Iran on Sunday hanged in public in the western city of Kermanshah two men convicted of child rape, the official IRNA news agency reported. The men sent to gallows were identified as P. Mohammadi Pashterizeh and A. Namaki, convicted respectively of raping a child and filming the act and of raping a nine-year-old child. IRNA reported that the crowd gathered in the square where the executions were carried out shouted, "Judiciary, thanks ... thanks."
Friday, June 24, 2011
Assad uses tanks against protesting Syrian towns—ToI –30.5.11
Beirut: Syrian government troops backed by tanks attacked three central towns Sunday in an attempt to stop round-the-clock protests there against President Bashar Assad's regime, killing at least three people and wounding several others, activists and a rights group said.
Activists said a school employee was killed and several students hurt, four seriously, when a shell exploded near a school bus.
Security forces in several other parts of the country fired on crowds holding overnight demonstrations, causing casualties, activists said.
The new attack using military forces pointed to Assad's determination to crush the two-month-old revolt, despite US and European sanctions, including an EU assets freeze and a visa ban on Assad and nine members of his regime.
The uprising, which began in mid-March, is posing the most serious challenge to his family's 40-year rule. What began as a disparate movement demanding reforms has grown into a resilient uprising seeking Assad's ouster. Human rights groups say more than 1,000 people have been killed in the crackdown.
Sunday's military attacks targeted the towns of Rastan, Talbiseh and Teir Maaleh in the central province of Homs. Authorities had sealed off and isolated the towns by closing roads and cutting phone service, the activists said. "The towns are under siege," one of the activists said.
The activists spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing government reprisals.
Residents of the towns have held antiregime protests since the start of the uprising. Those protests have increased recently, with crowds taking to the streets day and night to call for the fall of Assad's regime, an activist said. AP
Breakaway army units add to pressure on Yemeni prez
Abreakaway military group called on Sunday for other army units to join them in the fight to bring down Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh, piling pressure on him to end his three-decade rule over the destitute country. Opposition leaders separately accused Saleh of allowing the city of Zinjibar, on the Gulf of Aden, to fall to al Qaeda and Islamists militants in order to raise alarm in the region that would in turn translate to support for the president. Despite global and regional powers demanding he step down, Saleh has refused to sign a deal, mediated by Gulf states, to start a transition of power aimed at averting civil war that could shake the region that supplies the world with oil. AGENCIE.
Activists said a school employee was killed and several students hurt, four seriously, when a shell exploded near a school bus.
Security forces in several other parts of the country fired on crowds holding overnight demonstrations, causing casualties, activists said.
The new attack using military forces pointed to Assad's determination to crush the two-month-old revolt, despite US and European sanctions, including an EU assets freeze and a visa ban on Assad and nine members of his regime.
The uprising, which began in mid-March, is posing the most serious challenge to his family's 40-year rule. What began as a disparate movement demanding reforms has grown into a resilient uprising seeking Assad's ouster. Human rights groups say more than 1,000 people have been killed in the crackdown.
Sunday's military attacks targeted the towns of Rastan, Talbiseh and Teir Maaleh in the central province of Homs. Authorities had sealed off and isolated the towns by closing roads and cutting phone service, the activists said. "The towns are under siege," one of the activists said.
The activists spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing government reprisals.
Residents of the towns have held antiregime protests since the start of the uprising. Those protests have increased recently, with crowds taking to the streets day and night to call for the fall of Assad's regime, an activist said. AP
Breakaway army units add to pressure on Yemeni prez
Abreakaway military group called on Sunday for other army units to join them in the fight to bring down Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh, piling pressure on him to end his three-decade rule over the destitute country. Opposition leaders separately accused Saleh of allowing the city of Zinjibar, on the Gulf of Aden, to fall to al Qaeda and Islamists militants in order to raise alarm in the region that would in turn translate to support for the president. Despite global and regional powers demanding he step down, Saleh has refused to sign a deal, mediated by Gulf states, to start a transition of power aimed at averting civil war that could shake the region that supplies the world with oil. AGENCIE.
Tutorials buy, steal toppers’ success – ToI – 30.5.11
Hemali Chapia | TNN
Mumbai: For the painfully shy young I Prudhvi Tej, acing the competitive IIT entrance test has been akin to wearing a crown of thorns.
About two years ago, a coaching class spammed its notes to Prudhvi Tej (IITJEE 2011 all India topper); now it proudly takes credit for his success. The private academy, popular for training medical aspirants, will draw on Prudhvi Tej’s accomplishment and cash in on the large enrolments it will get for the ensuing year.
“When I was in class XI, this coaching class had sent
some notes to me free of cost. I don’t know why they sent those booklets. Neither did I contact them, nor have they ever spoken to me. Just because they sent these notes, they registered me as a student,” he said .
Ever since the results were declared, toppers have been shocked to find themselves associated with coaching institutes they never attended.
District communities they don’t belong to, have expressed desire to felicitate them.
A long line of politicians, touts, coaching academies and other opportunists have been constantly badgering and cajoling toppers — “please appear in this ad”, “please be the chief guest”, kindly endorse our product”.
“I did not take any additional help. I did not go to a coaching class. My father prepared me for the JEE. But I received calls from about eight tutorials wanting me to fill feedback forms for which they would offer about Rs 2 lakh. They were, in fact still are, trying to buy my rank, just because I am in the top-100,” said a student who did not want to be named. ‘Students’ names misused by coaching centres’
Kandarp Khandwala is another furious JEE topper. The 13th ranker said his name and photograph have been used by an all-India tutorial famous for its test series, whereas Khandwala attended a Mumbai-based class for two years. “I bought the rankers’ study material from this coaching class. But they have advertised that I was their classroom student. For a lot of other students too, this class has clubbed their ‘non-classroom programme toppers with their ‘classroom programme’ toppers,” said Khandwala. It is immediately after the JEE results that coaching classes open admission counters. And penetrate into the thickly competitive JEE coaching business and attracting bright students doesn’t come easy. Everyone goes by previous results and hence the grand outcome or the number of toppers one churns out, matters a lot. “The practice is unethical and there was a time when we were considering legal action against some coaching institutes in the north that were using our students’ names and photos and taking credit for their ranks,” said P Narayana, proprietor of Hyderabad-based coaching institute. The clash of coaching classes has had another fall-out. As soon as the results are out, coaching classes order their rankers to march up to their This is followed by a party. All day long, top rankers are held in captivity. For those wanting to spend time at home, celebrating their success quietly with their family, there’s another day.
128 kids died after vaccine in ’10, govt can’t say why – ToI – 30.5.11
Chennai: More children in India are dying every year soon after being vaccinated, and the government has no clue why. Union health ministry statistics obtained under the Right to Information Act show that 128 children died in 2010 due to adverse effects after immunization (AEFI). That count hasbeen going up in the past three years, with 111 such deaths in 2008 and 116 in 2009.
AEFI is a general term that covers various reasons, including bad vaccine quality due to breaks in the cold chain, contamination and complications due to pre-existing conditions of the child. Coincidentally, AEFI deaths in 2008, when the government closed down all three public sector vaccine units and began buying from private suppliers, were three times the figure for 2007. TOI was the first to report in March this year that up to 2009, the toll was moving upwards. The 2010 figures show the trend has not changed.
“We are very concerned,’’ Union health secretary K Chandramouli said, “but we can’t attribute all such deaths to one reason.’’ He refused to point out specific reasons for the deaths, but said “lack of diligence at the field level and carelessness’’ could be among the reasons. Asked if the vaccines were responsible for the deaths, he replied: “I can’t say that offhand.’’
Of the 128 deaths last year, reasons for 72 have been categorized under ‘unknown’, 48 as ‘coincidental’, four as due to ‘vaccine reaction’ and two due to ‘injection reaction’ and ‘programme error’.
Maharashtra registered the largest number of deaths (28), followed by Uttar Pradesh (18) and Andhra Pradesh (11). Tamil Nadu registered eight deaths.
“The number of deaths went up from 32 in 2007, the last year when the government procured vaccines from PSUs, to 111 in 2008. Out of the 140 crore doses of vaccine used in the post-PSU closure period, only 4.25 crore were procured from the Central Research Institute,’’ says Dr K V Babu, a physician from Kerala who filed the RTI plea. PSU closure hit vaccine production
Chennai: While the Union health ministry statistics put the deaths of children due to vaccination in 2010 at 128, health experts think that the number could be higher.
“Many vaccine deaths reported in the media do not find a mention in the government statistics,” says Dr Jacob M Puliyel, head of paediatrics at St Stephen’s Hospital, Delhi. He finds fault with the government for not following the Brighton Collaboration criteria adopted by WHO to deal with adverse effects after immunisation (AEFI) deaths. The Brighton criteria classifies the probability of such deaths and suggests that the vaccine should be considered a “probable reason” if no other reason is established.
“The government tries to pass on every death as unrelated to vaccine. It sometimes merely does a culture of the vaccine in question. Just because a vaccine is not found to be contaminated, it doesn’t mean the vaccine has not caused the death,” says Dr Puliyel.
There is also an ethical issue. “We don’t know the exact cause of the deaths and the government is doing nothing to find the cause,” says Dr George Thomas, editor of Indian Journal of Medical Ethics. “Whenever there is a vaccinationrelated death, it’s ethically essential for the government to probe and find the reason.”
The government during the tenure of health minister Anbumani Ramadoss had closed down its three vaccine labs — Central Research Institute in Kasauli, BCG Laboratory in Chennai and Pasteur Institute of India in Coonoor — in January 2008 citing non-compliance of good manufacturing practices.
To make up for the demand of 75 lakh doses of vaccines of six kinds needed for its universal immunisation programme, the government has been procuring vaccines from private manufacturers. Now, it is working on plans to resume making the vaccines at its own facilities.
AEFI is a general term that covers various reasons, including bad vaccine quality due to breaks in the cold chain, contamination and complications due to pre-existing conditions of the child. Coincidentally, AEFI deaths in 2008, when the government closed down all three public sector vaccine units and began buying from private suppliers, were three times the figure for 2007. TOI was the first to report in March this year that up to 2009, the toll was moving upwards. The 2010 figures show the trend has not changed.
“We are very concerned,’’ Union health secretary K Chandramouli said, “but we can’t attribute all such deaths to one reason.’’ He refused to point out specific reasons for the deaths, but said “lack of diligence at the field level and carelessness’’ could be among the reasons. Asked if the vaccines were responsible for the deaths, he replied: “I can’t say that offhand.’’
Of the 128 deaths last year, reasons for 72 have been categorized under ‘unknown’, 48 as ‘coincidental’, four as due to ‘vaccine reaction’ and two due to ‘injection reaction’ and ‘programme error’.
Maharashtra registered the largest number of deaths (28), followed by Uttar Pradesh (18) and Andhra Pradesh (11). Tamil Nadu registered eight deaths.
“The number of deaths went up from 32 in 2007, the last year when the government procured vaccines from PSUs, to 111 in 2008. Out of the 140 crore doses of vaccine used in the post-PSU closure period, only 4.25 crore were procured from the Central Research Institute,’’ says Dr K V Babu, a physician from Kerala who filed the RTI plea. PSU closure hit vaccine production
Chennai: While the Union health ministry statistics put the deaths of children due to vaccination in 2010 at 128, health experts think that the number could be higher.
“Many vaccine deaths reported in the media do not find a mention in the government statistics,” says Dr Jacob M Puliyel, head of paediatrics at St Stephen’s Hospital, Delhi. He finds fault with the government for not following the Brighton Collaboration criteria adopted by WHO to deal with adverse effects after immunisation (AEFI) deaths. The Brighton criteria classifies the probability of such deaths and suggests that the vaccine should be considered a “probable reason” if no other reason is established.
“The government tries to pass on every death as unrelated to vaccine. It sometimes merely does a culture of the vaccine in question. Just because a vaccine is not found to be contaminated, it doesn’t mean the vaccine has not caused the death,” says Dr Puliyel.
There is also an ethical issue. “We don’t know the exact cause of the deaths and the government is doing nothing to find the cause,” says Dr George Thomas, editor of Indian Journal of Medical Ethics. “Whenever there is a vaccinationrelated death, it’s ethically essential for the government to probe and find the reason.”
The government during the tenure of health minister Anbumani Ramadoss had closed down its three vaccine labs — Central Research Institute in Kasauli, BCG Laboratory in Chennai and Pasteur Institute of India in Coonoor — in January 2008 citing non-compliance of good manufacturing practices.
To make up for the demand of 75 lakh doses of vaccines of six kinds needed for its universal immunisation programme, the government has been procuring vaccines from private manufacturers. Now, it is working on plans to resume making the vaccines at its own facilities.
Ban on polythene carry bags in Hyd from July 1—ToI – 29.5.11
Hyderabad: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) will strictly enforce ban on polythene carry bags in Greater Hyderabad limits from July 1. Any trader violating the ban will have to cough up a hefty penalty (10 times of licence fee) or risk closure of the business establishment. Also, a steep fine of Rs 500 will be imposed on individuals found using polythene carry bags.
The corporation will take up an awareness campaign in June through hoardings, advertisements, slides in cinema halls, etc.
Speaking at a press conference here on Saturday, mayor Banda Karthika Reddy said the decision to ban polythene carry bags was taken as they were causing pollution and harming environment.
“Plastic is also causing water stagnation as drains are getting choked with such bags,” she added.
Karthika Reddy said the ban on plastic was being implemented in major parks since November 14, 2010, and all colony parks from January 1, 2011.
“The GHMC standing committee has also approved the ban on plastic carry bags in open places, markets and parks irrespective of size and microns in November last,” the mayor added.
The corporation has taken up awareness campaign among people and also conducted meetings with plastic bag manufacturers in the past two months. It would now be intensified, she said.
“We will take a self-declaration from traders, who come for new or renewal of their trade licence, that the establishment will not use, store or manufacture plastic bags,” Karthika Reddy said.
“A hefty penalty will be collected from traders violating the ban on usage of plastic bags like 10 times their trade licence fee,” she added.
The mayor said for enforcement of the ban, all deputy municipal commissioners have been designated as chief enforcement officers and assistant medical officers of health as additional chief enforcement officers at the circle level
The corporation will take up an awareness campaign in June through hoardings, advertisements, slides in cinema halls, etc.
Speaking at a press conference here on Saturday, mayor Banda Karthika Reddy said the decision to ban polythene carry bags was taken as they were causing pollution and harming environment.
“Plastic is also causing water stagnation as drains are getting choked with such bags,” she added.
Karthika Reddy said the ban on plastic was being implemented in major parks since November 14, 2010, and all colony parks from January 1, 2011.
“The GHMC standing committee has also approved the ban on plastic carry bags in open places, markets and parks irrespective of size and microns in November last,” the mayor added.
The corporation has taken up awareness campaign among people and also conducted meetings with plastic bag manufacturers in the past two months. It would now be intensified, she said.
“We will take a self-declaration from traders, who come for new or renewal of their trade licence, that the establishment will not use, store or manufacture plastic bags,” Karthika Reddy said.
“A hefty penalty will be collected from traders violating the ban on usage of plastic bags like 10 times their trade licence fee,” she added.
The mayor said for enforcement of the ban, all deputy municipal commissioners have been designated as chief enforcement officers and assistant medical officers of health as additional chief enforcement officers at the circle level
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