Kannan elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha

Former Speaker P. Kannan was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha after deadline for the withdrawal of nominations ended on Saturday at 3 p.m. Secretary, Legislative Assembly, M. Sivaprakasam, told The Hindu that he had communicated to the Election Commission that since there was no other valid nomination, Mr. Kannan, sponsored by the Congress, was declared elected.

The seat fell vacant following the election of V. Narayanasamy to the Lok Sabha.

He subsequently became Union Minister of State for Planning, Parliamentary Affairs and Culture.

Mr. Kannan will be the eighth prominent politician to represent the Union Territory in the Rajya Sabha.

The first election to the Rajya Sabha from the Union Territory was held in 1963 and Congress member P. Abraham won the seat.

Mr. Sivaprakasam handed over the certificate declaring his election to Mr. Kannan. Chief Minister V. Vaithilingam and Minister for Public Works M.O.H.F. Shahjahan were present.

Pharmaceutical Company at Kurumbapet given closure order

The Puducherry Pollution Control Committee (PPCC) has issued a closure order to Taica Labs, a pharmaceutical company in Kurumbapet.

Special Secretary to Government and Chairman of the PPCC G. Theva Neethi Dhas told The Hindu that the unit had been issued directions for closure, for unauthorised manufacture of liquid formulations such as tonics.

Environmental Engineer of the PPCC N. Ramesh said that the directions were issued with the approval of the Chairman of the PPCC and the recommendation of Member Secretary G. Rajmohan.

The Department of Electricity had also been directed to stop power supply to the unit.

Mr. Ramesh said that the unit obtained licence to operate from the PPCC in February 2007, stating that it would only manufacture tablets and capsules. Water was not required in the manufacturing process, and there was no scope for effluents to be released. Later, the unit started unauthorised manufacture of tonics with alcohol content. This was brought to the notice of the PPCC by complaints from residents of the area, he said.

According to a resident of Raghavendra Nagar in Kurumbapet, “The unit started to discharge effluents into public drains, because of which water turned green. There was open discharge of effluents too, because of which even grass stopped growing in the area. We started to get frequent bouts of fever and developed skin allergy. There was a strong odour released by the effluents, because of which children used to vomit.”

Mr. Ramesh said that the unit had been collecting effluents in a sump and pumping it into roadside drains through an underground pipe.

Officials of the PPCC inspected the unit and discovered the violation.

“We then issued the unit a show cause notice. But, because the response was evasive and not satisfactory, we have now issued directions for closure under Section 33A of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974,” Mr. Ramesh said.

Battle of friends in Puducherry: Narayanasamy and Ramadoss

It will be a battle between two friends in the Union Territory of Puducherry where Union Minister of State and Congress General Secretary V Narayanasamy is taking on his college mate and PMK nominee M Ramadoss in the May 13 Lok Sabha polls.

The two, who had shared a close friendship while studying in the Government Tagore Arts College ( My College! I too completed my graduation ) here in the 1960s, have turned rivals with the PMK dumping the DMK-Congress led DPA and joining the AIADMK-led front for the polls.

Mr. Ramadoss had won the seat in 2004 when the PMK was alloted the seat as part of the then rainbow alliance formed by DMK.

With PMK's exit, the ruling Congress had secured the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Union Territory for itself and fielded Mr. Nararyanasamy, a three-time Rajya Sabha member.

Both Mr. Narayanasamy and Mr. Ramadoss, in their 60s now, belong to semi-urban pockets of Nonankuppam and Murungapakkam localities of this former French colony respectively.

"He was my closest classmate. We used to study the subject of economics together. We would peruse the books taken from the library in the college," Mr. Narayanasamy said.

Mr. Ramadoss too recalled his close association with Mr. Narayanasamy in the college days and said he never expected then that they would one day battle it out in poll arena."I did not then expect that we would lock horns in elections."

Source

Forest Department Urge to Protect The “TALI POT” Palm Trees

Do you people know about the “Tali Pot” palm trees? They are known as “Kodaipanai” in Tamil and they bloom once during their life time. The botanical name of the tree is “Corypha-umbraculifera”. The tree is given the name Kodaipanai as its flower resembles an umbrella. The tree grows to a height of six to eight meters in length.

The most striking factor of the tree is that it contains about 12 million small flowers and produces 500 Kg seeds in each inflorescence. The above said set up is used to maintain the progeny of the tree and it is also the largest trees in the palm family. Have you people started wondering why this article is so far talking about the palm trees?


The necessity has come to talk about this “Tali Pot” palm trees because the forest department of our home town has taken serious measures to protect these trees from the Rhinoceros beetle attack. The department has rescued ten Tali Pot trees that found near the Velrampet Lake. The department has sprayed pesticides and it is also providing the root treatment. It has also planned to erect iron rods around the tree as a protective measure.

The trees that are found near the Velrampet Lake are more than 60-foot tall an over 30 years old. The department has applied Lindane dust with fine sand on the top of the trees. These types of trees are also found on the Malabar Coast of the Western Ghats. They have also been taken to Singapore, the United States, Panama and Honolulu as ornamental trees. Thus this article throws light upon the urge of the forest department to protect a tree variety.

Problems behind the Construction Of Ariankupam Bridge

I was traveling to a renowned temple at Cuddalore through the Ariankuppam Bridge. When I was crossing the bridge, I was stuck at a traffic jam. Many private busses ply from Pondicherry to Cuddalore. The area also nurtures several educational institutions, hospitals and industrial areas. So the old bridge is not able to host this heavy traffic. Records say that the work to replace the 150-year-old bridge was started in the year 2005 and it was suspended due to the paucity of funds. The work that was commenced three years back has ended up with only few columns and piers being laid.



The initial estimate of the bridge is Rs. 15 crores and this lethargy in the work will surely lead to the increase in the estimated cost. Meanwhile the columns of the new bridge had sinked. But the defect was rectified after getting suggestion from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. The problem of the sinking columns could have been avoided if the Public Works Department had conducted a proper study on the sand condition. The other aggravating problem is the big cracks that are formed on the either side of the old bridge and they pose a big threat to the people who pass the bridge. So the Government must take immediate steps to release the funds and it must also take measures to give the contract to the responsible persons.


The executive engineer of the National Highways division has said the reporters that the new bridge would handle four-way traffic and have adequate space for pedestrians. So let us all hope that this will take place in the near future.

New prison complex at Periyakalapet, Puducherry

The new prison complex constructed at the outskirts of Periya Kalapet, costing Rs. 12 crores was opened on 21st August. The inaugural release issued by the Jail Department cites that the decision to shift the prison from the Jawaharlal Nehru Street was taken in February 1997. The construction of the new complex was started in the year 2001. The new jail complex is infrastructured with an administrative block, separate yards for male and female prisoners, hospital, workshop, kitchen with modern facilities and quarters for the jail staff. It has the capacity to house more than 500 prisoners. The new complex also has an interior and outer wall and also an area for the vegetable cultivation.


The Chief Minister Mr. N. Rangaswamy inaugurated the new prison complex on 21st August. During his inaugural address the CM said that the government had sought Rs. 15 crores from the centre in order to utilize it to procure equipment, enhance security and construct additional buildings. The CM also stressed on the necessity to make the union territory a “crime-free” place and appealed the jail staff to work with commitment and dedication. Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) M. Ramadass, Chief Judicial Magistrate Mr. Kaliamurthy, Inspector-General of Police (in-charge of prisons) S. Vasudeva Rao and Chief Engineer Public Works Department Mr.Chandrapal Singh were the other important personalities who were present during the inaugural function.

Note: Though the info is not bit new, I felt this could bring still light over Puducherry Government activity in the Union Territory.

Ban on Neckties in Puducherry Primary Schools

Puducherry Directorate of School Education banned wearing neckties by children in all primary schools in Puducherry. G Ragesh Chandra, Director of Education , issued a circular to all institutions here to make the ban effect immediately.

Story behind the order:

The order follows a report the directorate received from the Centrally administered JIPMER that wearing of neckties would result in children running the risk of having breathing problems and at times even leading to suffociation.

It was a medical officer at the Rural Health Centre of JIPMER at Ramanathapuram who wrote to the head of department, preventive and social medicine, JIPMER, after noticing that a child received at the centre with breathing problems was wearing a very tightly knotted tie. He immediately loosened it, making the child feel better.

This served as an eye opener and the Department sent a report through the Director of the institute, recommending dispensing of neckties by the children. It was also felt that neckties were not suitable for hot climates.

Wearing Helmets has become Compulsory in Puducherry from July 1

Traffic Police Department of Puducherry has announced that two-wheeler riders should wear helmets for their safety and to avoid major damage in the case of accidents. Wearing helmets has become compulsory in Puducherry from July 1, 2008. (Pardon me if I remember the same July 1, 2007, TN Govt implement the rule).

Superintendent of Police (Traffic) S. Kuppusamy reported Hindu Daily “Director General of Police A.S. Khan has directed the traffic police department to make helmet wearing compulsory. He has given the order as per powers vested under section 129 of the Motor Vehicles Act 1988”.
At the end of the news report it is said that “The proposal was still pending with the government, he said adding that they had decided to go ahead with the implementation as the Law Department had given its approval. Cases would be booked against those defying the order, he said.


Despite the fact that I wonder how police can go ahead with government approval, I am not sure why the department hasn’t given enough time for the public to intake the new rule. While questioned about this S. Kuppusamy added “as per the MV Act every two-wheeler rider has to wear helmet”.

I agree “Helmet saves life” but we also need to ponder over some practical problems when you ride with helmet.

1. Difficulty in hearing horn sound,
2. Unable to see people who ride beside,
3. Unable to view the riders face at any life threatening situations
4. Night time riding would be hectic with helmet
5. Less quality helmet would be a disaster than a life saver.
   

Since puducherry has criss-cross streets and small roads, there are more possibilities of not see the co riders who come beside or behind you. This new rule would be useful to the public until people have enough acquaintance and skill in helmet-riding.

We should all be happy since Puducherry government haven’t said the back seaters should wear helmets like DMK Government in Tamilnadu.

Way Back to the History of Mudaliarpettai : Metamorphosis of Puducherry

Our sweet home town, Pondicherry, is the best as it has all the comforts and the best infrastructure. Do you people know about its metamorphosis? Time has never failed to lay its hand on Puducherry too and changes are always unavoidable. Different administration changes that merged various villages to town have turned out to be Puducherry. Let us travel back to the 1960’s…

The 1961 census counted 388 villages, spread over in all four regions of the territory, apart from the four towns of Pondy, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam. However, for the purpose of revenue administration the division into 96 villages took place.

In the course of ten years starting from 1961 to 1971 almost the entire rural complex of Mudaliarpettai commune covering 18 villages except Kuppam and Pappanchavadi had developed urban characteristics so that the whole commune came to be treated as a town.

Similarly 16 out of 49 villages in ozukarai commune had developed urban characteristics to give shape to the new town of Ozukarai. Thus the new towns of ozukarai and Mudaliarpettai (also known Mudaliarpet) emerged only after the 1971 census.

During the same period, all the 20 villages of Pondicherry commune had developed urban characteristics to merge with the Pondicherry town and correspondingly the number of census villages in the territory declined from 388 to 334.

In another important development, the whole of Mudaliarpettai commune was merged with Pondicherry commune for the purposes of municipal administration. Hence, the demarcated towns were merged for the purposes of municipal administration. Thus, the changes make our home town more beautiful and comfortable.

7,000 houses in the coastal villages of Puducherry prone to disaster

Puducherry has never ever witnessed the rage of Tsunami than that happened in 2006. The natural calamity has been an alarm for the government to safeguard the public against such disasters in future.

Recently in a survey conducted by the Revenue Department of Puducherry it is stated that approximately 7000 houses in the coastal villages of Puducherry and karaikal region are prone to any damage by sea surge.

Since there is a lack of space in the Union Territory, it is tough to rehabilitate majority of the houses in the coastal villages. Vulnerable areas are identifies based on the past incidents and damages caused to the civil locality.

One of the leading news daily The Hindu reported, “The survey conducted in the Union Territory as part of the disaster management programme revealed that around 7,000 houses in 15 coastal villages of Puducherry came within 500-meter-high tide area and were “extremely vulnerable to the vagaries of weather.”

Officials in the Revenue Department said the dwelling units in the coastal villages of Karaikal region were located in a safe distance with a majority of the houses being relocated above 500 meters from the shore as part of the Tsunami Rehabilitation Programme.”
The government has planned for a new rehabilitation programme named “Reconstruction In-situ” which will provide disaster resistant houses in the existing places, early warning system and safe escape routes for villages.

The Secretary-cum-Collector G. Thevaneethidhas said to the press that the government had approached the World Bank for an assistance of Rs 240 crore to implement the programme. We planned to involve the beneficiaries in the entire programme even from the design of the houses to its execution. The government would only provide the technical assistance.

IAS Exams Held at 4 Centers in Puducherry on May 18, 2008

On May 18th Sunday, 989 candidates wrote Civil Service Examination in Puducherry at four centers: Vivekananda Higher Secondary School (Sellaperumalpet), Bharathidasan Government College for Women (Muthialpet), Women’s Polytechnic (Lawspet)., and Vallalar Government Girls Higher Secondary School (Lawspet).

"The UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) of India conducts the IAS exam. The three-step process is: Preliminary Exam (Prelims), Main Exam (Mains), and Interview.

The Prelims are composed of two tests of two hours each. The General Studies (GS) test contains 150 objective, multiple-choice questions. It primarily covers six topics: the constitution of India, history, geography, economics, science, and current affairs. The second test is on a subject chosen, from among the 23 subjects, by the candidate. This objective, multiple-choice test contains 120 questions. The GS and second test are worth 150 and 300 points, respectively."

Out of 1676 applicants only 989 candidates appeared for the exam who wrote in 2 sessions (Morning and Afternoon). For the convenience of the other state and outskirts candidates, Enquire Center was arranged near Puducherry New Bus stand and also special free bus service is also made available between 6.00 a.m to 9.00 a.m. With the administration of Collector Davanithidas, Indian Admisntaration Service exams held successfully in Puducherry.

Will Nov. 1 be a Liberation Day of Puducherry? Oh We Miss the Past!

Until or unless I had read a news, I would have not known what is what in the history of Puducherry. Recently I came to November 1st is our liberation day of Puducherry. I promise I know not this ever before.

The Federation of People of Puducherry Origin has insisted that the government should announce November 1 as a public holiday each year to emphasize the 'historic event' of joining Puducherry with the Indian Union in 1954. Actually it was in this year that Puducherry became free from French rule.
The second annual convention of the Federation took certain worthy to notice resolutions like November 1 as public holiday (liberation or merger day of Puducherry), priority in education and employment opportunities for people of Puducherry origin, House site pattas to ex-servicemen & freedom fighters.

Apart from all these resolutions, they demanded the most valuable and timely plea: Inclusion of the history of Puducherry in the school syllabus. None of the Puducherrians will object if I say none of us either knew the complete history of Puducherry or the sociological (or) cultural background of Puducherry.

We are familiar with beach and park but (generously) no matter if we forget about the history. Neither my school nor my family taught me the history or said a story of freedom of Puducherry. My dad didn’t say a word about the history of Pondicherry since his teachers didn’t say a word. Lets first start with the school!

Governor Bhopinder Singh visits Jipmer, Puducherry Government Medical College and Pondicherry University

Puducherry Governor Mr. Bhopinder Singh made a sudden visit to Jipmer Hospital, Puducherry Government Medical College(under construction), and Pondicherry University on Thursday, May 08, 2008. When he arrived to Jimper, Dean Mr.K.S.Reddy and Hospital Supervisor Dr.Ramdec greeted and explained about the hospital’s functionalities as well as medical treatment as a response to Mr.Bhopinder Singh questions. The Governor visited the cardiology department, research centre, and other main departments.

The Governor also visited Government Medical College which is under construction in Kathirkamam. He was by accompanied by Health Director Mr. Dilipkumar Palika and College Principal Dr. Ananthakrishnan while ing about the progress in construction works and what percentage of work has been completed. He asked all the officers to speed up the basic construction works of Puducherry Medical College without sparing time in unnecessary building works. After insisting on the quicker work, Governor visited Pondicherry University before reaching Rajnivas.

Give 'Measles Vaccination Programme' a Break...Puducherry Govt New Words

On Friday April 25, 2008, The Puducherry Government has suspended the measles vaccination programme in the Union Territory for the next 2 weeks.

Heart-breaking news of four infants death due to the the vaccine shots in neighbouring Tamil Nadu made Govt to take this step as a precautionary measure.

This unbelievable and careless lead disaster incident happened in Katchur Primary Health Centre in Poondi Panchayat union of Tiruvallur District.

Health Minister E Valsaraj announced this in response to a mention by AIADMK member A Anbalagan in the territorial assembly. He also added "We have been getting our supplies from Serum Institute of India, Pune. However, the samples of the vials with the health department here had been sent for tests".