5,000 apply for ex gratia, many more sans Covid death docus

5,000 apply for ex gratia, many more sans Covid death docus

Amrita.Didyala@timesgroup.com

Hyderabad:01.12.2021

Around 5,000 people have so far applied for Covid compensation in Telangana, as per health authorities. With many more returning from Meeseva centres each day, hoping to get proper certificates so they can apply for the compensation.

The compensation for family members of Covid victims was announced by the Centre a month ago. The Telangana government released guidelines for payment of the ex gratia recently.

So far, 6.75 lakh people in Telangana have been infected by Covid-19, of which 3,992 succumebd to the virus, as per official figures. However, these figures have taken into account only deaths of patients who did not have any other ailment and deaths recorded in hospitals. Authorities say, deaths in patients having other complications were not labelled as Covid deaths, making it tough for their kin to seek compensation.

Elaborating on other situations where the kin would not have required certificates, an official from the health department, said, “several patients who died on the way to hospitals, in ambulances, during the first and second wave might have gone unrecorded. Many died in remote villages with or without treatment. Some underwent Covid tests, but there were no death certificates. Others do not have reports of supportive tests like CT Scan, RTPCR etc.”

“Besides this, in case of hospitalised patients, some families did not even take the bodies home during the first wave due to the associated stigma. The government itself conducted the cremation. Such family members have no evidence that the patient died due to Covid-19,” added the official.

Despite the fact that the state has formed a district-level ‘Covid-19 death ascertaining’ committee (CDAC) a fortnight ago, many are unable to get the necessary documents. “There are many people turning up saying that the patient had tested positive, but had died at home while undergoing treatment or had suddenly deteriorated and died. As a result, the families do not have the required reports. Their death certificates do not mention Covid as cause of death and they are now unable to apply for compensation,” said a meeseva employee from Ameenpur area.

Jr docs to boycott outpatient services

Jr docs to boycott outpatient services

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Hyderabad:01.12.2021

The Telangana Junior Doctors Association (TJUDA) will boycott outpatient services and hold protests from December 1 to December 3 over repeated delays in NEET counselling.

The doctors have maintained the delay has not only caused loss of pay for 1.6 lakh doctors across the country, but has also put and additional burden on the remaining batches. Moreover, in view of a possible third wave keeping an entire batch of the healthcare system could have devastating impact.

“T-JUDA stands in accordance with consensus decision of Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) and other states resident doctors associations (RDAs) to hold protest and boycott OPD services from December 1 to December 3 regarding expedition of NEET PG-21 counselling process, provided the Supreme Court hearing happens by the stipulated date of 03-12-2021, beyond which we will have to escalate the protest by boycotting all elective services throughout the state,” the TJUDA said in an official statement. The association said repercussions of this will have to be borne by the government.

“Our primary demand is to take necessary measures for expediting NEET-PG counselling as well as admission process and to fast-track the court proceedings on an urgent basis by Union Government and Supreme court of India,” said Dr D Sagar, president TJUDA. “With the possibility of an imminent upcoming Covid wave, it is essential that the counselling process is started at the earliest to prevent collapse of the healthcare system...”

Kerala girl found dead in US with bullet wounds

Kerala girl found dead in US with bullet wounds

01.12.2021

A 19-year-old girl from Kerala was found dead with bullet injuries at her apartment in Montgomery, the capital of US state of Alabama, on Monday. Mariyam Soosan Mathew, a native of Niranam near Thiruvalla, was found dead in her room, as per information received by her relatives in India. According to the metropolitan of the Ahmedabad diocese Geevarghese Mar Yulios, who spoke to Mariyam’s father, a bullet fired from the apartment on the next floor had pierced through the ceiling and hit Mariyam. He added that celebrations were being held in the apartment above as part of the Thanksgiving weekend. Mariyam’s father, Boban Mathew, was a council member of the Ahmedabad diocese of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church while the family was in Muscat. They had relocated to Montgomery only few months ago after Mariyam’s mother, who is a nurse, got a job there. The family is trying to take the mortal remains to Kerala for the funeral. TNN

Prepare for common entrance for UG, PG seats from 2022-23: UGC

NTA UMBRELLA

Prepare for common entrance for UG, PG seats from 2022-23: UGC

Manash.Gohain@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:01.12.2021

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has written to central universities to “take appropriate measures” for conducting the Common Entrance Test (CET) for admission in undergraduate and postgraduate courses from the 2022-23 academic session onwards. It also stated that willing state and private universities too can adopt this computer-based test, which will be conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) in 13 languages.

TOI was first to report that the education ministry was finalising the procedural details of CET to be conducted in 45 central universities from 2022 onwards and that the details would be announced in December.

The UGC has also said that for PhD admissions, NET scores shall be considered, wherever feasible.

The letter sent to the vice chancellors of the central universities stated, “After detailed deliberations, it was resolved that the CET for UG and PG courses may be conducted from the 2022-23 academic session through NTA.” The plan was put on hold this year due the ongoing Covid pandemic.

The exams, envisaged in the National Education Policy 2020, are likely to be conducted twice a year. According to the NEP 2020 document: “The NTA will facilitate a single entrance exam for admissions to universities across the country. It will offer a ‘high quality common aptitude test’ like the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test, conducted in US & Canada), as well as specialised common subject examinations, at least twice every year.”

The CET for admissions to central universities, which includes the likes of JNU, BHU and DU, would be a three-hour test, divided into two sections — common aptitude test (50 questions) and domain specific tests (30 questions each) — and will eliminate the individual exams that many of the universities conduct presently.The UGC in its letter said: “Accordingly, all central universities are advised to take appropriate measures for the Common Entrance Test from the academic session 2022-23.”

Unarmed, ‘tiger’ mom snatches kid from leopard jaws

Unarmed, ‘tiger’ mom snatches kid from leopard jaws

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bhopal: 01.12.2021

A tribal woman took on a leopard with her bare hands and snatched her six year-old son from its jaws in a bloody fight in a village near Sanjay Gandhi National Park in MP’s Sidhi on Sunday.

The Baiga woman chased the leopard and caught up with it just when it sat down with its ‘prey’, say sources. She came out of the fight injured, but with the child in her arms. The boy also has deep claw and fang wounds, but scars — and the memory of his unarmed mother wrestling a leopard — are all that will remain.

Kiran, the feisty mother, lives in Badi Jhiriya village in the buffer zone of the national park. On Sunday evening, she was sitting with her children next to a fire outside her hut, waiting for her husband to return, unaware that a leopard was watching them. Her youngest child, a few months old, was in her lap.

In a flash, the leopard darted out of the shadows, caught six-year-old Rahul in its jaws, and ran off. Kiran was up in a flash, too. She handed the newborn to one of her other kids and sprinted after the animal. Even in the darkness, she kept up with the spotted cat and found it sitting in some bushes. Kiran says she lunged at the leopard, grabbed Rahul and pulled with all her strength. The predator seemed taken by surprise, and she could tear Rahul from its grasp.

Unwilling to give up its prey, the leopard lashed out with its claws and cut mother and child. Kiran fought back, screaming for help. By then, villagers were already running to her aid. The pounding feet and the shouts unnerved the leopard, which scampered back into the forest. The villagers took mother and child her to hospital.

Kiran with her son in Badi Jhiriya village in Madhya Pradesh

Convicted 4 yrs ago, Mallya told by SC to appear for sentencing

Convicted 4 yrs ago, Mallya told by SC to appear for sentencing

Dhananjay.Mahapatra@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:01.12.2021

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked fugitive businessman Vijay Mallay, sheltered in the UK despite proceedings for his extradition to India attaining finality, to appear before it on January 18 for quantification of sentence, more than four years after he was convicted for contempt of court for transferring abroad $40 million from United Spirits despite the SC barring it.

On May 9, 2017, the SC had convicted Mallya guilty of contempt of court and directed him to appear personally before it on July 10, 2017 for determination of quantum of punishment. But Mallya had already fled the country to the UK by then and never bothered to appear before the court. while contesting in various forums the Indian government’s attempts to extradite him. After he lost in resisting his extradition, he appears to have entered into “secret” proceedings with the UK government.

The MEA, through solicitor general Tushar Mehta, told a bench of Justices UU Lalit, SR Bhat and Bela M Trivedi that the extradition proceedings have attained finality but the UK government hasn’t divulged any detail of the “secret” proceedings pending qua Mallya, which is delaying his extradition.

The Justice Lalit-led bench said he was found guilty of contempt of court on May 9, 2017 and has never bothered to appear before the court. Thereafter, even though the court had directed the Centre to secure his presence before the SC, it could not be done because of pending proceedings in the UK. Adjournments and intervention of pandemic delayed hearing on quantification of Mallya’s sentence, the bench said.

“If the person wants to appear before us on January18, he can do so. Otherwise, he can be brought before court through extradition. If these options don’t happen, he can appear through a lawyer,” the bench said and appointed advocate Jaideep Gupta as amicus curiae to assist court in the matter.

6 med colleges to be set up in MP; half in tribal areas

6 med colleges to be set up in MP; half in tribal areas

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bhopal:01.12.2021

The state cabinet, headed by chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, on Tuesday approved the setting up of six new medical colleges at a cost of Rs 1,547 crore. Half of them will come up in the tribal-dominated districts — Mandla, Sheopur and Mandsaur.

The other three will be built in Singrauli, Rajgarh and Neemuch. Announcing this after Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, home minister Narottam Mishra said, “It must be mentioned that in the Congress regime, before the BJP government with Shivraj Singh Chouhan as CM, there were only five medical colleges in the state. Today, there are 20.” P4

Death for child rape bill withdrawn

The MP cabinet on Tuesday withdrew the Criminal Law MP(Amendment) Bill 2017 that carried provision of death penalty for rape of minor girls. This was done as the Centre has passed the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2018 in Parliament, raising minimum punishment for rape of women from seven years to 10 years. “In 2017, because little girls were being raped, we sent a law to the Centre for approval. But the Centre, in 2018, made the law themselves. Our law which was sent for assent of the President has been sent back and the cabinet decided to withdraw the same on Tuesday,” home minister said.