Ambulances parked outside the COVID care centre of Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH), in Chennai. (Photo: PTI)Chennai, Hyderabad Coronavirus News May 31, June 1 Highlights: Tamil Nadu recorded 27,936 positive cases of COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the state tally to 20,96,516. The state recorded 478 deaths on Monday, putting the state toll at 24,232. A total of 31,223 patients were discharged following treatment, taking the total number of recoveries to 17,70,503. As of Monday, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Tamil Nadu is 3,01,781. Till date, 12,36,167 males, 8,60,311 females and 38 transgenders have tested positive for the virus in the state.
Telangana reported 2,524 new cases of Covid-19 and 18 deaths on Monday, taking the cumulative active caseload of patients under treatment to 34,084. The number of new cases as well as the active caseload are on a steady decline, even as the state government extended the ongoing state-wide lockdown to June 9. As of date, the state has reported a cumulative caseload of 5,78,351 cases. Of them, 5,40,986 patients have recovered. As many as 3,281 patients have succumbed to the disease, as per official records, as shared by the office of the Director of Public Health.
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Former AIADMK minister M Manikandan has been booked for rape based on a complaint by a 36-year-old actor. Besides rape, Chennai’s Adyar All Women Police have also booked Manikandan under IPC Sections entailing criminal intimidation, miscarriage without women’s consent and voluntarily causing hurt. In her complaint, the actor has accused Manikandan of luring her into a relationship on the pretext of marriage.
The Telangana government on Monday extended the summer holidays in all schools and DIET colleges of the state till June 15. According to an order issued by the Directorate of School Education, the state government decided to extend the summer holidays after taking the coronavirus situation into account.
For assistance on COVID-19-related queries and mental health support in Chennai, citizens can contact the Greater Chennai Corporation's (GCC) COVID-19 helpline 044 46122300 or 044 25384520 | Citizens can find the nearest GCC-facilitated COVID-19 fever clinic here | For lodging rain-related complaints and assistance during the monsoon, citizens can contact the GCC's monsoon helplines 044 25384530 or 044 25384540 or the control room 1913 (available 24x7)
Chennai Hyderabad Coronavirus May 28 Highlights
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Tuesday said the state cannot keep extending the lockdown and it needs the support of the people to put a full stop to it.
On a video message posted on his Twitter page, Stalin said there has been a decline in cases in Chennai and other major cities of the state since the lockdown was imposed on May 24. Chennai, for instance, had been reporting 7,000 infections per day but now it has come down to 2,000 cases daily, he added. Similarly, in western districts including Coimbatore, the number of cases has come down in the last two days, he said.
“We cannot keep extending the lockdown. We need to put a full stop to it and this is only in people’s hands. If we follow the restrictions, we can keep a full stop to Covid-19. The Tamil Nadu government has been making efforts to improve the medical infrastructure, and there is no shortage of hospital beds and oxygen now. In fact, there are beds lying vacant in several hospitals. In one day, we are inoculating three lakh people. No other state is conducting vaccination on this scale. Similarly, over 1.7 lakh samples are being tested per day,” the CM said.
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A 41-year-old martial arts instructor was arrested in Chennai Sunday based on a sexual assault complaint filed by a woman. The accused, who ran a martial arts school in Anna Nagar where he taught karate and judo, was arrested by the Anna Nagar All Women Police. He also worked at a private school in the city, which recently hit the headlines after multiple students lodged sexual assault charges against a faculty member.
The victim, who has been training under the accused for about seven years, alleged he made sexual advances towards her in a car while returning from a tournament in Namakkal district in 2014. She also alleged he had threatened to murder her and ruin her career if she told others about the incident.
The complaint was registered on May 29 under Sections 376 r/w (attempt to rape), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code, and relevant provisions of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Woman Act.
The accused is in 14-day judicial custody.
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After rising 16 times during the month of May, prices of petrol and diesel were hiked yet again on Tuesday, June 1, 2021, touching fresh record highs across the country. In the national capital, the petrol price rose by 26 paise while that of diesel too inched up 23 paise.
In Chennai, petrol is priced at Rs. 95.99 per litre while diesel costs Rs. 90.12 per litre.
In Hyderabad, petrol costs Rs. 98.20 per litre and diesel costs Rs. 93.08 per litre.
A total of 20,23,055 people have been vaccinated in Chennai till date, with 10,325 people vaccinated on Monday alone, according to the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC).
The shortage of Covid-19 vaccines has forced the Tamil Nadu government to pause inoculation from June 3 to June 5. Many residents who visited the vaccination camps in their localities on Tuesday were sent back by the officials saying they don’t have stocks and asked them to come after June 6.
Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan on Monday said the existing stock will get over by Tuesday and the state will receive the next consignments by June 6 from Bharat Biotech and by June 9 from Serum Institute of India.
As of Monday, the state had around 4.93 lakh doses of vaccines of which 2.69 lakh were supposed to be used for people in the age group of 18-44 and 2.24 lakh for those above 45 years.
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Indian Railways continuous endeavor to find new solutions to serve the nation and overcome unexpected challenges has once again been strengthened with the supply of Medical Oxygen to the state of Andhra Pradesh crossing 2,000 MT of Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO) in a short span of 16 days. As on date i.e., 01st June 2021, a cumulative total of 2,125.6 MT of LMO has been delivered across the State of Andhra Pradesh through Oxygen Express trains.
Indian Railways have delivered Liquid Medical Oxygen across 4 locations in Andhra Pradesh – Guntur, Krishnapatnam, Simhachalam and Tadipatri. While a total of 720.9 MT of LMO has been delivered to Guntur, Krishnapatnam Port, Simhachalam and Tadipatri have received 756.7 MT, 360 MT and 368 MT of LMO respectively.
In order to meet the Medical Oxygen requirement of the State in an effective manner, the Oxygen Express trains have been operated from both from the Eastern and Western parts of the Nation. As a result, till date 33 trains have brought 130 LMO tankers of Medical Oxygen to the State. While 15 Oxygen Express trains have come from Odisha, another 9 trains have come from Jharkhand followed by 7 trains from Gujarat and 2 trains from West Bengal.
Defense Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad, of Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) invites applications for Junior Research Fellow (JRF). DRDO is engaged in the Research and Development of Missile Systems for the Indian Armed Forces.
Young and meritorious nationals who desire to pursue defense-related research can apply for the post on the official website of DRDO till June 14. There are in total 10 vacancies, 7 for JRF-1 (Mechanical Engineering) and 3 for JRF-02 (Aeronautical/Aerospace Engineering). For further details, go to the official website of DRDO- drdo.gov.in
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With the ongoing lockdown in Tamil Nadu extended to June 7 amid the second Covid-19 wave across the state, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has released details of mobile vendors that will supply essentials and groceries to residents across all 15 zones in the city.
The details include vendors from both small stores and supermarkets. Over 2197 vendors have been identified by the GCC for the same.
The GCC has issued passes to vendors to supply groceries and essentials at the doorstep between 7 am and 6 pm daily.
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The Madras High Court has left it to the Tamil Nadu government to consider enhancing the threshold limit for receiving Covid-19 treatment under the Chief Minister's comprehensive health scheme.
"Since this is a matter of policy, it is left to the state to consider whether the upward revision of the minimum threshold limit would be appropriate," the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy said on Monday. The plea appears to be reasonable, the bench said and hoped that the threshold of Rs 72,000 per year would be substantially increased to allow a larger number of families to avail of the benefit under the scheme.
The bench was disposing of a PIL from one D I Nathan praying for a direction to the state government to devise a scheme to bring all private nursing homes, polyclinics and hospitals under their control, admit and provide free treatment effectively to the coronavirus affected people under the scheme.
The petitioner contended that the ceiling of Rs 72,000 per annum is too low since even on the basis of the minimum wages payable to an unskilled worker, the annual income of his family will exceed the minimum eligibility threshold. So he pleaded for a direction to raise the ceiling, so that the scheme can cover a larger number of persons. (PTI)
The Madras High Court on Monday directed officials of the Animal Husbandry department to visit the IIT campus in Chennai, where stray dogs and other animals are allegedly starving without food and ascertain their health.
Earlier, a committee constituted by the High Court told the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy that there were several stray animals inside the campus of the institute, but their fate and state cannot be ascertained.
The Animal Husbandry officials should, after giving prior notice, enter the IIT premises, under the authority conferred by the order, to feed the stray animals and ascertain their health, if necessary, the judges said. The authorities at IIT shall cooperate in this regard, the judges added and hoped that the former would take care of such animals on the campus.
The bench said that it is only a temporary measure and will not be continued after the lockdown. This is necessary because during the lockdown, there is hardly any food for the animals and little scope for even scavenging, the bench added. (PTI)
At a high-level review meeting on Covid-19, chaired by Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy in Amaravati on Monday, the officials discussed Anandaiah's herbal supplement and concluded to permit the administration of three traditional supplements simply named P, L and F, except eye drops based on CRAS Report.
The officials stated that the government did not permit Anandaiah to administer the eye drops as the complete reports are yet to be submitted, which might take another 2-3 weeks. The officials said that the proposal was made based on the CCRAS report, and further clarified that the usage of other drugs shouldn’t be stopped as there are no conclusions that the traditional concoction will reduce the Covid.
In regard to this, the authorities stated that Covid-19 infected persons should not come personally to take the Krishnapatnam medicine but their relatives could get it. Also, Covid-19 protocol shall be strictly followed during the distribution of these supplements.
Meanwhile, the authorities also informed that there has been no evidence of adverse affects with these herbal concoctions. They informed that Anandaiah is giving four supplements P, L, F, K, along with eye drops and didn’t demonstrate preparation of K concoction to the committee due to the unavailability of raw materials. Reports say that the ingredients used by Anandayya are not harmful, while the complete study report on eye drops is yet to come.
The officials stated that CCRAS conducted trials to know whether these supplements cure Covid-19 and made it clear that there is no evidence that it is curing Covid. However, the report confirmed that there is no harm with the ingredients used in the herbal preparations, but these cannot be recognized as Ayurvedic. The officials stated that if Anandaiah applies to get it recognised as Ayurvedic medicine, they shall take it under consideration.
Director General of Police-rank officer Ch Dwaraka Tirumala Rao has been appointed as Commissioner of Andhra Pradesh Public Transport Department in the place of 1986-batch IPS officer Ram Prawesh Thakur, who retired from service on Monday.
An officer of the 1989 batch of IPS, Rao is currently the DGP (Railways). He will also be the ex-office Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of the AP State Road Transport Corporation, according to an order issued by Chief Secretary Aditya Nath Das.
The government also transferred 1996-batch officer N Sanjay and posted him as the Managing Director of AP State Police Housing Corporation. Sanjay will continue to hold the post of Additional Director General of Police (Personnel and Training) as a full additional charge, the Chief Secretary's order said. (PTI)
Executives of Telugu news channels TV5 and ABN Andhra Jyothi have accused the Andhra Pradesh government of unofficially “banning” their channels after accusing them of being critical of the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government.
The channels cannot be accessed through multiple-system operators, which provide cable TV connections. They are now only available on direct-to-home services.
“This started on September 20 last year. The MSOs privately say they are under pressure to block the channels from ruling party leaders. The MSOs, however, officially told the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) that they have not blocked the channels and there was some technical difficulty. In spite of the TDSAT’s order to air the channels, they are not complying,’’ an executive of ABN Andhra Jyothi said.
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Months after she announced in March that she was “stepping aside” from active politics, the late J Jayalalithaa’s close aide V K Sasikala has now been sending signals about an imminent return to politics.
Her decision to “step aside” from politics had come a month before the Assembly polls in April. Sasikala, arrested in 2017 following her conviction in a case of disproportionate assets, was released in January this year. Although there had been efforts at merging her camp with the AIADMK then, too, these had fallen through amid pressure from power centres in New Delhi.
Her plans to return now seem to be driven by the eroding relationship between the two top AIADMK leaders — former Chief Ministers Edappadi K Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam, later Deputy CM. The rift presents her with an opportunity to regain a foothold in state politics.
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Anti-fungal drug Amphotericin is in short supply and its allotment to Tamil Nadu should be increased, Leader of Opposition and top AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami requested the Centre on Monday.
Referring to the incidence of black fungus in Tamil Nadu, Palaniswami, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said mucormycosis was spreading rapidly all over the state.
Amphotericin injection, used to treat the infection, is in short supply, he said and requested Modi to increase its allotment to enable the affected people to get access to life saving treatment.
The former Chief Minister expressed his gratitude to Modi for immediately looking into the COVID-19 related requirements of Tamil Nadu and increasing allotment of vaccines, oxygen and anti-viral Remdesivir. (PTI)
A 41-year old martial arts trainer has been arrested in connection with sexual harassment of his student seven years ago, police said on Monday.
Police identified the arrested as Kebiraj, who is running a martial arts school at Anna Nagar in Chennai. He was arrested on Sunday, based on the complaint from a 26-year old woman who alleged that he had sexually harassed her while returning in a car from a judo competition in Namakkal district in 2014, a city police release said.
She alleged he touched her inappropriately and warned her of dire consequences if she revealed it to anyone, the release added. A judo trainer, the man was arrested on Sunday night, it said. (PTI)
Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy Monday held a review meeting on prevailing COVID situation and vaccination and decided to extend the curfew in force till June 10. The curfew relaxation timings would be the same from 6 am to 12 pm.
During the review meeting held at camp office in Amaravati on Monday, the officials explained the prevailing COVID situation to the Chief Minister. They said 2632 COVID cases were registered per one million population in Urban areas and it is 1,859 cases per one million in rural areas. They said that the positivity rate on May 16 was 25.56 percent while it was 15.91 percent May 30 and added that active cases were reduced from two lakhs to 1.6 lakhs. They said recovery rate has also significantly improved and added that recovery rate was 84.32 percent on May 7 and it has increased to 90 percent at present.
Reviewing Black Fungus and treatment being given to patients, the officials said there are 1,179 Black fungus cases in the state at present and 1,068 patients are being treated, 97 people have recovered and 14 people were dead. The Chief Minister directed the officials to make efforts to make required injections and tablets available to those infected with black fungus. The officials said injections are being supplied by the central government and they were procuring required tablets and added that they are also trying to arrange alternative injections.
Reviewing on Supply and storage of Oxygen, the officials said the usage of oxygen has decreased to 490 metric tons and added that they have procured 654 metric tons of Oxygen on May 29. They said there was a production of 230 metric tons of oxygen locally.
The officials informed the Chief Minister that they have identified 92 orphans whose parents had succumbed to COVID and Rs 10 lakh has been deposited in the accounts of 43 children. The Chief Minister directed to invest the money in good schemes so that the interest will be useful for their monthly maintenance.
The Chief Minister also directed the officials to vaccinate students going abroad for studies and people who are going abroad on work visa and directed them to provide a vaccine certificate.
The Telangana government on Monday extended the summer holidays in all schools and DIET colleges of the state till June 15. According to an order issued by the Directorate of School Education, the state government decided to extend the summer holidays after taking the coronavirus situation into account.
“Government has carefully reviewed the situation and it is decided to extend summer holidays for all the schools and DIET (District Institute of Education and Training colleges) in the state till 15 June 2021,” reads the official notification by the Directorate of School Education.
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Days after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin wrote to the President seeking implementation of a recommendation to immediately release the seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, A G Perarivalan has moved a petition in the apex court for interim bail.
The seven have been waiting for a decision since 2018, when the state government first recommended their release. The seven had been convicted in May 1999.
Perarivalan’s petition to the Supreme Court says the stalemate “is completely political and the only place for the petitioner to anticipate for justice is Your Lordships’ benevolence”. Perarivalan, who was convicted for buying a battery used in the explosive to kill Gandhi, and was convicted when he was 19, adds, “As this case is viewed by the authorities more politically than legally, the petitioner and his parents have already faced many rounds of litigation in the quest to get the petitioner an ordinary free life in society.”
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To reduce exposure and mental fatigue for attenders of Covid-19 patients at Chennai’s Government Medical College, Omandurar Estate, an LED digital board is being set up at the entrance to display the health status of those admitted.
A brainchild of Hospital Dean Dr. Jayanthi, the programme is a joint initiative with Tamil Nadu’s Unified Command Centre’s NGO coordination cell.
The Omandurar Government Hospital, one of the biggest facilities in the state for Covid-19 patients, has around 950 beds, including ICU beds and those with oxygen support.
For the kin of patients in ICU, the only way to get information about their health was speaking to doctors, a process involving anxious waits and risk of exposure. Now, the LED display will show the data of the patients in ICU in three categories – Stable, Critical, and Very critical, in white, yellow and red colours.
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Rani and Shadow, two canines, retired from police department on Monday after a long term of public service. They were felicitated by Addl DCP, CSW, Giriraju and other CAR officers in recognition of their commendable services.
A total of 77 flights will be operated between Chennai and major cities today, with 37 arrivals and 40 departures scheduled at the Chennai International Airport.
About 14,000 temple workers in Tamil Nadu including priests would be provided COVID-19 relief assistance of Rs 4,000 and a pack of essential commodities including ten kg rice, the government announced on Monday.
In about 36,000 temples under the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of the government, priests (Archakas and Bhattacharyas) and other workers do not get a regular monthly salary, the government said.
The workers and priests who depend on the visit of devotees and their contributions for their livelihood are facing a tough time in view of the lockdown due to the pandemic and it is the need of the hour to provide them relief, HR and CE Minister P K Sekar Babu said in a statement.
Chief Minister M K Stalin has ordered Rs 4,000 one time relief assistance, 10 kg rice, and 15 grocery items to temple workers and priests after considering representation from them seeking financial assistance, he said. In total, about 14,000 workers including priests would be benefitted and the assistance programme would be rolled out on June 3, the birth anniversary of former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, the Minister said. (PTI)
Telangana government on Monday barred six more private hospitals across the state from providing treatment for Covid-19. As of date, 16 hospitals have been penalized after the Director of Public Health received several complaints of 'excess and irrelevant charges in addition to the prescribed norms, mismanagement, lack of proper attention', etc.
As many as 166 complaints have been received, 51 of which were reported on May 31. These complaints pertain to violations by 105 hospitals who have been issued show-cause notices in the last few days.
The hospitals whose licenses to treat Covid-19 have been revoked have been asked to discharge patients under care after completion of treatment while no new patient should be admitted.
The six hospitals which faced action on Monday are:
1. Padmaja Hospital, K.P.H.B Colony, Medchal.
2. Life line medicure Hospital, Alwal, Medchal.
3. Max care Hospital, Hanmakonda Warangal Urban.
4. TX Hospital, Uppal Medchal.
5. Lalitha Hospital Warangal Urban.
6. Sri Sai Ram Hospital, Sangareddy.
The DPH has warned of disciplinary action against hospitals violating established protocols.
Telangana government Monday announced its decision to vaccinate all RTC drivers, Autorichshaw drivers, and Maxi Cab drivers, from June 3 onwards in the state. The inoculation drive will take up vaccination for upto 10,000 persons per day in GHMC area and other district headquarters.
T. Harish Rao, Minister for Finance, and Somesh Kumar, IAS, Chief Secretary, Government of Telangana, reviewed procurement of vaccination. The Minister has also reviewed the stock availability of Vaccine, allotment of vaccine quota by the Government of India. The Minister instructed the concerned officials, to pursue and make efforts with the Government authorities on more allocation of Vaccine doses to the state, according to an official press release.
They also discussed procurement of medical equipment, oxygen supply, storage units, and preventive measures to be taken in anticipation of 3rd wave of Covid-19.
Telangana reported 2,524 new cases of Covid-19 and 18 deaths on Monday, taking the cumulative active caseload of patients under treatment to 34,084.
The number of new cases as well as the active caseload are on a steady decline, even as the state government extended the ongoing state-wide lockdown to June 9.
The test positivity rate for the day was 2.93 percent. The recovery rate has improved further to 93.53 percent. As of date, the state has reported a cumulative caseload of 5,78,351 cases. Of them, 5,40,986 patients have recovered. As many as 3,281 patients have succumbed to the disease, as per official records, as shared by the office of the Director of Public Health.
Tamil Nadu recorded 27,936 positive cases of COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the state tally to 20,96,516. The state recorded 478 deaths on Monday, putting the state toll at 24,232. A total of 31,223 patients were discharged following treatment, taking the total number of recoveries to 17,70,503.
As of Monday, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Tamil Nadu is 3,01,781. Till date, 12,36,167 males, 8,60,311 females and 38 transgenders have tested positive for the virus in the state.
According to a bulletin released by the Health and Family Welfare Department of Tamil Nadu, 2,76,75,115 samples from the state have been tested till date, with 1,63,672 samples having been sent yesterday. There are 269 COVID-19 testing facilities in the state, out of which 69 are government and 200 are private facilities.
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Welcome to the live blog from Chennai and Hyderabad where we bring to you the latest updates on COVID-19 vaccination, COVID-19 in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, politics, civic issues and more across Chennai and Hyderabad throughout the day. Follow the blog to stay up to date with the states in real time.
Telangana Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar directed the Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited to extend the services by another hour.
Accordingly, the last train in each direction will now leave the terminal station at 1 pm instead of 11.45 am and reach the destination stations at 2 pm from Tuesday. There is however no change in the starting time and the first train will start from the terminal stations at 7 am.
Chief Secretary today travelled in a metro from Khairathabad station to Ameerpet to oversee the safety arrangements put in place at the metro stations. He was accompanied by HMRL MD, N V S Reddy, L&T HMRL MD, K V B Reddy, and other officials.
During the travel, the Chief Secretary interacted with the passengers and enquired about the metro services and safety measures. The commuters appreciated the facilities and safety arrangements in the metro stations. They requested the Chief Secretary to extend the timings so that they can reach their destinations comfortably after the closure of their offices and business establishments.
After being steady for a day, prices of petrol and diesel were hiked again on Monday, May 31, 2021, touching fresh record highs across the country. In the national capital, the petrol price rose by 29 paise while that of diesel too inched up 26 paise.
In Chennai, petrol is priced at Rs. 95.76 per litre and diesel is priced at Rs. 89.90 per litre.
In Hyderabad, petrol costs Rs. 97.93 per litre while diesel costs Rs. 92.83 per litre.
A total of 20,12,730 people have been vaccinated in Chennai till date, with 7834 people inoculated on Sunday alone, according to the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC).
The University of Hyderabad (UoH) has been selected for a prestigious European Commission Project for its internationalization strategy. As part of a seven-country initiative led by the University of Zaragoza, Spain and the European Policy Development and Research Institute, Slovenia, “The Harmony Project” seeks to build capacities in each of the partner institutions to promote and improve access to its academic programmes for international students.
The project called, “Internationalization and Virtual Exchange: Borderless between EU and Asian Countries,” involves institutions in Bulgaria, Lithuania, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and India. From India, the Vellore Institute of Technology and the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies will also participate.
The University’s share of the grant amounts to about Rs.67 lakhs for the three-year tenure of the project, launched officially in January 2021. While coordinated by Prof. N. Siva Kumar, Director of UoH’s Office of International Affairs, other members of the team include Prof. Vinod Pavarala, Prof. J. Prabhakar Rao, Prof. Aparna Rayaprol, Prof. R. Siva Prasad, and Dr. S. Shaji.
Internationalization is one of the key goals of the University’s Institution of Eminence (IoE) mandate. As Prof Appa Rao Podile, Vice Chancellor, stated on hearing the news, “being a part of such an extensive European project will help us considerably in moving towards our IoE goal of greater internationalization, and I am delighted that UoH has been selected for Harmony”.
To provide advanced medi-care and better healthcare services for the future generations, Andhra Pradesh Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy will be laying the foundation stone for the establishment of 14 new medical colleges across the State in Amaravati on Monday. Ramping up the medical infrastructure in the State, the government proposed to set up 16 new medical colleges where only 11 colleges are functioning at present.
The construction work has already started in two medical colleges at Paderu and Pulivendula. With the establishment of new colleges, the number of medical seats is going to increase significantly and more seats will be available for poor students by filling 70 percent in convenor quota and 30 percent in payment quota.
The 16 new medical colleges are being established at Paderu, Vizianagaram, Anakapalli, Rajahmundry, Palakollu, Amalapuram, Eluru, Machilipatnam, Bapatla, Markapuram, Piduguralla, Madanapalli, Pulivendula, Penukonda, Adoni and Nandyal.
In view of the further extension of lockdown declared by the Government of Telangana, the timings of the Hyderabad Metro Rail service have been rescheduled. During this period, Hyderabad Metro Rail will start its first train from respective terminal stations at 7 am; while the last train will start at 11.45am and reach the respective terminating stations by 12.45pm.
For everyone’s safety, passengers are also advised to strictly follow the Covid-19 Safety guidelines including social distancing, wearing of face masks, regular hand sanitisation and thermal screening, among others. Passengers are requested to cooperate with security personnel and staff of Hyderabad Metro Rail in their efforts towards keeping their journey safe, said a release from the Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL).
The Telangana Cabinet on Sunday discussed the measures taken to get over the economic crisis arising out of COVID-19 pandemic and to mobile resources. The Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar was instructed to initiate measures to sell the government lands and houses under the Housing Board.
As over 87 percent of paddy procurement is over in the state so far, the officials of Civil Supplies department were instructed to complete the process in the next four to five days. The cabinet also discussed the demand for fine variety of rice in the markets and estimated that since the demand for rice in the neighboring states decreased, it is better to go for cultivation of Cotton than Paddy in future, as it would get more profits. The cabinet suggested the Agriculture Department to encourage Redgram Cultivation as it had more demand in the market.
The state government’s decision to extend Rythu Bandhu (capital assistance for farmers) from June 15 to 25 was approved and officials have been asked to deposit the money in the farmers' accounts as was done last summer, according to a release from the CMO.
Former AIADMK minister M Manikandan has been booked for rape based on a complaint by a 36-year-old actor. Besides rape, Chennai’s Adyar All Women Police have also booked Manikandan under IPC Sections entailing criminal intimidation, miscarriage without women’s consent and voluntarily causing hurt.
In her complaint, the actor has accused Manikandan of luring her into a relationship on the pretext of marriage. She said the former Tamil Nadu Information Technology minister forced her to abort, attacked her on multiple occasions, and even issued death threats.
Addressing reporters, the woman said she was introduced to the minister in 2017 through a mutual friend when she was working for Malaysian Tourism. The actor claimed that the minister went into a relationship with her on the pretext of investing in Malaysia. After a few days, the Minister had promised to marry the actor, despite him being married already.
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The Telangana government will celebrate the State Formation Day on June 2, all over the state by duly following all COVID-19 protocols, resolved the State Cabinet on Sunday. The programmes will be held with a presence of limited number of invitees.
In all districts, National Flag would be hoisted on the occasion and Ministers will pay tributes to the Telangana martyrs.
And as part of late prime minister PV Narasimha Rao's centenary celebrations, the Telangana government has decided to rename the 5.5 km long Necklace Rao around Hussainsagar lake as PV Narasimha Rao Marg.
An emergency-cum-generic medicine outlet has been inaugurated at the Secunderabad Railway Station that falls under South Central Railway. The outlet is situated on platform 1 in the general waiting hall and will cater to the emergency medical needs of passengers. Divisional Railway Manager Abhay Kumar Gupta inaugurated the facility in the presence of railway and IRSDC officials.
“This new facility at the Secunderabad Railway Station will cater to emergency healthcare needs of passengers. It is in line with our commitment to enhancing the travel experience at railway stations and thereby augmenting tourism prospects in India. As a responsible organisation, IRSDC is committed to reimagining passenger experience and setting a benchmark in excellence in development, redevelopment operation and maintenance of railway stations in India,” said S.K. Lohia, Managing Director, IRSDC.
DavaDost Pharma Private Limited will operate and manage this outlet.
The initiative is a part of IRSDC’s overall mandate to undertake the facility management of five railway stations across India- KSR Bengaluru, Pune, Anand Vihar, Chandigarh and Secunderabad. The objective of this initiative is to offer best-in-class amenities for a superior passenger experience.
Besides, a decision taken by the government to start medical colleges along with the nursing colleges at Nagar Kurnool, Wanaparthy, Jagtial, Sangareddy, Mehboobabad and Kothagudem and Nursing Colleges to the Medical Colleges already sanctioned was approved in the Cabinet.
It has decided to construct a super specialty hospital in Warangal in the existing jail premises for which the Home Department has been now asked to move the prisoners from the Warangal Jail to other jails and hand over the premises to the Medical and Health department in a month.
A decision was taken to constructe a jail with latest amenities at a sprawling locality near Mamoonur. The Cabinet has instructed the Home Department to prepare proposals for the construction of the new Jail and place before the Cabinet.
The Telangana government has extended the ongoing lockdown for another 10 days, although with more relaxations, till June 9. The Cabinet meeting convened on Sunday decided to extend the relaxation period between 6 am and 10 am to now, 6 am and 1 pm. A one-hour grace period is announced for people to return home by 2 pm, after which lockdown would be implemeneted strictly.
One of the key decisions was to vaccinate the students going abroad for the higher studies on a priority based on their Admission Letters. The Medical and Health department has been asked to prepare the guidelines in this regard. The Cabinet decided to allow registration of lands, properties under the Stamps and Registration department and vehicles registration under the Transport Department during the working days.
Reviewing the pandemic situation, treatment and response from the departments, and noting the gradual decrease in the number of cases, the Cabinet asked the Health Secretary and officials from the Health and Medical Department to visit places like Madhira, Satthupalli, Alampur, Gadwal, Narayanpet, Maktal, Nagarjuna Sagar, Kodad, Huzurabad where Corona spread is more and are on the state Borders to review the situation and take the necessary measures.
It was also resolved in the Cabinet to prepare for the possibility of a third wave and take proper action plans. It instructed the Medical and Health Department to review prevailing situation in all the Area, District and other hospitals and take measures for the infrastructure and facilities needed there.
With the lockdown in Tamil Nadu having been extended, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has released the details of vendors for delivering essentials and groceries to residents in each of the city's 15 zones.
Days after KT Rama Rao helped a child who was forced to beg on the streets, the Telangana minister received a bizarre complaint on Twitter that left him baffled.
While it is well-known that people in India, especially in Telangana and Hyderabad, are passionate about biryani, a man took matters a little too far when he reached out to the Minister of Municipal Administration and Urban Development of Telangana to complain that a chicken biryani he had ordered was missing the leg piece.
“I ordered chicken biryani with extra masala and leg pieces but didn’t get any of them. Is this the way to serve people,” wrote the man on Twitter, sharing a picture of a plate of biryani, tagging Zomato and KTR in his tweet.
Interestingly, the minister was quick to notice the complaint and decided to respond. “And why am I tagged on this brother? What did you expect me to do?” asked KTR.
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V K Sasikala, eased out from the AIADMK years ago, has hinted at resumption of efforts to regain control of the party, a political comeback, by telling her supporters that there would soon be a “good decision.”
After announcing ahead of the April 6 Assembly polls, that she would stay away from politics, Sasikala said she could not see the party getting ruined due to “infighting.” Her reference to the feud, though has no direct mention of the AIADMK or its leadership, it is seen as a pointer to alleged differences between top two leaders, K Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam.
Confidante of late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, Sasikala’s brief conversation with two of her loyalists over phone has surfaced and this has dropped hints about her rethink.
In the first audio clip she could be heard saying, “we will for sure streamline the party…certainly, I will come.” In the second, she could be heard telling the supporter that the party, apparently a reference to AIADMK, was built through hard work of leaders including her and it was anguishing to see “them fighting,” and she could not be a mute spectator to the party getting ruined due to it.
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Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan on Sunday said there was no need to apologise to the people of Goa as he has done no harm to them.
In fact, his party and government always stood for rights of state governments including Goa and this was reflected in the GST meet too, he said.
A day after Goa Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho claimed his request for preferential treatment to smaller states like Goa in compensation cess was opposed in the GST Council meet on May 28 by Thiaga Rajan and that he should apologise to people of people, the TN Minister came up with a rebuttal.
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Mythily Sivaraman, a prominent women leader who was one of the founding members of CPI(M)’s All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), died in Chennai on Sunday. She was 81. She is survived by her husband Karunakaran and daughter Kalpana Karunakaran, a senior academic teaching at IIT-Madras.
Sivaraman was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease for about a decade and was not keeping well after she lost her memory. People close to her family said she tested positive for Covid-19 a few days ago and succumbed to the disease.
Through her personal visits and writings, Sivaraman was at the forefront of protests related to the Keezhvenmani massacre of Dalits in Thanjavur. Being one of the prominent leaders of AIDWA and CPI(M), she worked along with generations of Left activists in Tamil Nadu, and was a leading voice on issues related to caste oppression and trade unions.
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A total of 83 flights will be operated between Chennai and major cities today, with 41 arrivals and 42 departures scheduled at the Chennai International Airport.
Over 1,800 metric tonne of liquid medical oxygen (LMO) have so far been delivered to Tamil Nadu through 31 oxygen express trains, the Southern Railway said in Chennai on Sunday.
The 30th express with the LMO from Bhilai in Chhattisgarh and the 31st from Jindal Steel Siding, Dolvi, Maharashtra, arrived in Chennai today, a press release from the Southern Railway said.
The two trains came to the Inland Container Depot at Tondiarpet in Chennai, the release said. One brought 73.17 metric tonne of the LMO while the other carried 80.44 metric tonne, it said.
Till date, 1,887.62 metric tonne of the gas has been brought for Tamil Nadu, it added. (PTI)
Telangana on Sunday reported 1,801 COVID-19 cases taking the tally to over 5.75 lakh while the toll stood at 3,263 with 16 casualties, a government bulletin said.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) accounted for the most cases with 390, followed by Rangareddy (114) and Medchal Malkajgiri (101), the bulletin said.
The state has 35,042 active cases and over 61 thousand samples were tested. The total number of cumulative cases in the state stood at 5,75,827 while with 3660 being cured, the total recoveries were at 5,37,522. Cumulatively, over 1.50 crore samples have been tested. The samples tested per million population were over 4.05 lakh, the bulletin said.
The case fatality rate in the state was 0.56 per cent while the recovery rate in Telangana was 93.34 per cent. (PTI)
Tamil Nadu recorded 28,864 positive cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, bringing the state tally to 20,68,580. Among these, Chennai reported 2689 positive cases, bringing the city’s total to 5,01,930. The state recorded 493 deaths on Sunday, putting the state toll at 23,754. 364 of them had succumbed due to comorbidities. A total of 32,982 patients were discharged following treatment, taking the total number of recoveries to 17,39,280.
As of Sunday, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Tamil Nadu is 3,05,546. Till date, 12,20,401 males, 8,48,141 females and 38 transgenders have tested positive for the virus in the state.
According to a bulletin released by the Health and Family Welfare Department of Tamil Nadu, 2,75,11,443 samples from the state have been tested till date, with 1,73,351 samples having been sent yesterday. There are 269 COVID-19 testing facilities in the state, out of which 69 are government and 200 are private facilities.
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Welcome to the live blog from Chennai and Hyderabad where we bring to you the latest updates on COVID-19 vaccination, COVID-19 in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, politics, civic issues and more across Chennai and Hyderabad throughout the day. Follow the blog to stay up to date with the states in real time.