Doctors advise against practice of giving mercury to children
Infant, reportedly administered the substance, is under treatment in Thanjavur

30/08/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,THANJAVUR

Doctors at the Rajah Mirasdar Government Hospital have cautioned people against administering mercury to infants under the misconception that it would cure a swollen belly in newborns. The practice is believed to be prevalent in some of the rural areas of the delta region.

A two-week-old infant, who was admitted to the hospital in a critical condition apparently after being administered mercury to reduce the swelling, is still under treatment at the hospital. The infant reportedly had a slight belly bulge at the time of delivery at the Government Hospital, Mayiladuthurai and was treated by the doctors. After discharge of the mother and child, its relatives had reportedly administered a bit of mercury dipped in betel leaves thinking that it would help clear the stomach of the child.

‘Natural remedy’

When the child was brought back to the Mayiladuthurai hospital, the mother, Sumithra complained that the infant was not taking milk and was crying very often. An X-ray of the stomach was taken where the doctors found some stone like objects in its intestine. Further, enquiries with the child’s relatives reveal that the infant had been administered with mercury as a “natural remedy.”

Subsequently, the infant was referred to the Rajah Mirasdar Government Hospital, Thanjavur, where the doctors put the infant under IV fluids. The Resident Medical Officer, RMGH, Usha Devi, said on Thursday evening that the child’s condition was stable and the heavy metal present in the body had moved a few inches away from where it was located in the first X-ray. Since it was advisable to allow the foreign object to slide out naturally from the intestine, the doctors treating the child have decided not to feed the child for next one or two days as the IV fluid support had ensured normal condition of the baby, she said.

Stressing that it would always better to avoid feeding the infant other than breast milk at least for three months, the RMO said such a practice would help the child acquire immunity naturally from the mother.

Government Law College inaugurated near Theni

30/08/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,THENI

Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam inaugurated a Government Law College, the 14th one in the State, at Upparpatti on Thursday.

He said the government had set up eight law colleges in the State in the last three years.

“It helped in ensuring justice to all,” he said.

Noting that legal studies would provide job opportunities to students, he said they could become lawyers, legal consultants for firms or judges.

He urged law students to be law-abiding citizens and concentrate on studies to achieve greater heights in life and render quick justice to the common man.

Law Minister C.V. Shanmugam said government law colleges were getting good infrastructure, like e-zone and Wi-Fi. Besides, 186 posts of lecturer in law colleges had been filled up.

The students were getting assistance to participate in moot court competitions held abroad and many students had come out with flying colours.

“The number of applications received for admission to government law colleges is an indication of good infrastructure in our institutions,” he said.

The college would temporarily function on a private school premises at Upparpatti. The land for the college was yet to be identified.

HC declines to direct release of Rajiv convicts

Issue pending with Governor: court

30/08/2019, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

The Madras High Court declined to ask the authorities to release Nalini Sriharan and six other life convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.

The court said the Tamil Nadu Council of Ministers had already recommended the premature release of the seven convicts last year. A direction to release them could be issued only if the authorities had failed to discharge their duties, the High Court said. Dismissing the petition filed by Nalini, the Bench comprising Justice R. Subbiah and Justice C. Saravanan said the recommendation sent by the Council of Ministers representing the Government of Tamil Nadu on September 9, 2018, was pending the consideration of the Governor. “Therefore, it is not as if the respondents herein have failed to exercise the powers conferred under Article 161 of the Constitution of India,” the Bench said.

Dindigul lock, Kandangi saree get GI tag

The two iconic products face similar challenges and have been on the decline over the years

30/08/2019, SANGEETHA KANDAVEL , A. SHRIKUMAR ,CHENNAI/MADURAI

Dindigul artisans make over 50 varieties of locks.G. Karthikeyan

Will granting the Geographical Indication (GI) tag to two iconic, but dying products from Tamil Nadu be able to revive them?

The products — the Dindigul lock and the Kandangi saree — were given the GI tag by the Geographical Indications Registry in Chennai on Thursday. While the application for the lock was made by the Dindigul Lock, Hardware and Steel Furniture Workers Industrial Co-operative Society Limited, the Amarar Rajeev Gandhi Handloom Weavers Co-operative Production and Sales Society Limited filed the application for the Kandangi saree.

It remains to be seen whether the GI tag will infuse fresh interest in these two products and improve their performance in the market, and thereby revive the workers dependent on these products.

“Dindigul lock and Kandangi saree were registered today,” Chinnaraja G. Naidu, Deputy Registrar of Geographical Indications, said on Thursday. He added that both these products were losing their sheen in the market, and the GI tag would help them get some recognition.

Lock City

The famous Dindigul locks are known throughout the world for their superior quality and durability, so much so that even the city is called Lock City.

The abundance of iron in this region is the reason for the growth of the lock-making industry.

Though machine-made locks are easily available, government institutions like prisons, godowns, hospitals and even temples use the older pattern locks. These lock manufacturing units are limited to an area of 5 km in and around Dindigul. There are over 50 varieties of locks made by the artisans.

But over the last few years, this industry has been slowly dying due to competition from Aligarh and Rajapalayam. Marketing these locks has also been a challenge. A. Premkumar, a third-generation lock maker, who runs Jegankumar Industries in Nagal Nagar, said, “The lock industry in Dindigul is focussed [more] on quality than production (referring to quantity). Aligarh replicates mechanisms from here but produces in large quantities. The GI tag will help people differentiate Dindigul locks from others.” He added that several people have moved away from the craft due to meagre wages and waning demand.

Currently, this industry is worth over ₹20 crore per annum.

The Kandangi saree, manufactured in Karaikudi taluk in Sivaganga district, is facing challenges similar to Dindigul lock’s. V. Krishnaveni, who runs Sri Mahalakshmi Handloom Weaving Centre in Kanadukathan, said the GI tag for the Kandangi saree will help revive lost patronage. The market is flooded with sarees that are woven in other parts of the State and look like the Kandangi saree.

The original Kandangi saree is manually made using a winding machine, loom, shuttle and bobbin. It is a team effort of the families who live in the town of Karaikudi and it forms part of their livelihood. These sarees are characterised by the large contrast borders, and some of them are known to have borders covering as much as two-thirds of the saree.

The sarees are usually around 5.10 meters – 5.60 meters in length. The Kandangi sarees exude brilliant colours like bright yellow, orange, red and a minimal black in the traditional pattern of stripes or checks with broad borders woven in coarse cotton. Over the years, more interesting colours have been introduced for the saree, which is worn in a particular manner.

What ban? Plastics abound 8 months after they are proscribed
Street vendors and small traders biggest violators of the ban

30/08/2019, DEEPA H. RAMAKRISHNAN , ALOYSIUS XAVIER LOPEZ,CHENNAI

Making the switch: Youngsters using paper straws distributed by students of Sindhi Model Senior Secondary School to drink tender coconut water.R. Ravindran

The city’s garbage dumpyards at Perungudi and Kodungaiyur continue to receive plastics every day from bins, door-to-door collection and street sweeping. This, despite the ban on single-use plastics, in place since January 1.

“Though over 80% of the 140-odd licensed manufacturing units in the State have shifted to manufacturing permissible plastic items and the others have just shut shop and left, banned plastics seem to be available in the market. From where they come, one cannot say. But the ban has led to the shutting down of legitimate units and seems to have facilitated illegal trade,” said B. Swaminathan of the Tamil Nadu Plastics Manufacturers' Association.

This is due to the fact that most of the 27,195 enumerated street vendors and a large number of licensed traders continue to use banned plastics in various parts of the city. After the ban, the bigger shops, including supermarkets, switched to cloth or jute bags. A section of consumers too converted. “It is the small trader and road-side shops that are finding it difficult to switch. If banana leaves were available in place of plastic covers, flower vendors would gladly change back to leaves. But those are not available. Similarly, alternatives that are available in the market are not cheap or easily accessible. MNCs that use multi-layer plastics for packaging have also not been reined in by the ban,” said A.M.Vikramaraja, president, Tamil Nadu Vanigar Sangankalin Peramaippu. “Though many residents have switched to carrying cloth bags and associations are working towards reducing garbage going to dumpyards, banned plastics are still being used by street vendors and small shops. This is because alternatives to banned plastics are not affordable and these banned items are still easily available. The government should explore alternatives to plastic bags for customers,” said V.S. Jayaraman, of T. Nagar Residents Welfare Association.

Nungambakkam resident N. Ramesh said the government should advise retail shops to give the customers bags made of newspaper to carry the items they buy. “The retail outlets sell poor quality cloth bags for ₹15, making a profit from the sale of such bags. This is unethical. The shopkeepers refuse to even wrap products in a newspaper. I request the government to intervene and direct the civic agencies to regulate such practices,” said Babu, another resident.

Enforcement on

For its part, the Greater Chennai Corporation’s sanitary inspectors have seized 264 tonnes of banned plastics from 2.63 lakh premises across the city in the past eight months, collecting ₹55.04 lakh as penalties.

Officials in zones such as Kodambakkam, Royapuram, Anna Nagar, Adyar, Perungudi and Valasaravakkam have seized the largest quantities of banned plastic products. Chennai Corporation has claimed that the seized plastics were being shredded for road relaying. But the banned plastics have not been used for relaying most stretches in the city in the past few months, officials said. Inadequate manpower, particularly among sanitary inspectors, has led to challenges in enforcement of the ban, they pointed out.

Officials also estimated the quantum of banned plastics sent to dumpyards had come down. However, there is no study on how much it has come down by. “The quantum of banned plastics reaching dumpyards has reportedly reduced by 50%. We will carry out a waste characterisation study shortly,” said N. Mahesan, Chief Engineer (Solid Waste Management). Former DMK councillor Deva Jawahar said the civic body was unable to enforce the ban on plastics because of the transport of banned plastics from neighbouring States and purchases by small traders.

Municipal Administration and Water Supply Department secretary Harmander Singh said the department was taking steps to implement the ban. “A huge quantity of plastic has been seized and fines imposed. All big fruit and vegetable shops and retail showrooms have changed to non-plastic materials. So it will be wrong to say plastic has come back. It is a big challenge and everyone, including media, has to play a role. Our drive against plastic continues,” he said.

Free dialysis centre opened in Perungudi

30/08/2019, STAFF REPORTER,CHENNAI

Tamil Nadu Kidney Research (TANKER) Foundation opened its eighth free dialysis unit at Chennai Corporation’s Urban Community Health Centre in Perungudi. Corporation Commissioner G. Prakash inaugurated the unit on Thursday. This was TANKER’s third unit in collaboration with the Greater Chennai Corporation.

King’s College Hospital of London may set up branches in T.N.
Pacts inked for upgrading skills of medical professionals, disease control
30/08/2019, STAFF REPORTER,CHENNAI

Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami after signing an MoU with King’s College officials in London.

The Tamil Nadu government has signed a memorandum of understanding with King’s College Hospital, London, to establish branches in the State.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami, who is on an official visit to the U.K.

A senior health department official confirmed that the State government would help facilitate the setting up of such hospitals in Tamil Nadu.

Other than the U.K., the CM will visit the U.S. and Dubai as part of a tour that started on August 28 and will go on till September 10.

Pacts on skill development of doctors and nurses in the State as well as control of infectious diseases were also signed. Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar and Health Secretary Beela Rajesh were present.

Tamil Nadu government is partnering with U.K.-based International Skills Development Corporation (ISDC) to improve skills of healthcare professionals.

Mr. Palaniswami also visited the London Ambulance Service to see how the 108 ambulance service in T.N. can be improved. The State has 942 ambulances as of now, and the service handles 3,300 emergency cases on an average daily. The purpose of the visit was to see how certain features of the London Ambulance Service could be implemented in the State to reduce fatalities in road accidents.