

Uthamapalayam - Uthamapaalayam

Vellore - Veeloor

Pernambut - Peranaampattu

Vatalagundu - Vaththalakundu

Thiruvarur - Thiruvaroor

Muthupet - Muthuppettai

Tiruthuraipundi - Thirutthurai Poondi

Kudavasal - Kudavaasal

Nidamangalam - Needaamangalam

Orathanadu - Oratthanaadu

Soon, plasma therapy trial on critical patients

Soon, plasma therapy trial on critical patients

Sumitra.DebRoy@timesgroup.com

Mumbai:11.06.2020

A pan-Maharashtra clinical trial to assess the efficacy of plasma therapy to treat severely-ill Covid-19 patients is set to be launched by the medical education department. Around 21 public medical colleges from the state will be participating in the trial, presumably one of the largest in the world to study critical patients. KEM, Sion, Nair and Cooper hospitals are four premier medical colleges from the city that are likely to be part of the trial.

The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) granted approval on Monday to the Government Medical College, Nagpur, which will be heading the trial. State officials said the ongoing pan-India trial by ICMR is to study the efficacy of the convalescent plasma therapy on moderately-ill patients, while the state will look at only critical cases. “Our experience shows the severe cases need plasma therapy and therefore we chose to study its effect on them,” said Dr Sanjay Mukherjee, secretary, medical education department.

The randomised open trial is likely to include 500 patients, who would be given plasma from recovered patients. “We have started the process to procure 10 apheresis machines which will separate plasma from the blood,”

Govt hires 1.2K more doctors, health workers

Govt hires 1.2K more doctors, health workers

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:11.06.2020

As Covid-19 cases continued to surge in Tamil Nadu, the government on Wednesday announced recruitment of 1,239 doctors and 2,834 healthcare workers on a contract basis for a three-month period.

This is in addition to the 530 doctors, 4,893 nurses, 2,715 health inspectors and 1,508 lab technicians the health and family welfare department hired earlier.

An official release said chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami has ordered the appointment of 574 post-graduates at a monthly salary of ₹75,000 and 665 more doctors (graduates) at ₹60,000 a month. The lab technicians and 1,230 multipurpose healthcare personnel will be paid between ₹12,000 and ₹15,000. Orders were being issued and they are in the process of joining duty, health minister C Vijayabaskar told mediapersons on Wednesday and added that this would lessen the burden of doctors and other healthcare workers. Beds in government hospitals in Chennai will also be increased from about 5,000 beds to 10,000.

Govt docs, nurses worried about working conditions

Govt docs, nurses worried about working conditions

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:11.06.2020

As cases in government hospitals increased, more doctors have tested positive for the viral infection and government doctors and nurses expressed concerns about working conditions.

“As of now 60 of our doctors in Rajiv Gandhi Government General and related institutes have tested positive and are under treatment at ESI Hospital in Aynavaram. Five doctors have been asked to share a room. We have asked the government to provide them with separate rooms,” said TN Government Doctors Association president Dr K Senthil.

While staff nurses at Omandurar Medical College Hospital went on a short-lived flash strike on Wednesday, seeking nurse appointments to share the increasing workload, doctors’ bodies also asked for more staff at Women and Children’s Hospital in Egmore.

“We are now heavily short staffed as doctors and nurses are on quarantine.” said a doctor adding, “We worked for the government but did not get separate rooms to sleep when we have been infected. At the women's hospital many gynecs are at risk because they work closely with women in labour. They scream when they have pain and chances of droplet infections are very high,” a senior doctor undergoing treatment said. At Omandurar hospital, the nurses strike was called off after dean Dr Narayana Babu promised them to resolve the issue. According to sources, there are about 140 nurses attached to the hospital and half of them are in quarantine.

“For the 400 patients in the Covid ward, just 20-23 nurses are not enough and while on night duty, timings some time increase up to 12 hours. When we get affected, our families too are at risk,” said a nurse.

College holds convocation online to honour students

College holds convocation online to honour students

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:11.06.2020

There were no laughter, no claps, only silence as 453 engineering students received their certificates during a ‘virtual graduation day’ on Wednesday.

The function continued for more than an hour and students sat in front of their computers at homes peering into the screen as their images popped up on screen when their names were read out.

Rajalakshmi Institute of Technology, the college which held virtual graduation day sent an email of scanned copy of graduation certificates to all students. Students and parents were asked to log on at the specific time on a web platform to watch the live event.

“It is entirely a new experience for me. We looked forward to our graduation day where we put on a convocation robe and cap flanked by friends and family. I missed my friends on graduation day,” said Aswathi Muralidharan, one of the two rank holders who received their degrees in person.

But, she said her college organised the virtual graduation day well. “They have collected photographs of all students and used Instagram filters to put graduation day caps to the pictures. It is the new form of graduation,” she added. Another student Muthuvel C said it was a new experience for all students.

“Because of Covid-19, we were not able to conduct an inperson graduation day. So, we thought of holding virtual graduation day. We sent a scanned copy of certificates to all students,” said Thangam Meganathan, chairperson of Rajalakshmi Institutions.

Of 453 students, only seven could not login. More than 600 students and parents watched the event. Telangana governor Tamilisai Soundararajan was the chief guest.

ALL VIRTUAL: Telangana governor Tamilisai Soundararajan (bottom left) and others at the online graduation day of Rajalakshmi Institute of Technology on

City cut off, no mad rush for train tickets

MANY SEATS AVAILABLE

City cut off, no mad rush for train tickets

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:11.06.2020

There was no mad rush to book tickets when reservations opened on Wednesday for the additional trains on Chengalpet-Trichy-Chengalpet and Arakonam-Coimbatore-Arakonam routes scheduled to run from Friday.

Railway officials say the sluggish demand for seats is because the trains do not touch Chennai, because it is a red zone and the state government has requested railways to operate services within the state without touching the state capital.

Tickets are sold out in minutes for trains during summer but around 1,000 second sitting seats are available on Chengalpet-Trichy train and 146 sleeper class seats on Chengalpet-Trichy train via Mayiladuthurai for travel on Friday. However, there was demand for second seating on the train via Mayiladuthurai as booking status touched waitlist 2 by Wednesday evening. Officials say this could be because several people from southern suburbs of Chennai may be travelling to Kumbakonam or Mayiladuthurai. There are several seats vacant for trains scheduled to depart on Saturday and Sunday. There are hardly any takers for the Arakonam-Coimbatore intercity train as 1,545 second sitting seats and 90 AC chair car seats are available for travel on Friday. The train has around 1,700 second sitting seats.

A railway official said, “Reservations is likely to pick up in the coming days. The services were started after a request from the state government because there was a feedback that there will be demand on these routes. The government wants to start trains within the state in a phased manner. A request was sent to the railway board and the routes were approved.” Several people who live in southern suburbs of Tambaram and Chengalpet often travel to Kumbakonam, Mayiladuthurai and Trichy.

Though the idea behind starting the service from Chengalpet is to discourage residents of Chennai from travelling, people can still board the trains as cabs are available. “These trains will be useful for people as more lockdown relaxations are expected,” he added.

Southern Railway, following the state government’s request, is already operating some special trains connecting cities like Coimbatore, Madurai and Trichy. The Chennai to Delhi Rajdhani specials from Chennai is the only popular train.

Madurai university invents respirator-cum-ventilator

Madurai university invents respirator-cum-ventilator

11.06.2020

A research team from the Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU) has invented a ventilator-cum-respirator device (LIDS-VR) that would help prevent the spread of coronavirus while providing continuous oxygen supply for frontline workers, infected patients and healthy people. Vice chancellor of MKU, professor M Krishnan, said a team of experts - Dr T Arockia Doss, department of physics and Dr B Ashokkumar, department of genetic engineering, invented this device (LIDS-VR). They was demonstrated the device in front of Dr N Sivasubramanian, former senior scientist, Isro, who has appraised the invention.