Closure order for biryani outlet upheld

Closure order for biryani outlet upheld

Ram.Sundaram@timesgroup.com

Chennai:02.07.2020

The National Green Tribunal refused to set aside the closure notice issued to Salem RR Biryani’s Tambaram branch During a routine inspection, officials from Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) found that the unit was operating from a residential area without TNPCB consent.

At the hotel kitchen, workers were making briyani using firewood as fuel and had installed a firewood boiler with steam cooking facility. Some LPG cylinders were kept in an open yard and waste water was discharged into the public drain without any treatment. Therefore a show-cause notice was issued to the hotel last December seeking a formal explanation. Since the reply was unsatisfactory, another round of inspection was conducted and officials found that the unit continued to violate rules. So in February a closure order was issued against the unit Electricity connection was also disconnected.

Following this, the hotel sought three months’ time from the government to shift their kitchen to Guindy Industrial Estate and restore electricity connection till then.

‘TN Class XII results will be delayed by a week’

‘TN Class XII results will be delayed by a week’

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

02.07.2020

Tamil Nadu school education minister K A Sengottaiyan on Tuesday said there would be a one week delay in releasing Class XII results. “We will release the results with the CM’s consent in the second week of July,” he told TOI.

He was present as a chief guest to inaugurate roads and various drinking water projects worth 3.38 crore in Nambiyur near Gobichettipalayam on Wednesday.

The minister had earlier announced that the Class XII results would be released in the first week of July.

Nearly 35,000 Class XII students still have to write their pending exams. “Out of 35,000 students, 718 have expressed their willingness for the same,” he said.

“Conducting exams and bringing these 718 students to the exam halls will be a challenging task for us due to the extension of the lockdown,” he said.

The minister said schools would be reopened only after the Covid-19 outbreak is over in the state.

UK to process visas from July 6

UK to process visas from July 6

Ireland, Too, Will Start Processing Visas Of City Applicants On Same Date

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: 2.7.2020

With international flights set to start, the UK and Ireland will start processing visas from applicants in Chennai from July 6. While people can apply for all category visas to the UK, only student visas and long stay visas will be issued to Ireland.

City residents are also allowed to apply for visas for Belarus, Denmark, Norway, Portugal and the Dominican Republic by submitting applications and documents in Delhi.

As lockdown restrictions continue and international air travel opens up gradually, countries have started to allow visa processing in India.

Pranav Sinha, regional head (west & south India, Maldives, Sri Lanka) for VFS Global said in an online interaction on Tuesday that there would not be much of a change in visa application process because of the pandemic though applicants may have to take precautions and maintain social distancing inside VFS centres.

Though VFS will be using the same strength of staff at its centres, the number of appointments given per day may depend on the numbers allotted by the country to which visa is applied.

“The number of appointments may go up gradually. If people do not want to come to the centres to give biometrics, we have a system to send staff to the doorstep of applicants,” he added.

However, there is no clarity yet on whether foreign governments will ask applicants to submit health documents especially for those who had recovered from Covid-19.

He also said: “Governments may introduce health screening measures going forward, so applicants should make sure to go through updated document checklist for the country in case any medical and vaccination histories are required as part of visa application.”

Basheer Ahmed of Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) said: “This will help people to renew visa and also apply for visa for travel at a later date. People can also apply for visa for travel in August or September by showing a booking certificate for a later date so that they will be able to travel soon after resumption of flights.”

VISA APPLICATIONS OPEN FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTRIES

UK, Ireland: July 6 (Chennai)

Belarus (all categories): July 1 (Delhi)

Denmark (Residence permit, employment, dependent): June 29 (Delhi)

Norway (residence permit): June 29 (Delhi)

Portugal (E6 for holders of expired Portugues residence

card, D6 for holders of expired family reunion, D6 visa): June 29 (Delhi)

Dominican Republic (work/resident/busines visa) : June 29 (Delhi)

Sathankulam deaths: Murder case on four policemen, SI arrested

Sathankulam deaths: Murder case on four policemen, SI arrested

Ananth.MK@timesgroup.com

Tuticorin: 2.7.2020

The CB-CID wing of the Tamil Nadu police which has taken over the investigation of the alleged custodial torture and death of a father-son duo, P Jeyaraj and J Beniks, booked two suspended SIs and two constables of Sathankulam police station under Section 302 of the IPC for murders and arrested one of the SIs, Raghu Ganesh, on Wednesday. He was remanded in judicial custody late in the evening.

CB-CID IG K Shankar, who is supervising the investigation, told TOI that 12 special teams had been formed under the leadership of CB-CID SP C Vijayakumar to investigate the case and carryout searches and arrest the remaining three accused — SI Balakrishnan and constables Murugan and Muthuraj. “As of now, we have registered murder cases against four people. Whether more people are involved or not would be known only with the progress of the investigation,” Shankar said. Kovilpatti police had initially registered the cases as suspicious deaths.

Though the state government had transferred the case to CBI, it was subsequently handed over to CB-CID on Tuesday as an interim measure following the intervention of the Madurai bench of the Madras high court to avoid delay in proceeding with the investigation and prevent tampering of evidence by Sathankulam local police. The conduct of the policemen was intimidating and non-cooperative when Kovilpatti judicial magistrate M S Bharathidasan carried out an inquest on Sunday.

CB-CID team visits Beniks’ mobile shop

Relatives and friends of victims reacted to the arrest saying their fight for justice was yielding results.

“God has given us justice. We see judicial magistrate M S Bharathidhasan, the Madurai bench of the Madras high court which took suo motu cognisance of the case and everyone who supported us as messengers of God. All of them came forward to help us,” said P Pon Sekar, of one of the sons-in-law of Jeyaraj.

The CB-CID team visited Beniks’ mobile shop and made inquiries about the manner in which the two were arrested by Sathankulam police on June 19. The team then split into two. While one team visited the house of the deceased, the other team conducted inquiry at Sathankulam police station. Another team led by DSP Saravanakumar visited Kovilpatti sub jail, where the duo was lodged before their death. In the evening, Beniks’ friends appeared before the CB CID team and handed over pictures and video footages of the arrest. They also gave their statements as eye witnesses.

Meanwhile, the relatives of the victims handed over vital evidences pertaining to the torture of Jeyaraj and Beniks to judicial magistrate M S Bharathidhasan on Tuesday evening. The evidences include blood stained shirt of Beniks, blood-stained car seat cover and bedsheet spread on the seat of the car in which Jeyaraj and Beniks were taken to Kovilpatti sub jail from Sathankulam on June 20 afternoon.

The magistrate and forensic experts observed the car and took the evidences with them. The magistrate then visited Sathankulam hospital and checked the CCTV footage and conducted inquiry with the staff there.

On Wednesday government doctor Vennila who had treated the father and son at Sathankulam hospital on June 20 for close to three hours, before they were produced in front of Sathankulam magistrate for remand, appeared before the magistrate conducting inquest at Tiruchendur. She explained the condition in which the victims were brought to the hospital and the treatment provided to them.

On Wednesday, government doctor Vennila who had treated the father and son at Sathankulam hospital on June 20 appeared before the magistrate conducting inquest at Tiruchendur

47 goats quarantined after goatherd tests Covid +ve in Karnataka village

47 goats quarantined after goatherd tests Covid +ve in Karnataka village

Kiran.Parashar@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru: 01.07.2020

Forty-seven goats were quarantined on Tuesday after a goatherd tested positive for Covid-19 in Godekere village in Tumakuru district, about 127km from Bengaluru.

Sources said the village in Chikkanayakanahalli taluk has around 300 houses and a population of 1,000. Two villagers, including the goatherd, tested positive recently. After this, four goats of the goat-rearer died, causing alarm in the village.

District health and veterinary officials visited the village on Tuesday and collected swab samples of the goats before putting the livestock in quarantine outside the village. The team faced huge resistance from the villagers, who suspected they had arrived to cull the goats. The officials convinced them that there is risk of the livestock getting infected by coronavirus and have to be tested.

P Manivannan, secretary of the animal husbandry department, said they will look into the matter and postmortem will be conducted on the dead goats.

People see god in docs today: Tope writes a heartfelt letter

People see god in docs today: Tope writes a heartfelt letter

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Mumbai:01.07.2020

Netas do have a heart, after all. State health minister Rajesh Tope’s soft side has come to the fore in a heartfelt open letter he has written on National Doctors’ Day, addressing medicos who have been the biggest army in the fight against Covid.

Thanking them for their response to battle the pandemic, Tope said he is “forever grateful to frontline workers who risk their lives to save lives of their patients”.

Giving credit for the high recovery rate of Covid patients in the state to hard work done by doctors, Topes letter goes on to say: “At a time when all religious places are shut, people can see God in a doctor today.” he writes.

The minister has added in his note, “At a time when people are staying away from friends and neighbours, fearing that they too might catch the infection, the doctors are not only treating patients, but also giving them the courage to fight this battle,” said Tope.

In an expression of empthy with the medical warriors, Tope has said that one can only imagine the state of mind of doctors who leave their family to save lives. Doctors who step out of their homes, running the risk of infection, often tell relatives of patients that they will take care of the patient and they (the relatives) should stay at home.

The letter, packed with emotion and humane feeling concludes: “I salute you and your dedication towards your profession.”

Former HoD of neurosurgery at KGMU, PGI dies

Former HoD of neurosurgery at KGMU, PGI dies

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Lucknow:01.07.2020

Renowned neurosurgeon and former head of neurosurgery both at KGMU and SGPGI, Dr Devendra K Chhabra died in Lucknow on Tuesday morning after a long illness. He is survived by his wife Dr Apjit Kaur and son Dr Sarab Chhabra.

A master teacher and a disciplinarian who was warm and comforting to his patients, Dr Chhabra had invented a low-cost neurological equipment, the ‘Chhabra Shunt’, which continues to be an affordable option for the masses. He had also established the neurosurgery unit at Vivekanand Institute of Medical Sciences after retirement.

Students, colleagues and the entire medical community remembered Dr Chhabra on Tuesday as a man of mild mannerisms, eye for perfection, immense discipline and a fine taste for all things classic.

“He was our guru. He studied both MBBS and MS at KGMU and was the first to join neurosurgery training there, ” said current HoD Dr BK OJha.