Urban News

  • Increase font size
  • Default font size
  • Decrease font size
Tamil Nadu News Papers

1,000 health camps planned

E-mail Print PDF

Source : The Hindu Date : 18.06.2009

1,000 health camps planned

Staff Reporter

— Photo: M. Vedhan

HEALTH WATCH: A woman being examined by a doctor at the camp held in Vepery on Wednesday.

CHENNAI: The Chennai Corporation will conduct 1,000 health camps this year to provide medical care to five lakh families of the city, Mayor M. Subramanian said on Wednesday.

Launching a ‘Varummun Kappom’ health camp at the Periyamedu Primary Health Centre, he said 100 camps targeting slum-dwellers would be held in the 10 Corporation zones.

Various tests including those for diabetes, tuberculosis and malaria and blood grouping and blood pressure would be conducted at the camps to be held on Wednesdays and Saturdays, he added.

Mr. Subramanian urged members of the public to utilise the camps to monitor diseases. Over 1.5 lakh people benefited from 40 such camps organised last year.

A total of 1,428 families and 5,400 members were screened at the camps held in all the zones on Wednesday. At the end of the day, 12 persons were diagnosed with malaria, 75 with cataract, 181 with diabetes, 18 women with cancer and 36 with blood pressure. Medicines worth Rs.1.25 lakh were distributed to those who attended.

At a camp in Guindy North, residents of the nearby Housing Board tenements of Kothwalchavady participated. M.Kalaivani Mahalingam, who works as a housemaid, said she came there as she could not afford treatment in private hospitals. Many people had preferred to give up a day’s pay to attend the camps.

Pushpa and Yesu, parents of Chelsea and Akshaya, came to the camp to find a solution for Akshaya’s repeated spells of fever. “We had taken her to private hospitals but the fever keeps recurring . So we thought we could come here and have a check-up,” said Ms. Pushpa.

Shyamalavalli of Reddy Street in Ikkattuthangal said she underwent various tests and was given tablets for blood pressure, ulcer and also a fatty liver. Sangeetha, who attended the camp at the Basin Bridge PHC, said doctors conducted thorough investigations and advised her to keep the family health book carefully as it contained the health history of her family.

Specialists, including those in ENT, dermatology, ophthalmology, and dentistry, conducted the check-up. Dr. Prabhakar, medical officer of Zone 9, said that chronic smokers and alcoholics were told to quit the habits and referred to the Corporation Clinic in Saidapet.

Last Updated on Thursday, 18 June 2009 10:05
 

Panel support sought to tackle urban poverty

E-mail Print PDF

Source : The Hindu Date : 18.06.2009

Panel support sought to tackle urban poverty

T. Ramakrishnan

CHENNAI: The urban poor account for about 47 per cent of the total poor in the State. In absolute terms, the number of the urban poor is 69.13 lakh and of the rural poor 76.5 lakh. These figures pertain to 2004-2005.

Quoting the Press Information Bureau in this regard, the State government, in its memorandum presented to the 13th Finance Commission earlier this month, stated that during the period 1973-1974 to 2004-2005, the number of total poor fell from 2.4 crore to nearly 1.46 crore.

“However, all of this reduction in the number of poor comes from rural areas. The number of urban poor actually increased over time in absolute terms, reaching a peak of 80.4 lakh in 1993-94. After 1993-94, there was a reduction in the number of urban poor but even in 2004-05, the absolute number of urban poor was larger than that in 1973-74 (66.92 lakh).” In 1973-74, the proportion of urban poor to the total poor was 27.94 per cent, which went up to 30.17 per cent in 1983 and 39.78 per cent 10 years later.

Pointing out that the State had been very successful in reducing rural poverty, the memorandum said that during the period 1983 to 2004-2005, the reduction in rural poverty, as measured by head count ratio (HCR), was over 30 percentage points — from 53.99 per cent to 22.8 per cent. In contrast, the all-India reduction in rural poverty amounted to only about 17 percentage points — from 45.65 per cent to 28.3 per cent.

Acknowledging that “urban poverty [reduction] remains a major challenge,” the memorandum said that between 1973-1974 and 1993-1994, the all-India performance of reducing urban poverty was comparatively better as the national HCR fell from 49.01 per cent to 32.36 per cent.

In the corresponding period, Tamil Nadu’s urban poverty HCR declined from 49.4 per cent to 39.77 per cent.

It was after 1993-1994 that the reduction in urban poverty in the State was sharper than the national figure.

The reduction in urban poverty amounted to over 17 percentage points — from 39.77 per cent in 1993-1994 to 22.2 per cent in 2004-2005. The corresponding all-India figure was less than seven percentage points — from 32.36 per cent to 25.7 per cent.

In view of the urban poverty factor, the State Government wanted the Finance Commission to support its efforts to reduce poverty, particularly urban poverty through significantly larger resource allocations to education and skill development, and reduce inter-district difference in human development through significant additional budgetary support to education and health.

Last Updated on Thursday, 18 June 2009 10:02
 

Main pipeline to be shifted at a cost of Rs. 8.6 crore

E-mail Print PDF

Source : The Hindu Date : 18.06.2009

Main pipeline to be shifted at a cost of Rs. 8.6 crore

Staff Reporter

Under the Tamiraparani combined drinking water scheme


Personal check: Collector, Sigy Thomas Vaidhyan, inspecting the drinking water pumping station at Palavanatham near Aruppukottai on Wednesday.

VIRUDHUNAGAR: The work to shift main pipeline carrying water under the Tamiraparani combined drinking water scheme to run parallel to the Aruppukottai-Eppothumvendran national highways 45B would be done at a cost of Rs.8.6 crore.

Inspecting the work at Aruppukottai on Wednesday, Collector Sigy Thomas Vaidhyan said that the main pipeline running for 25 km from Eppothumvendran to Aruppukottai was laid under the national highways at 11 places. This often led to damaging of the pipelines while carrying out road widening works.

Shifting of pipelines to the side of the road for 18 km has been completed and the work for remaining seven km was being carried out.

The Collector said that Aruppukottai town was facing a shortage of 25 lakh litres of water every day. Out of the demand for 80 lakh litres, 45 lakh litres was planned to be drawn from the combined drinking water scheme and the remaining 35 from the Tirupuvanam scheme.

She said that an advanced technology would be introduced at a cost of Rs.1.60 crore to prevent water theft by damaging the valves of the main pipeline.

Virudhunagar

Efforts would be made to ensure that the planned quantum of water under the Tamiraparani combined drinking water scheme was realised for Virudhunagar town, the Collector said.

Reviewing the drinking water supply here on Tuesday, she said that the town faced 25 lakh litres of water shortage every day. Out of its daily requirement of 65.70 lakh litres of water only around 40 lakh litres was available.

The combined drinking water scheme that was supposed to supply 39 lakh litres every day was providing only 16 lakh litres. The town was getting 24 lakh litres from Anaikuttam dam daily.

Ms. Sigy said that the officials should ensure that the proposed water supply of once in five days should be maintained strictly without any problem. She asked the officials to identify and seize electric motors used for illegal suction of drinking water.

Municipal Commissioner Kalyansundaram and officials from the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board, participated in the meeting.

Last Updated on Thursday, 18 June 2009 09:33
 


Page 1619 of 1640