Deemed univs cut intake by 10% this yr, close some core courses Drop In No. Of Takers & Pandemic Reasons

Deemed univs cut intake by 10% this yr, close some core courses

Drop In No. Of Takers & Pandemic Reasons

Ragu.Raman@timesgroup.com

Chennai:29.08.2021

Deemed universities in Tamil Nadu have cut intake by 10% for 2021-22, compared to the previous year, due to the still raging Covid-19 pandemic, fewer admissions to core engineering branches and postgraduate courses. Sanctioned strength in 33 deemed universities in 2021-22 have come down to 49,197, from 54,573 seats in 2020-21, with 4,398 undergraduate (UG) seats and 978 postgraduate (PG) seats cut.

Deemed universities closed courses such as civil engineering, electrical and electronics engineering, electronics and instrumentation and architecture in the UG stream and shut down courses such as power electronics, automobile engineering, nano science and technology and VLSI design in the PG stream due to no takers.

Professors said the number of students joining from outside Tamil Nadu in these institutions had also reduced significantly which could have forced the managements to cut the intake.

“There is a decline in admissions to some programmes for all engineering institutions. For ranking and accreditation, the agencies consider only the intake for calculating faculty ratio and not the enrolled students. So, the deemed universities started to trim their intake to have better ranking and rating points,” said R W Alexander Jesudasan, pro-vice-chancellor of Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science in Chennai.

“Due to the uncertainty in view of Covid-19 pandemic, some students from outside the states prefer to join institutions closer to their residence. However, students from certain states are still showing interest and we expect the admission to be normal from next year,” he added.

S Vaidyasubramaniam, vice-chancellor of Thanjavurbased Sastra University, said institutions were reducing intake in core branches such as civil and mechanical engineering. “A majority of institutions also closed postgraduate branches which do not attract many students. However, the closure of core branches is not a good move,” he said.

He further urged the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to fix a cap on the maximum number of students who can be admitted in a course for all institutions to prevent the influx of computer science graduates after four or five years.

Career consultant Jayaprakash Gandhi said the institutes have reduced intake in core branches and integrated programmes due to fewer takers for these courses. “The Covid-19 pandemic is also one of the reasons for the cutting down of seats as the intake of hostel students has been coming down during the past two years,” he said.

Bench clerk’s son now on SC bench as judge

Bench clerk’s son now on SC bench as judge

28.08.2021

Justice C T Ravikumar, who was elevated to the Supreme Court from the Kerala HC, on Friday recalled how much he owed his parents, especially his father, who had been a bench clerk. Justice Ravikumar, who had been a judge of the high court since January 2009 and had practised as a lawyer in the HC since the late ’80s, became teary-eyed during his farewell speech when he remembered his late father K Devan. He also revealed that it was ex-CJI KG Balakrishnan who asked him to shift practice to Ernakulam from Mavelikkara.

உத்தர பிரதேச மாநிலத்தில் ஒரே குடும்பத்தைச் சேர்ந்த 23 பேர், அரசு ஊழியர்களாக பணியாற்றுகின்றனர்.

DINAMALAR

லக்னோ :உத்தர பிரதேச மாநிலத்தில் ஒரே குடும்பத்தைச் சேர்ந்த 23 பேர், அரசு ஊழியர்களாக பணியாற்றுகின்றனர். உ.பி.,யில் முதல்வர் யோகி ஆதித்யநாத் தலைமையில் பா.ஜ., ஆட்சி நடக்கிறது. இங்குள்ள ஜான்பூர் மாவட்டம் சிக்ரா கிராமத்தில் உள்ள ஒரு வீடு, 'கவர்மென்ட் கர்னா' அதாவது 'அரசு வீடு' என அழைக்கப்படுகிறது.

இந்தக் குடும்பத்தில் உள்ள 50 பேரில் 23 பேர் மத்திய மற்றும் மாநில அரசு ஊழியர்களாக இருப்பதே இதற்கு காரணம்.மறைந்த ராம்சரண் யாதவ் என்பவர் இந்தக் குடும்பத்தின் முன்னோடி. இவருக்கு புல்லர், ராம்துலார், சந்திரபாலி என்ற மூன்று மகன்கள். இந்த மூன்று பேரின் மனைவி, குழந்தைகள், பேரக்குழந்தைகள் என தற்போது மொத்தம் 50 பேர் ஒரே வீட்டில் கூட்டுக் குடும்பமாக வசிக்கின்றனர். இதில் தற்போது 23 பேர் மத்திய மற்றும் மாநில அரசின் பல்வேறு துறைகளில் பணியாற்றுகின்றனர். ஏற்கனவே இரண்டு பேர் அரசு ஊழியராக இருந்து ஓய்வு பெற்று விட்டனர்.

இதில் சிவசங்கர் யாதவ் என்பவர் இந்தக் குடும்பத்தின் விவசாய நிலங்களை கவனித்துக் கொள்கிறார். அவர் கூறியதாவது: ஆரம்பத்தில் எங்கள் குடும்பத்துக்கு விவசாய நிலம் கிடையாது. அதனால் என் தந்தை தான் முதன் முதலில் அரசுப் பணிக்கு சென்றார்.அரசு வேலை தேடும் இளைஞர்களுக்கு எங்கள் குடும்பம் முன்னுதாரமாகவும் வழிகாட்டியாகவும் இருக்கிறது. எங்கள் குடும்பத்தில் அடுத்தடுத்த தலைமுறையிலும் அரசு ஊழியர்கள் உருவாக்கப்படுவர்.இவ்வாறு அவர் கூறினார்.

Mysuru varsity imposes 6pm curfew for girls

Mysuru varsity imposes 6pm curfew for girls

Bengaluru:28.08.2021

In a bizarre development, the Mysuru University banned the movement of girl students in the campus after 6.30 p.m. from Friday.

As the order issued by the Registrar, coming against the backdrop of gang rape incident in the city, evoked outrage, Vice Chancellor, Prof G. Hemantha Kumar, assured to rectify the order by Saturday.

The order said that the movement of girl students on the campus has been banned after 6.30 pm. They are also banned from sitting anywhere in the campus after the stipulated time. The direction has been issued after oral instructions of the police against the backdrop of the Mysuru gang rape.

The order also states that the entry of public to the famous Kukkarahalli lake premises, located adjacent to the varsity campus and frequented by nature lovers, will also be barred after 6.30 p.m. The university has also given directions to enhance patrolling and security systems in the campus. IANS

I-T raid: ₹350 crore black money found

I-T raid: ₹350 crore black money found

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Rajkot:28.08.2021

The investigation wing of the Income Tax department unearthed an unaccounted cash receipt of Rs 350 crore during its ongoing search operations at a Rajkot-based builder group’s premises. The operation had started on August 24 and is still continuing. According to a press statement issued by the department, I-T officials found many incriminating documents, loose sheets, and digital evidence indicating the involvement of the group in unaccounted transactions.

“Substantial evidence of transactions outside the regular books of accounts, unaccounted cash expenses, cash advances received and interest paid in cash, has been found. Evidence of on-money payments in real estate projects including flats, shops and land deals has also been found. Total unaccounted cash receipts in various projects of approximately Rs 350 crore have been unearthed, along with corroborative evidence. Further, evidence related to land purchase of approximately Rs 154 crore has also been found, of which Rs 144 crore was purportedly paid in cash,” an official said.

This group is among Gujarat’s prominent real estate builders and developers and is engaged in construction and land trading business in and around Rajkot. The I-T sleuths had covered more than 40 premises during the search operation including the group’s partners, contractors, key employees and some of its customers. According to officials, the search and seizure operation has resulted in detection of concealment of income in excess of Rs 300 crore spread over various assessment years and this figure is likely to go up. The officials seized unaccounted cash of Rs 6.4 crore and jewellery valued Rs 1.7 crore during1 search operation from various premises.

Landing gear fails to deploy, aircraft made to circle round

Landing gear fails to deploy, aircraft made to circle round

Niyati.Parikh@timesgroup.com

Ahmedabad:28.08.2021

Handling a flight arrival is pretty much a routine procedure at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) airport. However, the arrival of a Dehradun-Ahmedabad flight kept airport ground staff, Air Traffic Controller (ATC) and other officials on tense vigil on Friday afternoon at the city airport. The wheel of the Q400 aircraft operated by SpiceJet did not extend, minutes before landing, after which the pilot raised an alert.

“SpiceJet Q400 aircraft operated SG-3762 (Dehradun-Ahmedabad) on August 27. On approach, when the landing gear was selected down, it failed to extend. Go around was initiated and ATC was apprised about the same,” said a SpiceJet spokesperson confirming the incident.

“Just before the flight was on the verge of landing at the city airport, the pilot suspected a technical snag in the operation of the aircraft and raised an alert. The flight circled around mid-air before finally landing,” said a well-placed source.

“On subsequent approach, the aircraft landed safely,” the SpiceJet Spokesperson, further added.

The Q-400 aircraft can carry a maximum of 90 passengers. TOI could not independently confirm how many passengers were aboard the flight.

Airport officials and airline ground staffers breathed a sigh of relief as the flight landed safely. The flight was delayed by some 30 minutes overall due to the technical issue.

Besides this, four flights to Amritsar, Goa, Pune and Jaipur, were delayed from the city airport on Friday due to operational constraints. These flights departed late by 30-180 minutes. Also, a Chennai-bound flight was cancelled due to operational constraints.

City airport on high alert

Ahmedabad:

The high alert at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) airport has been extended till further notice. The city airport was put on a high alert since August 6 and it was issued in the run up to Independence Day as part of routine protocol. Usually, the high alert remains tentatively a week before and after Independence Day. However, as a precautionary measure, the high alert will remain at the city airport till further notice, confirmed sources.

A top source privy to the development said that it has been extended in the wake of the recent incident of bomb threat mail received at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport in Delhi. TNN

Mid-air scare for 126 flyers as B’desh pilot suffers heart attack

Mid-air scare for 126 flyers as B’desh pilot suffers heart attack

Nagpur/New Delhi:28.08.2021

A Biman Bangladesh plane going from Muscat to Dhaka made an emergency landing at Nagpur on Friday after the pilot suffered a heart attack, an airport official said. The aircraft with 126 passengers on board landed at 11.40am, the official said.

Aviation industry sources said the sick pilot was taken to Kingsway Hospital, which is just 10 kms from the Nagpur airport.

The plane was near Raipur when it contacted Kolkata ATC for an emergency landing and was advised to land at the nearest airport Nagpur. The co-pilot landed the plane at the Nagpur airport, the sources said. Passengers have been waiting at the airport as Biman Bangladesh is working out alternative travel arrangements for them. PTI