Monday, November 27, 2006
Special drive to collect taxes begins today
Udhagamandalam: A special drive to collect taxes due to the Coonoor Municipality will commence on Monday. Commissioner of Coonoor Municipality Pappa Mayazhagu told The Hindu on Sunday that the move was to improve the fiscal health of the civic administration. The municipality's annual revenue from taxes and other sources was Rs. 5 crore. Pointing out that normally the collections ranged between 75 per cent and 80 per cent, she said that over the last few months, they had fallen due to various factors including the pre-occupation of the officials with the elections. The commitments for the civic administration were on the rise. In addition to meeting its establishment cost and maintaining basic amenities, it had to repay several government loans. It also had to shell out Rs. 51 lakh towards its share of a solid waste management programme. With some of the tax demands being contested in various courts, the arrears had mounted to about Rs. 1 crore. Ms. Mayazhagu said that out of court settlements to help the people clear their arrears were being contemplated. Under the special drive, which would go on till the end of December, all the wards would be systematically covered by ad-hoc groups comprising municipal officials. An appeal had been made to the people to pay to the groups their property and water taxes, rent etc. On November 27 and December 4, 11 and 18 one group would cover Ward 10, 11, 12, 13, 15 and 16. On November 28 and December 5, 12, 19 and 26 another group would cover Ward 4, 8, 9, 17, 18 and 19. The third group would go to Ward 14, 20, 21, 22, 23 and 24 on November 29 and December 6, 13, 20 and 26. On November 30 and December 7, 14, 21 and 28 the fourth group would cover Ward 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 and 30. The fifth team would go on December 1, 8, 15, 26 and 29 to Ward 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7.
Rs. 45.75 lakh to develop Zoological Park
SALEM: Forest Minister N. Selvaraj has announced a sum of Rs. 45.75 lakh for the development of the Kurumbapatti Zoological Park near here. He was inspecting the development works that were being undertaken by the Department of Forest in Yercaud Hills and the Zoological Park here on Sunday. The check dam inside it would be developed so that the animals and birds inside the park would not be suffering from want of water during summer months.
He said that the Department had sent a proposal to the Union Government for the overall development of the park at a cost of Rs.10 crore. More animals and birds would be added to it to attract the visitors. He said that he has asked the officials to study the feasibility of introducing a boat service for the benefit of tourists in the check dam. The Minister said that Rs. 82 crore had been spent to improve the basic amenities in forest villages in the State. The Government was also considering the proposal of growing more sandalwood trees. Tree felling was totally banned in Tamil Nadu forests. The Minister earlier visited Yercaud and reviewed the development works.He was accompanied by MLA Veerapandi A. Raja, Chief Conservator of Forests Balaji, Salem Conservator V. Palani and District Forest Officer R. K. Bharathi. Meanwhile M. Ramachandran, president of the Chettichavadi village panchayat, where the park was situated said that the road to Park from Salem should be widened with avenue trees to woo the tourists.
He said that the Department had sent a proposal to the Union Government for the overall development of the park at a cost of Rs.10 crore. More animals and birds would be added to it to attract the visitors. He said that he has asked the officials to study the feasibility of introducing a boat service for the benefit of tourists in the check dam. The Minister said that Rs. 82 crore had been spent to improve the basic amenities in forest villages in the State. The Government was also considering the proposal of growing more sandalwood trees. Tree felling was totally banned in Tamil Nadu forests. The Minister earlier visited Yercaud and reviewed the development works.He was accompanied by MLA Veerapandi A. Raja, Chief Conservator of Forests Balaji, Salem Conservator V. Palani and District Forest Officer R. K. Bharathi. Meanwhile M. Ramachandran, president of the Chettichavadi village panchayat, where the park was situated said that the road to Park from Salem should be widened with avenue trees to woo the tourists.
300 milk producers' cooperative units soon
Erode: Three hundred milk producers' cooperative societies will be started in Tamil Nadu this year, of which 100 would be run by women, Dairy Development Minister U. Mathivanan told reporters here on Saturday. The Minister made a surprise visit to the Erode District Milk Producers Cooperative Union at Chitode and inspected the milk processing and milk powder production activities. Handlooms and Textiles Minister N.K.K.P. Raja accompanied him.
Mr. Mathivanan said that banks would advance funds liberally, for the formation of the 300 new societies. He said that at present, all the cooperative milk producers' unions in Tamilnadu were functioning efficiently. From Erode Aavin, high quality ghee was being sent to Tirupati, for laddu preparation. Tirumalai Tirupathi Devasthanam was paying Rs 120 a kilogram of ghee to Erode Aavin. During this year 120 tonnes of ghee would be sent to Tirupati. To a question, he said there was no proposal to start new milk chilling units in the cooperative sector in Erode. All steps were being taken for running the Erode Aavin cattle feed factory from January.
Mr. Mathivanan said that banks would advance funds liberally, for the formation of the 300 new societies. He said that at present, all the cooperative milk producers' unions in Tamilnadu were functioning efficiently. From Erode Aavin, high quality ghee was being sent to Tirupati, for laddu preparation. Tirumalai Tirupathi Devasthanam was paying Rs 120 a kilogram of ghee to Erode Aavin. During this year 120 tonnes of ghee would be sent to Tirupati. To a question, he said there was no proposal to start new milk chilling units in the cooperative sector in Erode. All steps were being taken for running the Erode Aavin cattle feed factory from January.
Recruiters want `Engineering with MBA'
Coimbatore: Every year the number of engineering seats that goes abegging is on the increase. "There is no value for engineering," can be heard amongst not only students, but also from engineers. The magical word in today's parlance is `MBA'. One might be a commerce graduate, an economics graduate, an engineer, a graduate in catering technology or a lawyer. The common thread running through all of them is that they are all management students. The number of engineering graduates doing MBA is slowly on the rise, even in tier two cities like Coimbatore. Is it market driven or because the engineers want to equip themselves with degree in management?
"It is purely market driven," says A.G.V. Narayanan, Associate Professor, School of Management, Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Technology. "Industry, especially the manufacturing, automobile and telecom sectors, prefers only the combination of engineering along with MBA. They want technocrats with managerial skills. Nearly 40 per cent of the first year MBA students are engineers. This was never the case before. Along with technical knowledge, man management skills are stressed upon by the recruiters," he adds.
Says R. Rathna Prabhu, a production engineer who is an MBA student, "When my batch-mates and I joined as engineer trainees we were promised Rs. 20,000. Now, after a year, they are earning around Rs. 24,000. But after a certain level they will stop going up the ladder, because they do not have an MBA, which has become a pre-requisite to climb the higher rungs."
Says S. Karthikeyan, a EEE who worked for two years before quitting to take up MBA, "nowadays sales jobs are not separate entities; they are combined with service. A sales engineer also has to do the service, he has to deal with people. In such cases, just an MBA will not help. An engineer with an MBA will be a sure shot success in such jobs. Technical know-how and man management skills are required to be favoured by employers for promotions."
"Nowadays it is not enough to develop a product as engineers; one should also be able to sell it. Only people like us who have both the technical and management knowledge will be able to choose the right material for a product and also be able to decide the appropriate cost based on the market value," he adds.
Combined knowledge
The students are of the opinion that handling people at the workplace, especially on the shop floor, will become easy with the combined knowledge. Also their saleability and value as employees will be recognised on a higher plane when compared with their engineer counterparts. But don't engineers who gain experience on the job become good man managers?
"They do," they agree in unison. But what the other engineers learn in five or eight years, these MBAs learn in two years sitting in a class. Says S.M. Yaser, a mechanical engineer who wants to become an entrepreneur, "My father runs own business. He did not learn to handle business in a college, but I am sure when I get into business I will have an upper hand, because I learn all this at the initial stage itself." Rathna Prabhu, whose father too is into business, agrees with him wholeheartedly.
Managerial level
They do not only foresee a different way of working, but also hope that their entry into the workforce will be on a managerial level. As Area Managers, Project Leaders, their rise up the ladder will see no hurdles.
There are organisations that upgrade their staff in order to make them better equipped.
Where there are engineers waiting to be promoted, but do not fulfil the criteria of an MBA, the organisation undertakes to make them MBAs by giving them a two-year sabbatical along with the course fee. Some organisations have a tie-up with the Indian Institute of Management in various cities for getting their personnel trained. "But this doesn't seem to sit well on our group of engineers," he adds.
Says Karthikeyan, "the hidden clause is that these engineers when they complete the MBA will have to go back to the organisation that has sponsored them and will have to continue working there till the time specified in a bond made out by the organisation. Instead of going through all that, it is better to complete all the requisites and enter the field, even if means delaying the entry by two or three years."
Whether it is a compulsion of the industry or not, these students are liking what they are doing and at the same time getting better equipped to face the big challenge of tomorrow.
"It is purely market driven," says A.G.V. Narayanan, Associate Professor, School of Management, Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Technology. "Industry, especially the manufacturing, automobile and telecom sectors, prefers only the combination of engineering along with MBA. They want technocrats with managerial skills. Nearly 40 per cent of the first year MBA students are engineers. This was never the case before. Along with technical knowledge, man management skills are stressed upon by the recruiters," he adds.
Says R. Rathna Prabhu, a production engineer who is an MBA student, "When my batch-mates and I joined as engineer trainees we were promised Rs. 20,000. Now, after a year, they are earning around Rs. 24,000. But after a certain level they will stop going up the ladder, because they do not have an MBA, which has become a pre-requisite to climb the higher rungs."
Says S. Karthikeyan, a EEE who worked for two years before quitting to take up MBA, "nowadays sales jobs are not separate entities; they are combined with service. A sales engineer also has to do the service, he has to deal with people. In such cases, just an MBA will not help. An engineer with an MBA will be a sure shot success in such jobs. Technical know-how and man management skills are required to be favoured by employers for promotions."
"Nowadays it is not enough to develop a product as engineers; one should also be able to sell it. Only people like us who have both the technical and management knowledge will be able to choose the right material for a product and also be able to decide the appropriate cost based on the market value," he adds.
Combined knowledge
The students are of the opinion that handling people at the workplace, especially on the shop floor, will become easy with the combined knowledge. Also their saleability and value as employees will be recognised on a higher plane when compared with their engineer counterparts. But don't engineers who gain experience on the job become good man managers?
"They do," they agree in unison. But what the other engineers learn in five or eight years, these MBAs learn in two years sitting in a class. Says S.M. Yaser, a mechanical engineer who wants to become an entrepreneur, "My father runs own business. He did not learn to handle business in a college, but I am sure when I get into business I will have an upper hand, because I learn all this at the initial stage itself." Rathna Prabhu, whose father too is into business, agrees with him wholeheartedly.
Managerial level
They do not only foresee a different way of working, but also hope that their entry into the workforce will be on a managerial level. As Area Managers, Project Leaders, their rise up the ladder will see no hurdles.
There are organisations that upgrade their staff in order to make them better equipped.
Where there are engineers waiting to be promoted, but do not fulfil the criteria of an MBA, the organisation undertakes to make them MBAs by giving them a two-year sabbatical along with the course fee. Some organisations have a tie-up with the Indian Institute of Management in various cities for getting their personnel trained. "But this doesn't seem to sit well on our group of engineers," he adds.
Says Karthikeyan, "the hidden clause is that these engineers when they complete the MBA will have to go back to the organisation that has sponsored them and will have to continue working there till the time specified in a bond made out by the organisation. Instead of going through all that, it is better to complete all the requisites and enter the field, even if means delaying the entry by two or three years."
Whether it is a compulsion of the industry or not, these students are liking what they are doing and at the same time getting better equipped to face the big challenge of tomorrow.
"No complaint over the death of girl student"
CHENNAI: The State Minorities Commission has said the attack on St. Fatima Higher Secondary School at Omalur, Salem, appeared to be not just the result of the anger among the people over the death of a student. In a report to the Chief Minister, a team, led by commission chairman Vincent Chinnadurai, which visited the school, said that besides Suganya, two other girls of the school had died. It was learnt that one of them, an inmate of the Government Adi Dravidar Girls Hostel nearby, had left behind a note that she was ending her life as her parents had scolded her. She hanged herself in the hostel. Last year, another student, Jasmin, set herself ablaze at home, enquiries revealed.
"Not parents"
Though rumours were being spread, no complaint was filed with the Directorate of School Education and the Police or Revenue Departments about problems, if any, faced by girl students of the school. The persons who attacked the school were not the parents of girls.
If the school management was taken over from minorities, it would set a bad precedent, the Commission said.
"Not parents"
Though rumours were being spread, no complaint was filed with the Directorate of School Education and the Police or Revenue Departments about problems, if any, faced by girl students of the school. The persons who attacked the school were not the parents of girls.
If the school management was taken over from minorities, it would set a bad precedent, the Commission said.
"Tamil Nadu needs medical research university"
Tamil Nadu needs a medical research university where doctors can focus on unexplored areas of preventive and diagnostic medicine, State Planning Commission Member P. Jagadeesan said.
At a seminar organised recently in Chennai by Comprehensive Medical Services India, Mr. Jagadeesan said better research facilities were required for medical scientists. In developed countries, hospitals would commission research in universities whenever new diseases cropped up, he said. Mr. Jagadeesan also called on voluntary organisations to urge the State Government to take up the manufacture of some medicinal drugs so that the public could obtain them cheaper. This was because private pharmaceutical manufacturing companies sold drugs at very high prices. Moses P. Manohar, Executive Trustee - Director, Comprehensive Medical Services India, said his organisation manufactured and supplied essential drugs (generic) to charitable hospitals at low cost. CMSI also supplies drugs to the State Government. Participants at the seminar included representatives from hospitals run by Christian, Hindu, Muslim and Buddhist charitable organisations.
At a seminar organised recently in Chennai by Comprehensive Medical Services India, Mr. Jagadeesan said better research facilities were required for medical scientists. In developed countries, hospitals would commission research in universities whenever new diseases cropped up, he said. Mr. Jagadeesan also called on voluntary organisations to urge the State Government to take up the manufacture of some medicinal drugs so that the public could obtain them cheaper. This was because private pharmaceutical manufacturing companies sold drugs at very high prices. Moses P. Manohar, Executive Trustee - Director, Comprehensive Medical Services India, said his organisation manufactured and supplied essential drugs (generic) to charitable hospitals at low cost. CMSI also supplies drugs to the State Government. Participants at the seminar included representatives from hospitals run by Christian, Hindu, Muslim and Buddhist charitable organisations.
Friday, November 17, 2006
Villupuram-Mayiladuthurai gauge conversion a tough task
Conversion of the Villupuram-Mayiladuthurai line will be a challenging task for Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL), which has been entrusted with the task by the Railway Board.
The122-km stretch is the remaining portion of the Villupuram-Thanjavur conversion project (192 km). The line between Thanjavur and Mayiladuthurai has been converted.
There are 310 bridges, including 33 major ones, and 18 level crossings and subways between Villupuram and Mayiladuthurai. The line runs along the east coast, and the sub-soil, where the existing bridges are located, is weak. An RVNL official says in view of the poor soil condition, it is desirable to lay the new bridges on the existing foundation. RVNL has decided to dismantle the existing bridges and construct new ones using pile foundation. Their height will be increased by two to three metres, taking into consideration last year's floods. As the soil throughout the stretch is uniformly weak, the embankments also have to be strengthened. Another problem being encountered by RVNL is the movement of construction materials such as ballasts and soil to the construction spot. With all these difficulties, the work has to be completed by December 2007, the target date fixed by the Railway Board. According to railway officials, once this portion is completed, it will link Chennai with Tiruchi via Villupuram, Cuddalore, Chidambaram, Mayiladuthurai, Kumbakonam and Thanjavur, known as `mainline' in railway parlance. For years, it did not get priority and allotment of funds was poor. Now, the Board has decided to complete the section before December 2007. The official says though it is a difficult target to achieve, RVNL will complete the conversion. Other major projects being undertaken by RVNL are the Vriddhachalam-Salem metre gauge line and a third line from Tiruvalur to Arakkonam.
Vriddhachalam-Salem is part of the Salem-Cuddalore conversion project (Rs. 191 crore), which is being part financed by the State Government. The line from Cuddalore to Vriddhachalam has been converted. The Vriddhachalam-Salem portion is to be executed jointly by Southern Railway and RVNL. While Southern Railway will take up the conversion work from Vriddhachalam to Attur, the rest will be done by RVNL. The official says the work will be completed before January-end next year. As the existing line is on plain terrain, there will not be any difficulty in completing the work before the target date. Similarly, the third line from Arakkonam to Tiruvallur will also be completed as early as possible.
The122-km stretch is the remaining portion of the Villupuram-Thanjavur conversion project (192 km). The line between Thanjavur and Mayiladuthurai has been converted.
There are 310 bridges, including 33 major ones, and 18 level crossings and subways between Villupuram and Mayiladuthurai. The line runs along the east coast, and the sub-soil, where the existing bridges are located, is weak. An RVNL official says in view of the poor soil condition, it is desirable to lay the new bridges on the existing foundation. RVNL has decided to dismantle the existing bridges and construct new ones using pile foundation. Their height will be increased by two to three metres, taking into consideration last year's floods. As the soil throughout the stretch is uniformly weak, the embankments also have to be strengthened. Another problem being encountered by RVNL is the movement of construction materials such as ballasts and soil to the construction spot. With all these difficulties, the work has to be completed by December 2007, the target date fixed by the Railway Board. According to railway officials, once this portion is completed, it will link Chennai with Tiruchi via Villupuram, Cuddalore, Chidambaram, Mayiladuthurai, Kumbakonam and Thanjavur, known as `mainline' in railway parlance. For years, it did not get priority and allotment of funds was poor. Now, the Board has decided to complete the section before December 2007. The official says though it is a difficult target to achieve, RVNL will complete the conversion. Other major projects being undertaken by RVNL are the Vriddhachalam-Salem metre gauge line and a third line from Tiruvalur to Arakkonam.
Vriddhachalam-Salem is part of the Salem-Cuddalore conversion project (Rs. 191 crore), which is being part financed by the State Government. The line from Cuddalore to Vriddhachalam has been converted. The Vriddhachalam-Salem portion is to be executed jointly by Southern Railway and RVNL. While Southern Railway will take up the conversion work from Vriddhachalam to Attur, the rest will be done by RVNL. The official says the work will be completed before January-end next year. As the existing line is on plain terrain, there will not be any difficulty in completing the work before the target date. Similarly, the third line from Arakkonam to Tiruvallur will also be completed as early as possible.
262 libraries for villages
Rs. 5.25 cr. allocated for 46 buildings
-The process of setting up 262 libraries in rural areas will begin soon, said Thangam Thennarasu, Minister for School Education, here on Tuesday evening.
Speaking at the inaugural of the 39th National Library Week celebrations at the Connemara Library, he said that Rs. 5.25 crore has been allocated for 46 new library buildings across the State. Four district libraries are also being refurbished.
The committee for the selection of books to be bought for libraries would be reorganised soon by the Chief Minister, he added.
Later, he gave away prizes to winners of the oratorical competition held for school children to mark the library week.
K. Anbazhagan, Minister for Finance, gave away medals and certificates for the Best Librarian Award 2006 to 30 librarians representing all districts.
He said that the scheme to allow philanthropists to contribute Rs. 1000 to libraries could help the public participate in the upkeep of libraries. He urged publishers to pay more attention towards the type they use and the binding of the books they bring out, since such factors also contributed to a good experience of reading a book.
K. Ganesan, higher education secretary, Tamil Nadu Government, said the statistics that showed 5.27 crore persons visit the 3,751 libraries in the State needed to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Since most of these were repeat visits, the total number of visitors is probably a fifth of the number.
There were more than 50 vacancies of librarians in government colleges, he said and urged the Government to take steps to improve facilities in libraries.
-The process of setting up 262 libraries in rural areas will begin soon, said Thangam Thennarasu, Minister for School Education, here on Tuesday evening.
Speaking at the inaugural of the 39th National Library Week celebrations at the Connemara Library, he said that Rs. 5.25 crore has been allocated for 46 new library buildings across the State. Four district libraries are also being refurbished.
The committee for the selection of books to be bought for libraries would be reorganised soon by the Chief Minister, he added.
Later, he gave away prizes to winners of the oratorical competition held for school children to mark the library week.
K. Anbazhagan, Minister for Finance, gave away medals and certificates for the Best Librarian Award 2006 to 30 librarians representing all districts.
He said that the scheme to allow philanthropists to contribute Rs. 1000 to libraries could help the public participate in the upkeep of libraries. He urged publishers to pay more attention towards the type they use and the binding of the books they bring out, since such factors also contributed to a good experience of reading a book.
K. Ganesan, higher education secretary, Tamil Nadu Government, said the statistics that showed 5.27 crore persons visit the 3,751 libraries in the State needed to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Since most of these were repeat visits, the total number of visitors is probably a fifth of the number.
There were more than 50 vacancies of librarians in government colleges, he said and urged the Government to take steps to improve facilities in libraries.
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