State bans direct UK flight from Jan 3

Covid Test On Arrival For All Int’l Flyers

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Tamaghna.Banerjee@timesgroup.com

Kolkata: 31.12.2021

The state government on Thursday wrote to the civil aviation ministry, announcing its decision to temporarily suspend the direct flight between Kolkata and London from January 3 and Covid tests for all incoming passengers in view of the rising Omicron cases globally as well as in India.

The last flight from London to touch down in Kolkata before the ban will be on Sunday, January 2. Also till now, only passengers arriving from the UK that was categorized as an ‘at risk’ country due to the high prevalence of Omicron cases as notified by the Union health ministry were required to undergo Covid test on arrival.

Additional chief secretary BP Gopalika wrote to Union civil aviation secretary Rajiv Bansal to convey the curb on the once-a-week Air India flight that operates between Kolkata airport and Heathrow and the testing protocol for international flyers.

The letter was dispatched hours after chief minister Mamata Banerjee had sounded an alarm over the high incidence of Omicron cases among in-bound flyers and an emergency meeting that followed in the state secretariat on the issue. Kolkata airport director C Pattabhi was present at the meeting.

In Kolkata, five of the 10 Omicron cases that were tested in the state had returned from overseas. In the last flight from the UK that arrived on Boxing Day, four persons tested positive to Covid. Their samples have been sent for genome sequencing to check if they had contracted the Omicron variant.

“I love the UK. But it is being seen that a majority of Omicron cases are coming from passengers from the UK flight. Omicron is spreading rapidly and it is mostly spreading through international flights. Lets see what the civil aviation ministry does now,” the CM remarked in Gangasagar before boarding a helicopter to Kolkata.

The ban decision has left the airline and travel agents in a spot. With all flights in January booked to near capacity, it will be a herculean task to accommodate them in UK-bo- und flights departing from Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Amritsar and Ahmedabad. “It will be a logistical nightmare,” said an AI official.

The letter to the civil aviation ministry also announced that all international passengers from non-at-risk countries would have to also undergo Covid tests. While 90% will ta- ke the Rapid Antigen Test, the rest will have to undergo Rapid PCR or RT-PCR. All passengers have to mandatorily pre-book the test before boarding to reduce waiting time on arrival which the airlines must ensure prior to allowing the boarding.

Following the announcement, Pattabhi said RAT kits were being procured to comply with the government order. “We will collect samples when passengers queue up for immigration and have the result ready by the time they clear immigration. In case there is any delay, there is seating arrangement for 350 people that we can augment further,” Pattabhi said.

Travel trade industry officials said while leisure travel would stop following the curb and rising infections across the globe, those with emergency travel needs would continue to fly in through Delhi, Mumbai and other airports.

Borrow a book, return it at any library in state

Borrow a book, return it at any library in state

Ragu.Raman@timesgroup.com

Chennai:31.12.2021

Soon, a reader can rent a book from a public library and return it anywhere in the state after reading it. Search for books, reservation and r enewals too could be done through a mobile app and home delivery of books also could be a possibility, as Tamil Nadu government is keen on reviving libraries and booklending in the state.

Acentralised book-returning system will be made possible, as the Anna Centenary Library (ACL) along with Roja Muthiah Research Library, is preparing a union catalogue for all 3 5 lakh books inthe 4,640 public libraries across Tamil Nadu. Roja Muthiah Research Library is curating the catalogue of all books in public libraries to the international standard like Anglo American Cataloguing Rules (AACR2) and Machine-Readable Cataloguing (MARC 21).

In the first phase, school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi released the union catalogue for more than seven lakh books in Anna Centenary Library, Connemara Public Library, Roja Muthiah Research Library and 32 district libraries this week. With the common catalogue, the search forbooks in all p ublic libraries will get easier. By typing the title or author, a reader will get the details like which libraries have the book, availability, literary form, publisher, edition and material type.

“This catalogue could act asa single tool for searching all books available in all public libraries in Tamil Nadu,” said S Kamatchi, coordinator of Union Catalogue Project for Public Libraries. The project is being implemented under the Tamil Nadu Innovation Initiatives (TANII) scheme by the State Planning Commission.

Digitising catalogue also will help library authorities to know whichbooks areincirculation and which are not used by readers in the public libraries.

“It would also help to know which type of books or subjects is being preferred or not preferred in a particular region. The moving books can be stocked up more and unused books could be avoided while procuring the books for public libraries,” she a dded. It may also help the library authorities to weed out the titles which are gathering dust and occupying space. Following the union catalogue, the directorate of public libraries may come upwith the user mobile app for searching for books. “Like how we know restaurants n ear us by googlingit, this app will enable the book lovers to know which nearest library has a particular book and whether it is available or not,” said G Sundar, director, Roja Muthiah Research Library in Taramani.

Researcher, boy friend kill stalker on city road

Researcher, boy friend kill stalker on city road

Sindhu.Kannan@timesgroup.com

Chennai:31.12.2021

A 26-year-old research student and her boyfriend have been arrested on charges of stabbing an engineering college employee multiple times in broad daylight at Kelambakkam on Thursday, killing him on the spot.

Police identified the accused as J Desapriya, a research scholar in physics in a private college in Kalavakkam, andherfriend S Arun Pandian, 27, a research scholar in a uni- versity in Kattankulathur. Police said they killed K Senthil, 43, an employee of the university in Kattankulathur, because he nagged the woman to marry him though he was married for seven years.

After the stabbing on a road near the college, bystanders chased and nabbed the couple, andhanded them overto police.

Married Senthil kept stalking Desapriya

Police said Desapriya and Senthil were known to each other since the time she was doing her graduation in the university in Kattankulathur. She broke up with him after she came to know that Senthil was already married. However, Senthil kept stalking Desapriya and kept asking her to marry him, claiming that he could convince his wife saying that since they remained childless for seven years he was forced to marry Desapriya.

“WhenDesapriya started to avoid him during the lockdown, Senthil threatened her saying he would upload their old photos online,” said an investigating officer. Desapriya reported the matter to Arun Pandian. Police said the duo had planned to take Senthil to a secluded place and murder him. Around 1.30pm on Thursday, Desapriya called S enthil to come to her college.
The two were talking when Arun Pandian joined them. Quoting eyewitnesses, police said after a heated argument among the trio, Desapriya and Arun Pandian slit Senthil’s throat.

When Senthil started his bike and tried to escape, they chased him and stabbed him repeatedly with two knives until he bled to death on the spot.

India records first ‘Omicron death’

India records first ‘Omicron death’

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

31.12.2021

India recorded what could be its first Omicron death on Thursday even as the highly infectious variant spread to two more states, Punjab and Bihar, and recorded highest single-day infections for the second consecutive day. While India has reported close to 1,200 Omicron cases of the new variant, no deaths were reported until now.

Maharashtra confirmed the presence of Omicron in a 52-year-old man who recently died of heart attack in Pimpri Chinchwad, but stopped short of calling him the first casualty of the variant and attributed the death to his underlying health conditions.

The state added198 cases on Thursday — its highest singleday tally for the second consecutive day — which is a major indicator that the Omicron wave is here. The total count of the variant in the state has touched 450. India reported 258 Omicron cases on Thursday, taking the total tally to 1195. After Maharashtra, Delhi reported the second highest cases, 25, while Haryana reported 23 cases. Telangana, Odisha and Bengal reported five cases each while Bihar and Punjab recorded one infection each. Omicron has now spread to 24 states and UTs.

The man from Pimpri Chinchwad had died on December 28 at the local Yashwantrao Chavan Hospital. The state health authorities refrained from labelling it as the first Omicron death despite the man having a travel history to Nigeria and a Co- vid positive diagnosis. They said the patient had diabetes for the past 13 years. “The death of this patient is due to non-Covid reasons. Coincidently, the National Institute of Virology report revealed that he was infected with the Omicron variant,” the authorities said in a statement.

Health experts in Mumbai said that since the man had a Covid positive diagnosis, the death is most likely going to be classified as a Covid fatality.

Across Maharashtra, up to 46% of total 450 confirmed Omicron cases don’t have any international travel history now. Delhi, which recorded 25 new cases, too seems to be heading towards a community spread with health minister Satyendar Jain saying that the new variant has been found in 54% of the Covid samples sent for genome sequencing.

Sale of TTD calendars at higher price on Amazon triggers controversy

Sale of TTD calendars at higher price on Amazon triggers controversy

31/12/2021

Special Correspondent TIRUPATI

Even as the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) claims to have taken a giant leap in promoting its products to offshore devotees through a tie-up with online major Amazon, it is not without its share of controversy in terms of pricing.

Left party leaders have raised a hue and cry over the sale of TTD’s calendars and diaries at an “unbelievably huge price”.

“The simple calendar bearing the image of Lord Venkateswara and Goddess Padmavathi is priced at ₹15. But, Amazon shows the same as priced at ₹299 and offers it at a discounted price of ₹149. How can anyone sell the product at a price over and above that fixed by the TTD?” questions Centre for Indian Trade Unions (CITU) general secretary Kandharapu Murali.

The TTD diary costing a mere ₹130 is shown as a whopping ₹799 and offered at a discounted price of ₹499.

Meanwhile, the TTD’s Public Relations wing clarified that the tie-up was meant to ensure hassle-free delivery of its New Year products to the devotees across the globe. “There is no compulsion to buy from Amazon, as we are selling the same in our TTD Kalyana Mandapams across the country, a spokesperson said.”

Sudden downpour batters Chennai

Sudden downpour batters Chennai

Several areas flooded, thousands stranded on main roads

31/12/2021

Under water: Ethiraj Salai after heavy rain pounded Chennai on Thursday. M. VEDHAN The Hindu

Staff reporter  CHENNAI

Thousands of motorists and commuters were stranded for several hours on arterial roads in Chennai on Thursday evening as waterlogging caused by sudden and incessant heavy rain led to a gridlock. The city last witnessed such a situation in November 2015.

Aerial visuals showed buses, cars, autorickshaws and scooters caught in a bumper-to-bumper jam along Anna Salai, Broadway, NSC Bose Road, Nelson Manickam Road, Koyambedu, Mylapore, Vadapalani, Porur and other areas.

Some of those who left their offices returned to their point of origin, having covered less than a kilometre in an hour. Metro Rail stations witnessed unprecedented crowds as people desperately tried to reach home.

24 V-Cs named without my nod: Dhankar

24 V-Cs named without my nod: Dhankar

31/12/2021

Special Correspondent Kolkata

West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday said that the State government had appointed Vice-Chancellors of 24 universities without his approval.

“These are ex facie in defiance of specific orders or without approval by Chancellor-the Appointing Authority,” Mr. Dhankhar said. “These appointments carry no legal sanction and would be forced to take action unless soon recalled,” he added.