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VOL: 3 ISSUE 11Chennai, August 04, 2009
Chennai, Aug 4:
To createawareness on globalwarming which is posing agrave threat to humanity,about 50 students of aleading school today tied'Rakhi' threads to trees aspart of '99999 Lights Out'campaign, to save motherearth.Tamil NaduGovernor Surjit SinghBarnala launched the''Vriksha Raksha Bandhan''-tying 'Rakhis' to trees- at afunction held at the RajBhavan.The event wasorganised by the VelammalVidyalaya of the VelammalEducational Trust, alongwith ExNora International,a NGO working for theprotection of environment,as part of 60 mega eventsplanned in the run upto the'99999 Lights Out'campaign on September 9to enable studentsunderstand that the need ofthe hour was to saveMother earth as ‘GlobalWarming’ was posing thegreatest threat to humanity.About 50 seventhand eighth standardstudents of VelammalVidyalaya tied 'Rakhi' totrees to seek protection andblessings from them. Thestudents also tied 'Rakhi' toMr Barnala to fosterbrotherhood and onenessamong all Indians.The word 'RakshaBandhan' symbolizes bondof protection. The world'Vriksha' means tree inSanskrit and 'Bandhan'means bond. ‘’This eventwill be a collectiveexpression of gratitudeand devotion of mankindto trees, which havenurtured and protected allliving beings on ourplanet'', the organiserssaid.The event willgo a long way in mouldingindividuals to love andvenerate nature. Theunderlying objective ofthis event is to convey ourcollective gratitude andreverence to trees, theysaid.‘’More and moretrees are ripped downevery year, giving way tohigh rise buildings andapartments. Thevegetation that has beendestroyed is seldomreplaced to create abalance. With the cityexpanding in population,the need to replenish itswater resources isimperative as the greencover is fastdisappearing. There is aneed for initiatives likethis and the '99999 LightsOut' campaign waslaunched'', they said.The 'Save theEarth 99999 Lights Out'campaign will see lightsbeing switched off fornine minutes at nine pmon the ninth day of ninthmonth (September) of theninth year of thismillennium (2009).VelammalEducational Trust CEO MV M Velmurugan, ExNorafounder M B Nirmal,among otherswere present atthe function.Speaking on theoccasion, MrBarnala said inthe era ofglobalisation,technologyprogress andrapidindustrialisationhave led todepletion of thegreen cover inthe country.Mr Barnala saidthe root cause ofvariousanomalies innature such as thedepletion of the ozonelayer and vagaries in themonsoon were due to theindiscriminate felling oftrees. Stating that treeswere the reservoirs whichpromoted healthy andgood environment, hesaid the quality of theenvironment--air, soil andwater- depended ontrees.He urged thestudents to plant treesand nurture them for aclean and better future.'History reveals that treesare worshipped, theBanyan tree in ourancient scriptures, wassupposed to beincarnation of Lord Rudraand the ''Kalpavriksha''was said to be the treefulfilling our wishes.Our ancientscriptures gaveimportance to trees whichsustained the welfare ofhuman beings,' he said.He also referredto the Chipko and theAppiko movementsstarted to safeguard treesand called for massawareness on the need topreserve and grow trees.ExnoraInternational founder M BNirmal said the bondbetween trees andhuman beings should benurtured with tendercare.The children ofVelammal Vidyalaya tiedgiant-sized 'Rakhis' aroundthe trees inside the RajBhavan, as part of thefunction.
Global warming awareness
T N Governor launches''Vriksha Raksha Bandhan''
 
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Times Chennai E-PaperAugust 04, 2009Page 2
Tamil Nadu
Madurai, Aug. 04 :
Anexpert team would soonhold talks with Maduraidistrict administration onidentifying the site for theproposed Rs 48,000 croreaero park, according toUnion Minister forChemicals and FertilisersM K Azhagiri.The aero park, tobe constructed on 4,000acres, would house severalindustries that make spareparts and also repairaircrafts, he said.The expert teamfrom Chennai would holdtalks with district CollectorN Mathivanan.The park to be setup under the public privatepartnership would makeMadurai one of themodern cities in thecountry, he said afterinaugurating the MaduraiMP's South Zone officehere last night.The park wheredesigns to maintenanceof civil aircrafts would beundertaken, amongothers, was expected togenerate job oppor-tunities for one lakhpeople, he said.Stating that theCentral Institute ofPlastic EngineeringTechnology wouldestablish its tool designcentre near here, he said"my aim is not only toindustrialise Madurai, butall the Southern districtsof Tamil Nadu."The ChiefMinister was also keen tosee more industries wereset up in the Southerndistricts and he hadassured to impresscorporate houses to setup shops in South TamilNadu, Mr. Azhagiri said.He said theEssar Company Ltd.would establish abusiness processoutsourcing (BPO) unit inMadurai, which wouldgenerate jobs for about2,000 people.
Expert team to identify site foraero park site: Azhagiri
Tirunelveli, Aug. 04 :
APattali MakkalKatchi(PMK) leader wasseriously injured, after hewas shot in the leg andattacked with sickles by anarmed gang atPalayamkottai in thisdistrict of Tamil Nadu lastnight.Police said PMKDistrict president VNixon(42) was waylaid by afour-member-gang, whenhe was returning to hishouse from the office.There was a heatedargument between thegang and Nixon, afterwhich a gang memberfired one round. Theother members attackedhim with sickles.On hearing hisscream, the passers byrushed to his assistance.The gang,however, managed toflee the scene inmotorcycles.The PMK leaderwas admitted to theGovernment Hospital atPalayamkottai.Police suspectenmity over moneytransaction could havebeen the reason behindthe murderous attack, asNixon was running afinance company,besides a travel agencyin the city.A case hadbeen registered andefforts were on to tracethe accused, policeadded.
PMK leader sustains seriousinjury in gang attack
Chennai, Aug. 04 :
A groupof miscreants robbed aRussian atomic engineer'scamera and misbehavedwith his daughter at abeach in Tamil Nadu'sTirunelveli district, officialssaid Tuesday.Alexander V.Chernov, who works in theupcoming nuclear powerplant in Kudankulam, andhis daughter were walkingon the beach Sunday whena seven-member gangassaulted them.The miscreants,all aged below 20,misbehaved with theRussian girl andsnatched Chernov'sCanon camera and fled.Police officialstold IANS that a search ison for the culprits on thebasis of a complaint filedby the Chernov.The Russianengineer is staying in theAnuVijay residentialcolony where employeesof Kudankulam NuclearPower Project live.According toofficials of the powerproject, there are over100 Russian engineersworking at theKudankulam nuclearpower project.The NuclearPower Corporation ofIndia Ltd (NPCIL) isworking on the 2x1000MW project with Russiantechnical assistance.The first unit isexpected to becommissioned early nextyear.As per the dealbetween India andRussia, two morereactors of similar oreven slightly highercapacity will come up atKudankulam.
Russian atomic engineerrobbed in Tamil Nadu
Coimbatore, Aug.04:
 NAIP-Domestic andExport MarketIntelligence Cell of TamilNadu AgriculturalUniversity(TNAU) hasurged the Tamil NaduGovernment to makearrangements forprocurement of cotton byCCI in the State, sincethe farmers weredeprived of MinimumSupport Price(MSP)forcotton during this year.In a releasehere today, TNAU said,CCI has not made anyprocurement during2008-09 and farmers inthis part of the countryare selling at a reducedrate of Rs 100-300 perquintal, compared toMSP.A team led by NAjjan, ConsortiumPrinciple InvestigatorNAIP-Domestic andExport MarketIntelligence Cell, TNAUsaid exports would bereduced in the currentfinancial year, despiteappreciation of US Dollaragainst Indian rupee. InTamil Nadu, Masipattam-sown cotton would beavailable till the end of themonth, Dr Ajjan added.In India, sowing ofcotton in the new seasonbegins from June.But, due to thelate onset of monsoon,sowing was delayed andcommenced from the endof June in Maharastra.BT cotton hadcovered 70 per cent ofcultivation and the yieldwould be more than 540 kgper hectare, as against 526kg last year, the releaseadded.
TNAU urges Government toensure procurement of cotton
Chennai, Aug. 04 :
FormerChief Minister JJayalalithaa has filed apetition in a special courtfor CBI cases here seekinga direction to the CBI tofurnish her a copy of theState Government'snotification giving consentto the central agency toinvestigate the 'gifts case'against her.The prosecutionsays that Ms Jayalalithaahad allegedly accepted 89demand drafts worth Rstwo crore drawn in herfavour on her birthday in1992.Ms Jayalalithaasubmitted that initially theCB-CID had registered acase against her. Later,the State Government bya notification in August1996, gave consent tothe CBI for investigatingthe case.It had beenreferred to in the UnionGovernment'snotification, which wasfiled along with thechargesheet.The StateGovernment'snotification was notfurnished to her.It was anessential document in thecase. Unless thenotification was furnishedto her, she would be putto hardship.
Gifts case: Jaya seeks copy of Government notification
Puducherry, Aug. 04:
 Cross-examination ofprosecution witnesses inthe Sankararamanmurder case, in whichKanchi mutt seerJayendra Saraswathiand his junior VijayendraSaraswathi are the mainaccused, commenced onTuesday.JayendraSaraswathi andVijayendra Saraswathihad been charged undersections 120-B(conspiracry) and 302(murder) of Indian PenalCode.Only 20 out ofthe 24 accused werepresent, when thehearing came up beforethe Principal and DistrictSessions Judge ofPuducherry DKrishnaraja today.The two seerswere among the fourabsentees.Defencecounsel K S Dinakaranappearing for JayendraSaraswathi crossexamined Padma (wife ofSankararaman), UmaMaitreyi (his daughter)Anand Kumar Sharma(son) and N S Ganesh(accountant in the temple).Special PublicProsecutor N Devadosslater told reporters thatcross-examination of fivewitnesses - K Duraikannu,Gajapathay, Atchudan,Kumar and Kuppuswamy -would be held on Wednes.Sankararaman,the Manager of theVaradarajaperumal templein Kancheepuram, wasallegedly murdered in thetemple premises onSeptember 3, 2004.
Cross-examination in Sankararamanmurder case commences
 
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Times Chennai E-PaperAugust 04, 2009Page 3
Chennai, Aug. 04 :
Closeon the heels of AIADMKLegislator Anitha RRadhakrishnan joining theDMK following hisexpulsion from the party,four AIADMK councillors ofa Municipality also quit and joined the ruling DMK.The councillors ofKathivakkamMunicipality in Tiruvallurdistrict, K Nalini, A Babu,R Mathiazhagan and MSivakumar joined theDMK in the presence ofDMK Treasurer andDeputy Chief Minister MK Stalin, a party presshere said.DMK seniorleader Arcot NVeerasamy, FisheriesMinister K P P Samy andTiruvallur DMK Districtsecretary and MLA E A PSivaji were among otherswho were present on theoccasion.
Four AIADMK Councillors join DMK
Chennai, Aug. 04:
A nativeof Sri Lanka has filed apetition in the Madras HighCourt seeking transfer of acheating case against aperson, who had promisedto cure her son, to the CBCID.In her petition, NPushparathnam submittedthat she had settled downwith her family inSwitzerland ten years ago.She was now staying atKoyambedu. Her son,aged 14 years, lost hisvision after a bout of viralfever. He was alsosuffering from cerebralpalsy.There was noprogress after he wastreated in Switzerland.After watching televisionadvertisements aboutVijayakumar, whoclaimed that he couldcure such diseases, shecame to Chennai fortreatment in August2006. The petitionersubmitted that she paidRs.29.80 lakh for thetreatment. There was noimprovement in her sonscondition. MsPushparathnam allegedthat Vijayakumar hadcheated her and lodged acomplaint with the CityPolice Commissioner.The complaint wasforwarded to theMylapore police and acase was registered. Shehad come to know thatseveral others had beencheated and complaintswere pending.
Sri Lankan seeks transferof cheating case
Chennai, Aug. 04:
In aswift move, the city policeon Monday arrested ninepeople and recovered Rssix lakh in cash from them,within six hours after theylooted the money from abusinessman.City PoliceCommissioner Rajendrantold newspersons here thatthe culprits, travelling in anautorickshaw and two two-wheelers, waylaid a truckand looted Rs six lakh afterattacking the driver andothers in the truck last nightaround 23 hrs.The victims werereturning to Krishnagiriafter supplying broilerchicken in the city, whenthe nine-member gangfollowed and attackedthem. The culprits dashedthe auto-richshawagainst the truck andtried to give animpression that it was anaccident.However,before those in the truckcould react, four others,who came on two-wheelers, joined thegang members andattecked them and fledthe scene after taking thecash from them.Soon after theyalerted the police, aspecial team headed byMr Sampath Kumar,Deputy Commissioner ofPolice, T Nagar alertedall check posts andnabbed the criminalswithin six hours after thecrime took place.Besidesrecovering the lootedcash, police seized theauto-rickshaw and twotwo-wheelers, theCommissioner said andCongratulated hisDeputy, Sampath Kunar.
City Police recover lootedmoney in six hours
Chennai , Aug. 04 :
TheKuruvila Jacob Initiativefor promoting excellencein School education wasinaugurated on the birthcentenary of KuruvilaJacob here on Monday.This initiative isbeing managed by theKuruvila Jacob MemorialEducational Trustcomprising the followingold students of Mr Jacob,all of them students ofMadras ChristianCollege High School astrustees. One of theobjectives of the KuruvilaJacob Initiative is to actas a catalyst, aidingschools to adoptinnovative methods andtechniques in thelearning process. A fewset of modules in Physicsand Chemistry is beinglaunched today in theform of DVD in theparticipating schools andwould be available in thepublic domain shortly. It isintended to make itaccessible free of cost to allthe schools.The twenty-twoparticipating schools andthe eighty resourcepersons have contributedto the development of themodules.It is expected thatthe complete version of themodules will be released inthe public domain by theend of 2009.
Kuruvila Jacob Initiative foreducation inaugurated
Rotary District3230 in association withAlma Mater raised Rs.4.0 million to eradicatePolio.To help Rotaryraise funds Shri T. T.Rangarajan gave a lifechanging oration on “Complete Adulthood ” atthe University CentenaryHall on Aug. 02 , whichwas attended by over2000 people . Thesefunds will be used tomeet the challenge givenby Bill & MelindaFoundation.At a PressConference here,Rotarian W. Anand,District Governor, RIDistrict 3230 along withShri T.T. Rangarajan,Founder, Alma Materhanded over Rs. 40 lakhscheque to Past RIPresident WilfWilkinson, who is alsothe trustee of the RotaryFoundation.Whileaccepting the chequePast RI President WilfWilkinson said, “ I amoverwhelmed by thespontaneous responseto the challenge, byRotarians from District3230, who have shownthat they are concernedand willing to contributefor a worthy cause.Elaboratingfurther on the PolioChallenge he said, “ Tohelp address the criticalfunding gap for polioimmunization activities,Rotary has accepted achallenge from the Bill &Melinda GatesFoundation to raise $200million to matchchallenge grants totalling$355 million given by thefoundation. The resulting$555 million will supportpolio eradicationactivities in the remainingfour polio-endemic andhigh-risk countries,where polio continues toinfect and paralysechildren, robbing them oftheir futures andcompounding thehardships faced by theirfamilies. The diseaseremains endemic in justfour countries --Afghanistan, India,Nigeria, and Pakistan --although other countriesremain at risk forimported cases. Unlesseradicated, Polioremains a train journeyaway or a flight away.W. Anand,District Governor, RIDistrict 3230 said, “ WeRotarians are committedto providing a betterquality of life and thisfund raiser is in thedirection to wipe off thedeadly disease, whichaffects children. Rs. 10 isenough to immunise 3children against Polioand it is sad that still insome parts of India Poliovirus is still active. We arehappy to say thatTamilnadu has been freefrom Polio for the lastcouple of years. Thanks tothe tremendous support ofGovt. along with Rotary.The other focusareas of Rotary District3230 this year is the"Project Blossom"launched on Aug 2 forcorrective surgery tothose affected byLeprosy. Leprosyvictims often havetwisted and ‘clawed’hands, unblinkingeyes and Foot drop -all visible signs of thedisease. Surgeryhelps them open theirhands, shut theireyes and lift their feet,and do things we takefor granted– likeholding a cup of tea.Project Blossomhopes to help theirlives blossom againas their hands openup like a flower inbloom.On Aug 2, the firstset of 21 surgeries werecompleted with supportfrom Rotarians and otherscosting Rs 3.15 lakhs.Each surgery would becosting Rs15000.Surgeries took place atTLM hospitals atVadathorasalur, (nearUlundurpet) andDayapuram (near ManaMadurai). Of these patients12 were less than 35 yearsof age and three wereunder 16 years of age.Surgeries performedcorrected deformities of thehands, feet and eyes andwill be followed bysustained physiotherapyand vocational therapy forthe patients over the next 6months.Dist 3230 hopesto perform 365 surgeriesthis year and help at leastone life to ‘blossom’ everyday of the year. Briefing themedia, Governor W.Anand said, "we want togive dignity to the leprosyaffected patients and thiswould help in their lives tobloom."
Rotary District 3230 donatedRs.4.0 million to RI to help eradicate polio
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