Cognizant Technology Solutions bribery case under scanner

Cognizant Technology Solutions bribery case under scanner

DVAC looking into 10 senior CMDA officials who handled the Cognizant files in 2013-2014

Published: 24th September 2021 05:16 AM |

By C Shivakumar

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) has launched a probe into the Cognizant bribery case, in which it was alleged that CMDA officials demanded a bribe to grant a planning permit to build the Cognizant KITS Campus (CKC) in Shollinganallur.

The file — which had been pending since the US Department of Justice announced criminal charges in 2019 against two Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTS) executives over corruption pertaining to bribing TN government officials — is now under the DVAC’s scrutiny, sources told TNIE.

It is learnt that the DVAC has sought details of the officials who dealt with the file in 2013 and 2014. An application for planning permission to build the Cognizant KITS Campus was received in February 2013, and the site was inspected in May 2013, after which it was placed before the multi-storeyed building panel the same month, sources said. The government approved the file in 2014.

Among the officials who dealt with the file were two member secretaries, two chief planners, two deputy planners, two assistant planners, and two planning assistants. All of them are reportedly under the scanner of DVAC officials.

The US Department of Justice probe revealed that Cognizant, through its employees, authorized its agents to pay $2 million in bribes to CMDA officials in exchange for planning permits to build the office in Shollinganallur, as well as other improper payments in connection with other projects in India. The findings exposed Cognizant to civil and criminal liability, with the firm paying $25 million in penalties and incurring $79 million more in costs related to its internal investigation.

While the US Department of Justice was conducting its probe, neither the Central nor State governments launched an investigation into the matter. It has been learnt that the file pertaining to the issue was awaiting clearance from the Housing department to launch a probe since 2019, when the scam was brought to light.

The DMK, which was then the opposition party, had sought a CBI probe to ascertain the role of the AIADMK ministers and officials who allegedly took bribes to sanction the building permit, electricity and environment clearance to the Chennai facilities of the US-based IT company in 2014. It had then argued that the DVAC cannot investigate these offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act as the transactions involved money from abroad and offences were also committed abroad. It is learnt that a few officials who were handling the planning permits retired, while some still hold the same posts and handle applications for multi-storied building (MSBs).

Found guilty by US Department of Justice

The US Department of Justice in 2019 announced criminal charges against two CTS executives over corruption pertaining to bribing TN government officials. The company was exposed to civil and criminal liability, and had to pay $25 million in penalties and incur $79 million more in costs related to its internal investigation

Medical student who had robotic colorectal surgery wins gold in PG

Medical student who had robotic colorectal surgery wins gold in PG

A 28-year-old medical student, who successfully underwent a robotic colorectal surgery at Apollo Institute of Colorectal Surgery, went on to complete her post-graduation and win a gold medal.

Published: 24th September 2021 06:32 AM 

(Left) Preetha Reddy, Vice Chairperson of Apollo Hospitals Group, seen with (Right) Dr Venkatesh Munikrishnan, Consultant Colorectal & Robotic Surgeon of The Apollo Institute of Colorectal Surgery, at

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: A 28-year-old medical student, who successfully underwent a robotic colorectal surgery at Apollo Institute of Colorectal Surgery, went on to complete her post-graduation and win a gold medal. She was diagnosed with low-rectal cancer in 2017, when she was 24 and was about to do her PG. A conventional surgery leaves patients with a colostomy, a surgically-created opening in the body that routes bowel waste into an external colostomy bag.

Dr Ventakesh Munnikrishnan, Consultant Colorectal and Robotic Surgeon, The Apollo Institute of Colorectal Surgery, said she came here hoping for a solution, which would let her lead a normal life, without the colostomy bag.

“With the robotic colorectal surgery, we were able to remove the cancer and reconstruct the colon to rectal, anal connection, thus avoiding a permanent colostomy. The patient then went on to finish her course and excelled, bagging a gold medal. The benefits of robotic surgery are less blood loss, and quicker recovery,”

Dr Ventakesh Munnikrishnan said. Dr Prathap C Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group in his video message said, cancers in particular are taking a big toll and colorectal cancers are on the rise, thus becoming a major threat.

Preetha Reddy, Executive Vice-Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Group said, over the last few years, there have been several advances in minimally invasive techniques, such a robotic colorectal surgery. On Thursday, the hospital celebrated completion of five years of the Robotic Colorectal Surgery Programme.

இது உங்கள் இடம்: 'பென்ஷன்' என்பது பிச்சை அல்ல; மூத்த குடிமகன்களின் உரிமைத் தொகை!

இது உங்கள் இடம்: 'பென்ஷன்' என்பது பிச்சை அல்ல; மூத்த குடிமகன்களின் உரிமைத் தொகை!

Updated : செப் 24, 2021 03:27 | Added : செப் 24, 2021 03:26 

உலக, நாடு, தமிழக நடப்புகள் பற்றி, வாசகர்கள் தினமலர் நாளிதழில் எழுதிய கடிதம்:

எஸ்.ஆர்.சுப்ரமணியம், ஓய்வு பெற்ற மத்திய அரசு ஊழியர், சென்னையிலிருந்து அனுப்பிய, 'இ - மெயில்' கடிதம்: 'லட்சக்கணக்கான ரூபாய் சம்பளம் பெற்று, கோடிக்கணக்கான ரூபாய் லஞ்சம் வாங்கி செல்வந்தராக இருக்கும் அரசு ஊழியர்களுக்கு எதுக்கு ஓய்வூதியம்?' என இப்பகுதியில், மதுரையிலிருந்து டாக்டர் எம்.செல்வராஜ் கேள்வி எழுப்பியிருந்தார். இந்த பென்ஷன் விவகாரம் குறித்து சில உண்மைகளை தெளிவாக்க விரும்புகிறேன்...

நான், மத்திய அரசு பணியில் 40 ஆண்டுகள் பணியாற்றி, 60 வயதில் பணி நிறைவு பெற்று, 10 ஆண்டுகளாக ஓய்வூதியத்தில் இளைப்பாறிக் கொண்டிருக்கிறேன். மாநில அரசு துறையில் எந்த பணியில் இருந்தாலும், டாக்டர் சொல்வது போல லஞ்சம் கிடைக்கும் வாய்ப்பு உண்டு; ஆனால், மத்திய அரசு பணி அப்படிப்பட்டது அல்ல. கேட்டாலும் 1 ரூபாய் கூட லஞ்சம் கிடைக்காத துறைகளும் உண்டு. கேட்காமலே, பையில் திணித்து விட்டுப் போகும் துறைகளும் உண்டு. நான், லஞ்சம் வாங்கியதே கிடையாது. இந்நாட்டில் எனக்கென சொந்தமாக வீடோ, 1 அடி நிலமோ கிடையாது. இன்னமும் வாடகை வீட்டில் தான் வசித்து வருகிறேன்.

நான் பணி நிறைவு பெறும் போது, என் கடைசி மாத சம்பளம் 30 ஆயிரம் ரூபாய் தான். டாக்டர் குறிப்பிட்டிருப்பது போல, லட்ச ரூபாய் அல்ல. கடைசி மாத சம்பளத்தில் 50 சதவீதம் பென்ஷனாக வழங்கப்படும். அதாவது, 15 ஆயிரம் ரூபாய். அதில் மூன்றில் ஒரு பங்கு, 5,000 ரூபாயை, 'கம்யூட்டேஷன்' செய்ததில் மீதி 10 ஆயிரம் ரூபாய் தான் நிகர பென்ஷன். அகவிலைப்படி உள்ளிட்ட சமாச்சாரங்களால், தற்போது என் மாதாந்திர பென்ஷன் தொகை 20 ஆயிரம் ரூபாய். எங்கள் மகன் தனிக்குடித்தனம் சென்றதால் நானும், என் மனைவியும் பென்ஷன் தொகை 20 ஆயிரம் ரூபாயில் தான், வாடகை கொடுத்து, சாப்பாட்டு, மருத்துவ செலவை பார்த்து கொள்கிறோம்.

அந்த வாசகரின் கருத்துப்படி, பென்ஷன் இல்லையென்றால் நானும், என் மனைவியும் சோற்றுக்கு பிச்சை தான் எடுக்க வேண்டும். அரசு ஊழியர்களில் நேர்மையாக பணியாற்றியோரும் இருப்பர். அவர்களையும் மனதில் கொள்ள வேண்டும். ஓய்வூதியம் தேவை தானா என்ற கேள்வி, தமிழக அரசு ஊழியர்களுக்கும், மக்கள் பிரதிநிதிகளுக்கும் பொருந்தும்; சேவைத் துறையில் பணியாற்றி பென்ஷனில் உயிர் வாழும் மத்திய அரசு ஊழியர்களுக்கு பொருந்தாது. பென்ஷன் என்பது பிச்சை அல்ல. ஆண்டுக்கணக்காக அரசு பணியில் இருந்து, பணி நிறைவு பெற்று இளைப்பாறிக் கொண்டிருக்கும் மூத்த குடிமகன்களின் உரிமைத் தொகை!

Ex Gratia: Why GoI Should Pay

Ex Gratia: Why GoI Should Pay

Centre’s revenue has surged, states are fiscally weak. Avoid a long debate on fiscal federalism

NR Bhanumurthy

24.09.2021

As the country slowly recovers from the Covid pandemic, a debate has started on compensating victims of Covid. At the core of any such debate is the extent of compensation as well as the question who will fund the compensation, that is, whether GoI or states.

A lot of time has already been lost on debates on whether ex gratia as included in the Section 12 of the Disaster Management Act of 2005 is relevant for the Covid deaths. Under this, the guidelines for the minimum standards of relief for any ‘notified disaster’ should include ‘ex gratia assistance on account of loss of life’ (Section 12

(iii)). While the Act does not suggest the extent of ex gratia, in 2015, the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) had fixed the ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh for natural disasters.

Now, after rounds of discussions, and after the judgment from the Supreme Court, the Union government, as determined by NDMA, has decided on Covid ex gratia of Rs 50,000 for each deceased person ‘including those involved in relief operations or associated in preparedness activities, subject to cause of death being certified as Covid’.

But where the issue appears to be tricky and is already controversial is that the Union government has said that this compensation would be provided by state governments from their respective State Disaster Relief Funds (SDRF). Following this, there was some criticism that this is an imposition of the whole compensation burden on states, which are already in a weak fiscal position.

Funds for SDRFs are contributed by both the Union as well as state governments (this is as part of successive Finance Commissions’ recommendations). For the current year, the Union government’s share was Rs 17,747.20 crore, of which it has already released the first instalment (50% of its share) by the end of April 2021 –much earlier than the normal release schedule. This was done to help states to cope with the surging second wave.

It is also important and rather easy to recognise that states have been at the forefront in fighting the pandemic but at the same time face severe funding crunch due to declining revenues. Therefore, pushing states to fund the ex gratia could severely dent resources for other disaster-related expenditures.

Another issue is that even before these NDMA guidelines, many large states, in fact more than half the states, had already declared cash compensation ranging from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 lakh. Beneficiaries have varied from orphaned children to poorer households. However, states have paid these compensations from other funds such as Chief Minister’s Relief Fund, not from their SDRF.

Also, NDMA guidelines suggesting an ex gratia of Rs 50,000 looks insufficient. The argument is that the number of beneficiaries is very large. But the Union’s fiscal situation merits a closer look when discussing the total payout.

It is true that on its part, GoI has been extremely proactive with various pandemic-related measures, and it has also allocated Rs 35,000 crore for vaccination and is prepared to spend more. But of late, the Centre is enjoying a surge in revenues much more than what it had projected. Therefore, GoI should be in a comfortable position when it comes to covering the entire ex gratia cost.

This can be done through two ways. Either GoI can increase its share in SDRFs or it can pay directly through the Consolidated Fund of India. Some effective decision should be taken on this soon. Otherwise, there’s a possibility of another needless Centrestate stand-off.

Remember that in the case of mass vaccination, after much deliberations, the Union government finally agreed to procure and distribute vaccines to states free of cost. Much precious time was lost. We should avoid a similar Union versus states debate on Covid ex gratia, and the quickest way to achieve this is for the Centre to take on the fiscal responsibility.

However, we need a sustainable long-term solution. For that both the Centre and states should seriously and urgently look at the recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission, which suggested the insurance route for compensating disaster costs. This is basically the suggestion that governments get insurance to fund disaster-related payouts. Once there’s insurance cover, who pays the compensation becomes a question of procedure, not one of fiscal federalism.

For kin of Covid victims, fiscal federalism debate is a luxury they can’t afford. Neither can they afford more long-drawn court cases. As it is, the process of obtaining proper certification and application for ex gratia will be hurdles for many. For the sake of potential beneficiaries, GoI and states must quickly arrive at a mutually satisfactory solution.

The writer is Vice Chancellor, BASE University, Bengaluru. Views are personal

GoI can take on the entire burden of ex gratia payment in two ways. Either it can increase its contributory share in State Disaster Relief Funds or it can pay directly through the Consolidated Fund of India. Remember that in the case of mass vaccination, after much deliberations, the Union government finally agreed to procure and distribute vaccines to states free of cost

PhD student spots rare purple crab in K’taka

PhD student spots rare purple crab in K’taka

Mangaluru:24.09.2021

A rare purple crab was spotted in the Western Ghats area of Uttara Kannada district recently.

Dr MS Mustak, department of applied zoology, Mangalore University, said that his PhD student Supreet Kadkol, spotted the rare crab, purple in colour, when he was travelling from the Ghat section to the seashore. The crab was on the road basking, he said. “The six mature crabs were spotted on the roadside and under the rocks around the terrestrial habitat, and according to literature these fresh water purple crabs are only found during the rainy season. The locals present there were also surprised by the colour of the crab. The purple crab belongs to the genus Ghatiana. We are yet to ascertain if it is a new species for which molecular taxonomic analysis is being undertaken at the lab,” Dr Mustak said.

A purple tree crab was first spotted by Arjun Kamdar and team inJuly 2015 from rainwater-containing tree holes in Amboli, Maharashtra. Later it was spotted in 2017 at the Sharavathi valley in Shivamogga. It was then spotted by the Wildlife Conservation and Awareness Team. TNN

NATURAL WONDER: The purple crab clicked by Supreet Kadkol, a PhD student at Mangalore University, was spotted in Uttara Kannada

Colleges, universities start collating students’ vax data

Colleges, universities start collating students’ vax data

Zeeshan.Jawed@timesgroup.com

Kolkata:24.09.2021

A day after the state decided to vaccinate all eligible students in higher education institutions “with a view of possible resumption of offline instruction in schools and colleges”, several colleges and universities rolled out forms for students.

A section of students in Presidency University, Jadavpur University and Calcutta University had been demanding the authorities vaccinate students and initiate the process of resuming in-person classes. The government has asked all higher education institutions to hold a meeting with stake holders and provide details of those who require vaccination. The institutions have been given the option to either arranging for a camp on campus or allow the government to arrange it in other vaccination centres.

“The students and other stakeholders should be vaccinated before any decision to resume in-person classes in higher education institutions is taken,” said an education department official.

At JU, the authorities have already collected details from students. “Students who cannot come to campus can take the shot from their nearest vaccination centres by providing an university ID,” registrar Snehamanju Basu.

Maulana Azad College has started collecting the details, including of students who have just taken admission in UG courses. “Some of the details we want are the vaccination status, if they have taken a dose and the date of first dose,” said an official.

At Basanti Devi College the last date to submit the information is September 24. “We have received instructions from the higher education department to submit the vaccination details of students,” said a college official.

At Presidency University, the deadline to submit the information was September 23. “As soon as we received the education department nod, we started collecting the information,” said an official.

A higher education department official said if the colleges and universities provide logistical support, like space and manpower, the health department can conduct vaccination on campus.

A schoolteacher gets the jab at a civic vaccination centre

The students and other stakeholders should be vaccinated before any decision to resume in-person classes is taken

An edu dept official

Pensioners get home delivery of ‘life certificates’

Pensioners get home delivery of ‘life certificates’

New Delhi:24.09.2021

To help older pensioners procure ‘life certificates’ (jeevan pramaan) right at their door-step, India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) is generating and delivering them digitally by using postmen.

With the launch of the service, pensioners will not be required to make a physical visit to the office of pension disbursing agency. The pensioners will be able to generate the life certificate either by visiting the nearest post office or through the ‘Doorstep Banking Service’ offered by IPPB. A few years ago, the postal department had begun a similar service, while also offering the facility at some of their post offices. This service will be offered to all pensioners, irrespective of having an account with IPPB or with any other bank as well. TNN