No discrimination between regular and non-regular government staff: Madras High Court

No discrimination between regular and non-regular government staff: Madras High Court

The first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice P D Audikesavalu ordered the notice on Thursday, returnable by September 16.

Published: 20th August 2021 06:57 PM |

Madras High Court (File photo | EPS)

By PTI

CHENNAI: Holding that there cannot be any discrimination between the regularised and non-regularised married women government servants with regard to granting of maternity benefits, the Madras High Court has ordered notice to the state government on a PIL petition, on the issue.

The first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice P D Audikesavalu ordered the notice on Thursday, returnable by September 16.

It directed the government advocate to get appropriate direction from the government with regard to granting maternity leave uniformly to the regularised, contractual and non-regularised married women servants.

The PIL from advocate C Rajaguru prayed for a direction to the Health and Family Welfare Department, Directorates of Medical and Rural Health Services (DMS), Public Health and Preventive Medicine (DPHS) and the office of the joint director of Health Services, Government District Headquarters Hospital Campus in Villupuram district to take immediate steps to identify the pending applications from the regularised, non-regularised married women government staff appointed under the emergency provisions, temporary and contract basis, who had completed one year of continuous service for their maternity benefits as per a GO of July 2020.

The petitioner pointed out that the mental agony, physical pain and economic difficulties and financial need of the pregnant or child bearing permanent married woman government servants and the non-permanent ones, are one and the same.

The four departments are practicing discrimination and indifferent consideration. This violated Article 14 of the Constitution.

Due to the irresponsibility and insincerity and violative behaviors of some of the officers in the departments, very many applications for maternity benefits from non-regularised/non-permanent married women employees are pending or kept pending for their regularisation of their services and an approval of the respective authorities. This attitude would amount to indulging in maternity harassment, the petitioner contended.

Kadapa medical practitioner's house visits cost just Rs 10

Kadapa medical practitioner's house visits cost just Rs 10

Hariprasad also creates awareness among people about blood donation, environment

Published: 22nd August 2021 07:34 AM |

By CP Venugopal

Express News Service

ANANTAPUR: He believes in the saying Manava Sevaye Madhava Seva (serving humanity is equal to serving God) and moulded his life on that line. Sunkara Hariprasad Yadav, a registered medical practitioner (RMP) for several years now, has been providing medical services to needy people just for Rs 10. While going on house visits to give injections and medicines, he creates awareness about blood donation, environment and pitfalls of believing in superstitions. Hariprasad is quite popular among villages of Anantapur and Kurnool.

He is more focused on creating awareness among people in the region, where superstitious beliefs are in abundance. He visits various localities near Guntakal in Anantapur district, Pattikonda, Maddikera, Tuggali, Papili, Dhone, Banaganapalle, Kodumuru, C Belagal, Nandyal to create awareness about blood donation, environmental conversation, scientific thought, besides extending medical services.

Wherever he goes, he makes it a point to visit schools and colleges to create awareness among children on various issues, including blood and organ donation. Hariprasad has been engaged in such campaigns since 1999. “I was inspired in extending medical services at Rs 10, while making house visits, by Dr Brahma Reddy, founder of Praja Vaidyasala in Kurnool in 1996 after completing my masters in political science,” he says.

Hariprasad’s father SV Prasad Yadhav is a theater personality and has staged several dramas and acted in a few films under Bhargava Arts banner. “I am grateful to have an understanding family, my wife and children encourage me,” he says. The RMP, who admitted his children to government schools, also conducts competitions in the schools for children on the National Science Day.

Apart from creating awareness about blood donation, he encourages the students and youth to celebrate their birthdays by conducting ‘Feed the Poor’ programme, blood donation campaign and promoting organ donation.

Himself a blood donor, Hariprasad has donated blood 87 times till date and received several awards from the hands of governors and chief ministers. He has also organised camps for NSS groups. “Serving and helping people and encouraging others to follow the same path is the true meaning of a good life,” Hariprasad says, signing off.

EXPLAINING SEVERAL ISSUES TO KIDS, ADULTS

Wherever he goes, he makes it a point to visit schools and colleges to create awareness among children on various issues, including blood and organ donation. Hariprasad has been engaged in such campaigns since 1999. The RMP was inspired by Dr Brahma Reddy, the founder of Praja Vaidyasala in Kurnool

Chennai senior citizens to receive Covid vaccines at doorstep now

Chennai senior citizens to receive Covid vaccines at doorstep now

Measure announced to maximise vaccine coverage: Corpn officials

Published: 22nd August 2021 03:10 AM |

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: City residents aged above 80 years will now be administered vaccine against Covid right at their doorstep, thanks to a new initiative launched by the Chennai Corporation. Senior citizens can dial 044-25384520 or 044-46122300 to book a slot, following which the Corporation staff would visit their house and administer the vaccine dose, a statement said.

“Since people in this age group may find it hard to commute to a public health centre, we have taken this measure to maximise vaccine coverage,” a Corporation official noted. Earlier, the civic body had announced doorstep vaccination for people with disabilities and about 10,000 people have been vaccinated so far under the initiative.

Further, around 24,000 people in slum areas have been inoculated against Covid through 315 special camps, the official added. The Corporation has so far vaccinated 25.14 lakh people with the first dose, and 10.54 lakh with the second dose.

For TN loss of 2 LS seats in ’60s, HC moots ₹5,600cr in damages

For TN loss of 2 LS seats in ’60s, HC moots ₹5,600cr in damages

‘States That Failed To Control Population Gained, Have More MPs’

Srikkanth.d@timesgroup.com

Chennai:22.08.2021 

If Tamil Nadu has unfairly paid the price for controlling population growth by having its Lok Sabha seats reduced by two, is there a way to compensate for that? The Madras high court has come out with a formula that pegs monetary compensation to the state at Rs 5,600 crore.

Till 1962, Tamil Nadu had 41 Lok Sabha members. The number got reduced to 39 ahead of the 1967 general polls because the state had successfully controlled its population growth by then.

Juxtaposing this supposed anomaly with the dramatic no-confidence motion in 1999 that resulted in the toppling of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government by one vote, the division bench said Tamil Nadu should be compensated either by way of monetary compensation or through additional representation in the Rajya Sabha. “When one MP vote itself was capable of toppling a government, it is very shocking that Tamil Nadu lost two MPs because of successful implementation of birth control in the state,” the bench of Justice N Kirubakaran and Justice B Pugalendhi said.

The judges then spelt out what they thought would be rightful compensation for all the years that have passed with two MPs less. “Notionally, the contribution of an MP in five years could be taken as Rs 200 crore, though it cannot be determined monetarily. Therefore, for every election since 1967, Tamil Nadu has to be compensated Rs 400 crore for reduction of two MP seats, which amounts to Rs 5600 crore,” the bench said.

Asking the Union government as to why Tamil Nadu’s Lok Sabha representation couldn’t be restored to 41 from the next general elections, the bench also suo motu impleaded 10 top political parties, including DMK and the main opposition AIADMK, besides Congress and BJP, to offer their responses.

The court was hearing a PIL seeking de-reservation of Tenkasi parliamentary constituency, which has remained a reserved constituency for more than half a century now.

Population control can’t be a factor to decide the number of political representatives of the States in the Parliament, the bench said. “Those states which failed to implement the birth-control programmes benefited with more political representatives in the Parliament while, states, especially Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, which successfully implemented birth-control programmes, stood to lose two seats in Parliament. Andhra Pradesh also lost two MPs and got the number reduced from 42 to 40 seats in the Parliament”.

NUMBER-CRUNCHING

New law against couples validly entering into interfaith marriage: HC

New law against couples validly entering into interfaith marriage: HC

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad:22.08.2021

The Gujarat high court has said that by a plain reading of the amendments to anti-conversion laws, popularly known as the love jihad law, it feels prima facie that any conversion following interfaith marriage would amount to an offence and such marriage itself and conversion would be deemed unlawful.

In the order released on Friday, while staying various provisions of the Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Act related to interfaith marriage, the division bench of chief justice Vikram Nath and justice Biren Vaishnav opined that with the June 2021 amendments, a marriage itself is presumed to be a medium for the purpose of unlawful conversion if the marriage was by way of allurement, force or by fraudulent means.

“Prima facie on a plain reading of Section 3 of the 2003 Act, we feel that interfaith marriage followed by conversion would amount to an offence under the 2003 Act. Marriage itself and a consequential conversion is deemed as an unlawful conversion attracting penal provisions” the court noted.

It said state government’s insistence that the element of fraud, allurement or coercion should be read with the State of Objects and Reasons of the Act, but this may not be understood by the common man. On shifting the burden of proof on to the accused to establish that the marriage and later conversion had not taken place on account of any fraud, it said, “This again puts the parties validly entering into interfaith marriage in great jeopardy.”

“Prima facie interfaith marriages between two adults by operation of the provisions of the Act interferes with intricacies of marriage including right to choice of a person,” it said.

Over 58cr doses administered in India: Govt

Over 58cr doses administered in India: Govt

New Delhi:22.08.2021

The cumulative number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in the country has gone past 58 crore, the Union health ministry said on Saturday. More than 43 lakh vaccine doses were administered on Saturday, according to a provisional report compiled at 7 pm.

The ministry said 20,88,547 beneficiaries in the age group of 18-44 years received the first dose and 7,36,870 were administered the second dose of the vaccine on Saturday.

Cumulatively, 21,60,58,123 people in the said age group have received the first dose and 1,92,54,925 have been administered the second dose of the vaccine since the start of the third phase of the vaccination drive across the states and Union territories. On August 21, a total of 43,92,759 vaccine doses were given - 27,77,409 beneficiaries received the first dose and 16,15,350 got the second dose. PTI

Cannot ask a woman who her child’s father is: Gujarat high court

Cannot ask a woman who her child’s father is: Gujarat high court

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad:22.08.2021

The Gujarat HC has raised a pertinent question on whether a woman can be forced to reveal the name of the father of her child when she reaches alone for the child’s delivery.

Justice Paresh Upadhyay repeatedly asked the question to government lawyers:“If an unmarried woman conceives a child and goes to a hospital, whether the doctor would ask who is the father of the child? If the woman says that she does not want to answer the question, in such circumstances whether she is under obligation to disclose whose child she is carrying?”

The judge questioned so while hearing a appeal against conviction filed by a man from Junagadh district, who has been punished for rape. In this case, after elopement, the couple had one child. While the woman was pregnant for the second time, the couple planned marriage but could not perform the marriage due to the lockdown as the woman reached the marriageable age on March 25, 2020. Finally, their marriage took place in January 2021. Unhappy with their union, the girl’s family had lodged an FIR against the man for rape.

On August 9, the high court granted bail to the man upon furnishing a personal bond of Rs 100 only. During a hearing on his appeal against his conviction to 10-year jail term on August 19, the court discussed about making the age of minority from 16 years to 18 years and any sexual relations with a woman under 18 years invites charges of statutory rape. Hinting at the Nirbhaya rape case protests, the judge orally observed that there were protests in urban areas and the government amended the laws. He then asked, “Why the girls in rural areas suffer (because of this)?” The court was discussing rural traditions of marriages at an early age, and particularly in tribal areas where marriage is not a precondition to give birth to a child.

The judge further said that the woman cannot marry before she turns 18 years of age, but she can give birth to a child. “When the woman is not making any complaint of rape and insists that it was her choice, will we be able to read criminality (into it)?” the court asked further, “The pure question of law would be if some lady conceives and she does not make any complaint and she is not married, which provision would be violated?”

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