Govt ready to build medical colleges on PPP model: Min

Govt ready to build medical colleges on PPP model: Min

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru:30.12.2020

The government is ready to build more medical colleges on publicprivate partnership model, said health and medical education minister K Sudhakar.

He was speaking at the inaugural of the new building of Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre in Shivajinagar on Tuesday.

“Karnataka needs more medical colleges to meet the demand for doctors. Establishing a college requires Rs 600-Rs 700 crore. If it is built on PPP model, it reduces the burden on the state exchequer and also helps provide affordable medical education and treatment to the needy. This model is being adopted in Gujarat and it will be implemented here as well,” he added. The institute offers facilities for 150 students to study MBBS. “We’re increasing the bed capacity of district hospitals, providing better infrastructure and constructing hostel facilities where no medical colleges are available,” he said.

Sudhakar said the state is in the process of obtaining permission for an AIIMS. There will also be a new health and medical education policy for the state. “As per the WHO guidelines, there should be one doctor for 1,000 population. But in our country, it is 1:10,000-12,000. There is a need to increase the number of medical colleges to produce more number of doctors,” he added.

NEW START: Chief minister BS Yediyurappa and grand-daughter Soundarya Neeraj during the inauguration of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Medical College & Research Institute building in Shivajinagar on Tuesday

BU VC relieves finance officer; govt says it’s against norms

BU VC relieves finance officer; govt says it’s against norms

Bengaluru:30.12.2020

A controversy has erupted at Bangalore University after the vicechancellor issued an order relieving the finance officer of her duties on Monday. On Tuesday, the principal director, Karnataka audit and accounts department, wrote to the VC saying the transfer is against norms.

The registrar, K Jyothi, and finance officer Parvathi HB have been alerting authorities on irregularities in the administration in the recent past. Sources said they have issued notices to staff and written to the government. These include issues like a non-teaching staffer drawing salary as a driver.

The non-teaching staff have been protesting on campus for the past one week. They accused the registrar and the finance officer of “interfering in their work”.

Sources said vice-chancellor KR Venugopal had informed the accounts department that the teaching and non-teaching staff want the current officers removed. Later, he issued a letter to the finance officer relieving her of her duties “in consultation with the audit and accounts department”.

On Tuesday, the letter issued by the department said Parvathi HB was posted through a government order and her tenure is up to July 17, 2022. The removal from a statutory post demands a reason and she has been transferred without valid reason, making the act illegal, it added. TNN

TN has more women with cancer than men, finds study that covered 80mn

TN has more women with cancer than men, finds study that covered 80mn

Ram.Sundaram@timesgroup.com

Chennai:29.12.2020

More women are fighting cancer in the state than men, revealed a Tamil Nadu Cancer Registry Project (TNCRP) report jointly released by Cancer Institute and state health department on Monday.

The Crude Incidence Rate (CIR) of all cancers per 1,00,000 population was 93.9 among women compared to 74.4 in men, said TNCRP data, which covered the entire TN population of 80 million. This is the highest demographic evaluated by any cancer registry in the world.

A total of 65,590 cancer cases were diagnosed in 2016 in TN and estimated cancer burden in 2020 was 78,641. Of this, the highest CIR of cancers was observed in Chennai (140.8) and the least in Krishnagiri (48.5).

The incidence of breast cancer in women observed in Chennai (46.4 per 1,00,000 women) was the highest in the country.

Commenting on it, professor R Swaminathan from Cancer Institute, who co-authored the study with R Shanta, said more than genetic components that usually account for 5-10% of incidences, or diet, increase in breast cancer could be related to change in lifestyle.

“The mean age of marriage and age of first child birth is higher compared to what it was 30-35 years ago. Also, the number of pregnancies and breastfeeding have come down. These could be reasons but we definitely need more research studies,” he said.

After Chennai, Thanjavur has the second-highest CIR and this could be attributed to rampant use of chewing tobacco there, the study said.

The report also showed that in districts such as Erode, Ramanathapuram and Sivaganga, 50%-70% cancer patients travel to another district for treatment while the figure was 10% in Chennai and Coimbatore. “Such findings will help the government know where to place cancer treatment centres,” said Swaminathan.

Health minister C Vijayabaskar thanked Cancer Institute for providing such comprehensive data based on which the government can plan its treatment and disease prevention policies. The report was prepared by the institute without incurring any cost to the government.

Inebriated doctor escapes with police patrol vehicle, dashes it against autorickshaw

Inebriated doctor escapes with police patrol vehicle, dashes it against autorickshaw

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:29.12.2020

This doctor gave the Chennai police a taste of their own medicine. Stopped and sent home in an autorickshaw for driving drunk, he came back after a while and drove away the cops’ vehicle when they refused to return his car. He then dashed the police jeep against an autorickshaw at Kilpauk, injuring three people.

Police said Dr S Muthu Ganesh, 31, a resident of Arakonam who practices at a private hospital in Kundrathur, was caught driving drunk at 1.30 am on Monday on Harrington road. He was returning from a friend’s house when the police stopped him.

Initially he refused to blow into the breathalyzer and tried to convince the cops to let him go by flashing his identity card. However, the police refused to budge and made him blow into the breathalyzer. Since he tested drunk, the police asked him to park his car by the road and sent him off in an autorickshaw.

Police said the doctor turned up at the Ega signal on Poonamallee high road around 3.30am and asked them to return his car, saying he would not go home without it. The traffic cops, who were supervising road marking work on Poonamallee High Road, told him he could collect his car in the morning after paying a fine.

The doctor then started calling someone on his phone and police went back to their work. But the doctor then got into their patrol vehicle and drove away. One of the sub-inspectors flagged down a biker and gave chase.

The doctor, meanwhile, dashed against an autorickshaw near the Gengu Reddy subway, a few minutes away. The SI reached the scene and apprehended Muthu Ganesh.

The injured were taken to the Government Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital and the doctor was sent to Puzhal prison by a city court.

‘HIGH’ STREET CHASE

Kerala nurses hit by Covid denied wages in Mumbai

Kerala nurses hit by Covid denied wages in Mumbai

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Thiruvananthapuram:30.12.2020

A group of nurses from Kerala voluntarily working in Mumbai hospitals to tackle the Covid-19 crisis have complained that they were denied wages during the leave of absence caused after contracting the infection. They have now sought the Kerala government’s help for the restoration of wages.

A medical team from Kerala had been helping Mumbai hospitals since May and around 50 nurses from the state are working in Covid centres. “We had come along with the medical team in May when there was a shortage of nurses here. We have been working relentlessly and acquired the infection while on duty,” said a nurse.

After going on medical leave, however, they were “denied all medical benefits including medical leave during the period under treatment and quarantine,” said Rohit Krishna, working with a Covid centre at Bandra.

Covid centres in Mumbai have been attached to different hospitals and the nurses working there have entered into a three-month contract with these facilities. “The management, has informed us that ours is a contractual appointment and no employer-employee relationship will be encouraged. Due to the contractual appointment, our wages are much higher than that of other nurses, which is why paid leave could not be sanctioned during the quarantine period,” Krishna said.

These nurses have written to Kerala chief minister and health minister seeking their intervention in resolving the crisis. “We approached the district administration and other health authorities in Mumbai but didn’t get any help. Many of the nurses are keeping silent about the ordeal fearing they might lose the job,” Krishna added.

Edu dept staff sells 3,000 books as scrap

Edu dept staff sells 3,000 books as scrap

Mayiladuthurai:  30.12.2020

Police on Tuesday arrested a junior assistant at the district education department in Mayiladuthurai on charges of selling more than 3,000 state board textbooks, meant to be distributed to government and aided school students, to a scrap dealer. Based on a complaint from the education department officials, the owner of the scrap dealer was also arrested.

According to police, the accused C Meganathan, 44, junior assistant at district education office in Mayiladuthurai, was booked under Sections 381 and 409 (committing theft with respect to any property in the possession of his/her employer). The scrap shop owner, S Perumalsamy, 56, was booked under Section 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property).

During a revenue department inspection of the shop the illegal dealing came to light. TNN

Don’t fall prey to touts, warns Anna University

Don’t fall prey to touts, warns Anna University

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:30.12.2020

Following complaints from some candidates who applied for faculty positions, Anna University on Tuesday warned aspiring candidates not to fall prey to middlemen.

Recently, the university had notified 312 vacancies including assistant professors

(139), associate professors (106) and professors (67) in its four campuses after a gap of six years.

Responding to the notification, more than 2000 persons applied for 312 posts.

"Complaints have been received with valid proof from a few applicants that some unauthorized persons are contacting them saying their names are in the selection list and they can get them appointments,” Anna University registrar L Karunamoorthy said in a statement.

He further said the university is in the process of initiating action against those unauthorized persons.

"Applicants are strictly advised not to fall prey to such phone calls/any other mode of communication and for all such inducements.," he said.