City short of key vaccine

Wednesday June 4 2008 12:51 IST (Repro from Newindpress)

G Saravanan

CHENNAI: Travellers planning to visit African, West Indian and South American countries, endemic to yellow fevers may have to postpone their plans, since the Government authorised centres in the city to administer the yellow fever vaccines are running out of stock.

The vaccination is mandatory to visit the yellow fever endemic 33 countries in Africa, 11 countries in South America and a few in the West indies.

The centres, Port Health Office on Rajaji Salai near Parrys Corner and King Institute in Guindy, that can give the vaccination certificate, have gone dry.

According to Port Health Officer, V V Sairam Babu, “Our stock got exhausted last week and I spoke to my higher officials in New Delhi regarding new shipment. But it is not clear when will we get the fresh vaccines, as the government imports these vaccine from European countries.”

“On an average, about 250 persons come to Port Health Office for vaccination every month, and I am getting regular phone calls about the availability of the vaccine from southern districts,” he added.

Yellow fever vaccination is required for travelling to almost all African countries, a few Latin American countries and a few West Indian countries like Angola, Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, etc.
FOLLOW UP:
Yellow fever vaccine doses arrived
Chennai, July 02:
Nearly 600 doses of yellow fever vaccination have arrived at the Port Health Office, one of the two centres in the city that can give the vaccination certificate, mandatory to visit the yellow fever endemic 33 countries in Africa, 11 countries in South America and a few in the West Indies.
According to Port Health Officer, DR V V Sairam Babu, the centre has received 600 doses from Kasauli a day ago. ``I want to clear the backlog of visitors, created after the doses gone dry during the first week of June,'' he added.
The dose will be administed on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, he further added.

Corruption holds up Port’s tsunami repairs

Sunday May 4 2008 08:40 IST
G Saravanan
(Repro of copy published in the New Indian Express on May 4:

CHENNAI: LONG after 2004’s Tsunami, the Chennai Port Trust (CPT) has been unable to get its ‘mooring dolphin’ fixed. The reason: corruption. The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) told the Port Trust to cancel the original repair contract after it found the contractor to be “ineligible”.

The contract to construct the mooring dolphin at Bharathi dock-III, an RCC connection trestle near Bharathi dock-I and to strengthen the eastern and western block walls at the Ambedkar block, was given to Chokkaiyan Karthikeyan and Co in September 2005. The CVC began inquiring in July 2006. In February 2007, it told the CPT “foreclose and cancel” the contract.

More than a year later, only one official has been held responsible: chief engineer Chelladurai. He was moved to the National Maritime Board in January 2008, nearly a year after the CVC’s letter. Officials close to him claim he was made scapegoat. CPT chairman K Suresh claims otherwise. “I had no role in deviating tender rules to award the contract,” says Suresh. “After the tender committee meeting, I asked the chief engineer to do a technical evaluation on the bidder to finalise it, and based on his evaluation, the contract was awarded to the bidder.”

And still the mooring dolphin has to be fixed. Suresh says that the retender process is on, and will be completed within three months. CPT sources had a slightly different story to tell. “Serious deviations in procedure were made by the chief engineer at the behest of the chairman to favour the contractor,” an informed source said.

CVC guidelines say the contractor should have executed a similar work of at least 80 per cent of the current contract’s value. The estimated cost of the mooring dolphin job was Rs 9 crore, so the contractor should have done a similar job worth at least Rs 7.2 crore. Yet Chokkaiyan Karthikeyan had no experience in this field. So, the tender committee (and not just the chief engineer) changed the guideline so that the contractor only needed to have done a job worth Rs 3 crore. Further, a second bidder deliberately erred in its tender to get disqualified so that Chokkaiyan Karthikeyan would get the job. No prizes for guessing who arm-twisted the other bidder.

Finally, the job was to be completed in nine months. Six months after getting the contract, Chokkaiyan Karthikeyan had not even started. “I spent Rs 3.5 crore on equipment for the contract and they suddenly cancelled it, citing slow progress,” Chokkaiyan told this website's News Paper from Erode.

Three and a half years after the Tsunami, the repairs are yet to be done.

saravanan.gee@gmail.com

NGO gives city pullers a three-wheeled push

Pub on Monday April 7 2008 11:59 IST (IE)

CHENNAI: A Chennai-based NGO is giving city pullers a new push with its unique three-wheeler cart scheme.
The novel idea, which has been developed by the Assam-based Centre for Rural Development (CRD), will help fishermen living in Royapuram, Kalmandapam, Tondiarpet, Kasimedu and Korukkupet.
Under this scheme, which is based on the concept of asset-based loan, the beneficiaries would be given three-wheeler carts on rent for a period of seven months.
"Cyclerickshaws are losing business to the overcharging autorickshaws. The Rickshaw Bank Scheme introduced by the NGO has helped them a bit but there is still plenty to be done. The new scheme fills the blanks. The scheme will address a lot of issues. It will also help improve their income through assetbased entrepreneurship development," said Ilayaraja, coordinator of the Chennai branch.

The daily repayment scheme, which will be a one-window repayment system, will also provide social security, an accident insurance premium and ownership option to the pullers. It will also give them benefits like uniforms, licences and ID cards. The repayment will be done on a daily basis, added Raja. The amount collected will be Rs 50 (per day) for the first 15 days and Rs 25 for the rest of the days.

Three wheeler carts, Raja said, are a good transport option especially for fishermen based in North Chennai. The scheme will help the community increase their earning capacity.

The carts can also work in sandy terrain. More than 400 people from different areas have registered for these carts.

Parents enraged over school management's commercial motivesÆ

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Parents and students of St Geroge's Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School,
Shenoy Nagar, on Friday staged a demonstration inside school premises
protesting against the school management for putting their children's
education at stake by permitting more and more commercial programmes in
school campus.Æ
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The school, one of the oldest in whole Chennai city, has had a good teaching
reputation for more than a two centuries and the very same is nosediving
after head master R Paul Victor Samuel took charge few years ago, alleged
one parent, whose child is studying in seventh standard here.Æ
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Not alone the commercial motives, problems like unqualified teachers, bad
maintenance of the school premises, poor sanitation facilities for students,
non-availability of physical education training facilities and failure to
conduct regular parent-teacher meetings, forced the parents to stage a
protest inside school.Æ
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Tense moments prevailed for an hour when the parents blocked the main
enterance gate of the school, which (also) facilitates main entry point for
the famed Chennai Book Fair, being organised here for the second consecutive
year.Æ
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Policemen posted infront of the gate could not able to understand what is
going on, and Assistant Commissioner of Police M Rajamoney intervened at
right time and pacifed the agitating crowd of nearly 100 parents.Æ
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One of the parents requesting anonymity told Express that, ``The school is
collecting fees for computer course, but not a single lesson on it have been
taught to our children.''Æ
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``Like (unjustified) fees for computer course, they also collect maintenance
fees to make all classrooms and lawn clean. Can you believe this I had to
clean a few classrooms while the school was reopened this season, as staff
meant for it don't care about cleanliness'', another parent alleged.Æ
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Not less than five to six commercial events including marriage receptions
are being organised every month that too during school hours itself, and
that itself shows that the management is just to mint money and not
interested in providing quality education, he further added.Æ
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When this correspondent met the head master Samuel for reaction on these
allegations, he not only denied all these are basless, said it was just to
defame the good image of the school.Æ
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He further said, ``We are not after money as the management has huge funds
to run its day-today activities.I have not received any complaint regarding
this so for and certainly look into it if the parents give it in writing.''Æ
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Suggested boxÆ
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Parent-management meet on Jan 21Æ
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Correspondent of the school, G K Francis has said that in view of these
allegations and subsequent agitation inside school premises, a meeting
between parents and school management/teachers will be held on January 21 at
4 p.m.Æ
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He said this while pacifying the parents at the venue and assured all the
parents that things would be sorted out at the meet.Æ
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eom.svnÆ

Parks of discontent

When Chennai Mayor M Subramanian could order renovation of big parks like Tower Park at Anna Nagar and Thiru Vi Ka Park at Shenoy Nagar, why this step-motherly treatment meted out to smaller parks in the locality? This question haunts residents of L Block and Kambar Colony, which have a children's park and a playground respectively, but both in a shambles for over a year now.
After receiving complaints from residents in this connection, our reporter visited the places and spoke to a few residents.
Kumar, a fifth standard student of a local school, said, 'In school, everyone from the physical education teacher to the principal insist upon us to spend time in parks for fresh air. But the park which is close to my house at L Block is more or less in dilapidated condition and I risk getting infected with diseases if I visit or play there.'
'The park at L Block is in such a state that no one can go anywhere near it to have fun. It is sad,' another boy said.
'The equipment in the park are rusty and in a damaged condition that it can injure children if they use it,' said Ranjan, a local resident.
Kubendran, an elderly resident of L Block, said, 'The state of the children's parks, except a few, in the area is nothing very shocking. The park near 19th Street of L Block has been the same for days. We tried our best to bring it to life, but nothing materialised till now. And in the long run, these kinds of parks would virtually become a den for miscreants to do unlawful activities, and also a spot to dump waste'.
The children park in L Block is fully surrounded by residential apartments. But no one goes there. For the condition is such that they prefer Bougainvilla Park where they can refresh themselves.
Speaking to this reporter , Rajapallawi, president of Kambar Colony Residents Welfare Association, said, 'After persistent efforts by the residents for nearly four decades, Chennai Corporation had begun the facelift work. But, even after a year, the works have not been completed. As a result, a few play-equipment like seesaw are in a broken and rusty condition.'
'Around 300 families reside at Kambar Colony, and we have a good number of children there. They need proper space to play. Whenever we contact the higher officials about it, they say that the estimate for the renovation is being made. And I don't know when they will be through with it', lamented Rajapallawi.
'We would be very happy if the Mayor turns his attention to these kind of small parks and order renovation,' said another resident. Will the small parks and playgrounds in the locality ever see the light of the day, a question that begs for an answer.

Left in the drain

The tussle between TNHB office complex, Thirumangalam, and the residents of Asiad Colony, over illegal use (according to residents) of drainage service by the former, is reaching flash point as the residents plan to stage a protest pressing their demands.
The residents say that the board, for its commercial interests, is creating an adverse environment near the peaceful and well-maintained residential colony.
It may be noted that several weeklies carried a news item about the issue a year ago. The TNHB officials then held talks with the residents and promised to solve the problem as early as possible. Things were smooth for a few months. But the same problem of drainage overflow at the Asiad Colony has again started and strained the relationship between the two.
Speaking to this reporter Ratnasingam, president of Asiad Colony Flat Owners' Welfare Association, said, 'We want a permanent solution to this problem. Asiad Colony has 312 flats with a population of about 3000. The colony is a model colony in many respects as it was one of the oldest in the area. The problems are persisting for the past six to seven years. Adjacent to the compound wall of the colony, TNHB office is functioning in first floor and below that an office, a number of commercial establishments including a restaurant are functioning. For the commercial establishments, there is no proper drainage system is laid'.
'These establishments (illegally) use the drainage system, which pass through the colony. All the waste is let into the drainage system. It not only affects the free flow of drainage water but also often chokes and as an effect of it, houses in the colony gets inundated with the overflowing drainage water'.
In view of this problem, we held a general body meeting recently and at the meeting it was decided to hold a dharna infront of the TNHB office pressing for an early settlement of the persisting problem, Ratnasingam added.
A resident, who has his flat close to the compound wall and TNHB office, says, 'People coming to the TNHB complex for various purposes, are causing nuisance by using it (a small space kept vacant between the construction area and the compound wall) as a public convenience. The residents nearer to the compound wall are affected by bad odour emanating from that side'.
Another resident added that, their sleep has been disturbed in the last few months, after the opening of a fastfood stall very close to the compound. 'The customers make a nuisance of themselves till late in the night,' he said.
When this reporter tried to reach the executive engineer of TNHB for clarification, no one was available for comment. Will the concerned official take note of the problem?

Take a breath

Most people after a bypass surgery or a serious illness are afraid to return to an active life, they say they are not able to keep up with others.
But that does not seem to be the case. Take 75 year-old J B Shah, he is a real turnaround. Shah, who had under gone a critical bypass surgery almost three years ago and advised to stay indoors has shown that one can bounce back to a new life. 'They only have to practise pranayam,' he said. Today not only is he back to his normal way of life, he also helps many shape their lives without problems.
It is a sort of 'giving back to society' says J B Shah. He was a busy man once, Shah could not able to sit idle at home after the surgery, found a new lease of life.
While convalescing, he came to know that pranayam, ( breath control) would help him a lot in recuperation and it would even make him fit to venture outside. So, he gathered all information about it through a popular television show, broadcast in the mornings. He did not stop there itself by practicing those exercises at home for his wellness alone. His zeal drove him to master the nuances of it from Hardwar-based organisation, and as a social responsibility, Shah now teaches it free at various centres located in and around the city.
He says he has fully recovered, and helps others get cured from heart related diseases and diabetes through these breath control exercises.
This reporter met Shah at his residence at Anna Nagar a few days ago and asked about the success story. 'It was a rebirth,' says Shah. 'Immediately after that critical surgery, I too thought, it was all over for me, as most of the heart patients are (advised to) spend time at home only. But my will and with the help of pranayam, I have made it'.
Now, I am happy, not just for that recovery I had, but for those all, to whom I have made a difference through the breathing exercises, Shah said.
According to him, the concept of pranayam in short is nothing but practising inhaling and exhaling systematically to attain perfection in keeping sound health. Good health can be achieved by practising pranayam regularly at least once a day for 30 minutes preferably in the morning on an empty stomach having only one glass of warm water. Pranayam can be practiced by all ages from five years onwards.
Shortly after completing formal training and insistence by his fellow friends, Shah started his first free pranayam and yoga classes at the Anna Nagar Tower Park in December, 2004 . Since then, the popularity of his classes has swelled up and now the number of centres in the city has risen to 21. Based on enquiries, Shah plans to open another 30 centres in the city very soon.
After successfully imparting pranayam to the residents of different areas, Shah has embarked to another mission: teaching it to school children. When asked why he is keen to teach pranayam to children, Shah says, 'It has a dual advantage. Children can grasp the concept very effectively and mastering breath control at a tender age does good for their future. By practicing it, they can develop an immunity towards hereditary diseases.'
Many individuals have benefited by pranayam. Diseases and ailments, which have been tough to cure, have been cured with pranayam. For further details about pranayam and for conducting free classes, contact J B Shah at 98404 80345 or D V S Gupta at 98840 48380 or Vijay Khumar at 94443 77014.
Photo available
Exercise and methods
It should be borne in mind that practice of pranayam or the exercise of breathing must be through the nose. That fills the lungs with pure air.
There are three mudras (postures) dhyan mudra, apanvayu mudra and vayumudra generally practised during pranayam. One can choose any one of these mudras. One must be relaxed and enjoy the process. It helps the body to get good oxygenated blood and improved blood circulation.