ProUI

CHENNAI: Can diabetes and a blood sugar level of 140mg/dL be cited as reasons to deny employment to a person?

No, the Madras high court has said, adding, "There cannot be a blanket ban on giving public employment to persons with diabetes. Medical experts opine that diabetes is a condition where the body fails to utilise the ingested glucose properly. Further, there is a strong school of thought that a diabetic is not suffering from a disease, but only a disorder that could be managed."

Upholding a Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) order rejecting the railway administration's claim that a diabetic might not be able to discharge his/her works efficiently, a bench of Justice R Banumathi and Justice T S Sivagnanam said, "It is unfair on the part of the railway administration to reject a candidature on a single blood test."Manikandan, a commercial clerk in Southern Railway, died in harness in 2010. His wife Arockiammal applied to the railways for a job on compassionate grounds. In 2011, the railway administration informed that she was unfit on medical grounds, as her blood sugar level was around 140mg/dL.She then approached the CAT for remedy. The railways resisted her application, stating that compassionate appointment cannot be a matter of right and that she had been found medically unfit for the job. The tribunal, however, allowed her plea, and directed the railways to appoint her under compassionate grounds.The present appeal in the high court was filed by the railway administration.

Dismissing the appeal, the division bench said that, as of a 2011 survey, 62.4million (as against 1.2 billion Indian population) are diabetic. It is slated to increase in 2030 to 110.1 million. "Diabetes usually has no impact on an individual's ability to do a particular job, and in most cases the employer may not even know that his employee has diabetes. As the impact of diabetes and its management varies among individuals, there cannot be a blanket ban on giving public employment to persons with diabetes.

The judges said they were conscious of the legal position that there is no vested right to secure appointment on compassionate grounds, but said that they had jurisdiction to step in when they find that there has not been an objective consideration or arbitrary approach by the authorities. Pointing out that Arockiammal was otherwise eligible for the employment, the judge said, "to deny employment to her on speculation that what might occur in future is unreasonable."

The judges then directed the railway administration to comply with the CAT direction on giving employment to Arockiammal within three months.

Medical experts point out that people with diabetes should not be discriminated based on their condition as it is treatable and does not interfere with the person's routine life. "Diabetes is a very common disorder and no one can deny a job for a diabetic on these grounds. Diabetics are healthy people who have a treatable condition and it does not affect their work in any way," said diabetologist Dr A Ramachandran, Chairman, Dr A Ramachandran's Diabetes Hospitals.

SUNDAY:
DMK president M. Karunanidhi on Saturday warned of rail blockades and black flags on houses and commercial establishments across Tamil Nadu if Prime Minister Manmohan Singh did not declare that India would not participate in the CHOGM in Colombo, Indian media reported.Indian media quoted Karunanidhi in a statement, as saying: "The prime minister without neglecting Tamils' demand should categorically and openly declare that India will not participate in the meet."He said the Sri Lankan government has lost credibility in the international forum and it is trying to dilute the provisions of 13th amendment to its constitution.

Railway officials in Kasaragod heaved a sigh of relief after deftly handling a chaotic situation on the Ernakulam-bound Marusagar express — which reached the town late on Saturday night with agitated passengers complaining of uneasiness after eating stale food served on the train.All the seven passengers, who showed symptoms of food poisoning, hyper-tension and low pulse rate were taken to the General Hospital and the nearby Malik Dinar hospital. Several others were administered first aid treatment inside the station and on-board the train, thanks to the well-coordinated efforts taken ahead of the arrival of the train at 11.02 pm, a senior railway official here said.On being alerted from Mangalore about the commotion inside the super-fast express train from Ajmer, the railway officials requisitioned the services of a team of physicians and paramedical staff. The initiatives were supervised by N. A. Nellikkunnu, MLA, who rushed to the station on realizing the gravity of the situation.

All the senior railway officials here were asked to rush to the station to tackle the emergency as volunteers from nearby area joined hands to facilitate urgent medical attention, the railway official here said.

Three ambulances from the hospitals and the fire service and police personnel were requisitioned at the station by 10 p.m., an hour ahead of the arrival of the train which reached 83 minutes late after it halted at the Mangalore Junction to facilitate medical treatment for the affected.Seven affected passengers, including Mohammed Kutty (35), Mohammed Ali (35), both hailing from Perinthalmanna, and Abu Baker (64) from Mannarcaud, were taken to the General hospital and Malik Dinar hospitals and were discharged by 3 a.m.. A few other affected passengers, in the S-11 and S-12 coaches of the train, were administered first aid treatment at the railway station.The agitated passengers complained about the “rude” behaviour of the pantry car Manager who reportedly insisted them to simply take the food offered by them, he said.N. A. Nellikkunnu, who complimented the steps taken here, said he experienced foul smell from the stale bread “delicacy” offered by the pantry car.DRM Palakkad Piyush Aggarwal had assured him to take up the matter with the railway ministry, he said, adding that he also would shoot a letter to the ministry about the poor but costly food served in quite a few long distance trains from Kerala.

Secunderabad railway station is the country's first to have 10 escalators and two lifts

Secunderabad railway station now has the distinction of being the first major station of the Indian Railways to have escalators on all 10 platforms and two lifts on both the entry points – the main entrance and the Bhoiguda entrance on the last platform.The South Central Railway (SCR) authorities last week commissioned the seventh escalator on platform no. 4 and 5 and two lifts – one each on platform no. 1 and 10.The SCR has spent about Rs. 6.60 crore towards establishing the seven escalators in the station, civil engineering works and electrical power supply arrangements etc. and Rs.98 lakh for setting up two lifts on the two main entrances.While, the capacity of each lift is 20 persons, the rated carrying capacity of each escalator is 180 persons per minute.On an average, it is estimated that around 43,000 passengers are using the escalators per day in the station.These escalators and lifts facilitate easy and quick movement of passengers, especially the elderly, sick, and physically challenged persons from one platform to other, said a press release.Meanwhile, the SCR authorities penalised about 7,200 persons in July 2013 for affecting cleanliness on the railway premises and nearly Rs. 14.61 lakh was realised from them towards penalties.

Of the 7,200 persons, 1,393 persons were detected in Secunderabad division, 573 persons in Hyderabad division, 2,393 persons in Vijayawada division, 716 persons in Nanded division, 1,306 persons in Guntakal division, and 836 persons in Guntur division.

In all, from April to July this financial year, 27,000 persons were caught for committing the offence of littering, spitting etc., on the railway premises and Rs. 54.32 lakh was realised towards penalties from them, according to a press release.

Just how fast would the Hyperloop transportation system envisioned by entrepreneur Elon Musk have to be? Try more than twice as fast as the fastest commercial train in the world.
Musk recently unveiled details about what he called a highly speculative project.He said he believes the Hyperloop, with giant vacuum-like tubes and a magnetic levitation system, could ferry riders from Los Angeles to San Francisco in 35 minutes.That’s a roughly 350-mile trip, meaning the futuristic capsules would be zipping along at almost 700 mph, or slightly less than the speed of sound.By contrast, the train believed to be the world’s fastest — China’s Shangai Maglev Train, has been recorded at a top speed of 311 mph. But its top operating speed is 268 mph, meaning it would take just under an hour and 20 minutes to make the same trip.As the world ponders whether Musk’s Hyperloop will ever become a reality — he says he doesn’t currently plan to develop it himself — here’s a look at the five fastest trains we have now.
1. Shanghai Maglev Train, China
The Shanghai Maglev (“magnetic levitation”) train connects Shanghai Pudong International Airport with the Shanghai metro system.
It has been recorded at a top speed of 311 mph and its top operating speed is 268 mph, making it the world’s fastest commercial train.
It cost $1.2 billion to build and took on its first passengers in 2003.
2. China Railways CRH380A, China
Running on a more traditional track, the CRH380A has topped out at 302 mph, maxes out commercially at 236 mph and routinely runs at 217 mph.
There are currently four models of the train serving different railroad lines in China.
3. Transrapid TR-09, Germany
Another “mag-lev” train, this one runs on a monorail at a top speed of 279 mph. Formerly the world’s fastest, the Transrapid runs from the Munich airport.
4. Shinkansen Train, Japan
Japan’s famed bullet train, the Shinkansen, is nicknamed “The Duck-Billed Platypus” because of the duck-like shape of its nose. Japan’s high-speed rail network includes more than 1,400 miles of track, where the bullet trains top out at about 275 mph.
5. TGV Réseau, France
In service since 1992, France’s high-speed train generally runs at about 199 mph, with a maximum speed of 236 mph.

A leading Chinese rolling stock manufacturer said Friday it has produced the world's heaviest freight train with a maximum loading capacity of nearly 155 tonnes per wagon.CNR Qiqihar Railway Rolling Stock Co., Ltd. delivered the train to global mining giant Rio Tinto on Friday.The maximum axle load of each wagon is 44 tonnes and the train has a total carrying capacity of 30,000 to 50,000 tonnes.The train shows that China is a global leader in freight train research, development and manufacturing, according to the company.Based in the city of Qiqihar in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Qiqihar Railway Rolling Stock is a leading domestic freight train manufacturer under China CNR Corporation Limited.In 2012, Qiqihar Railway Rolling Stock realized export contracts for trains and parts totaling nearly 400 million U.S. dollars.The company's products have been sold to more than 20 countries or regions.

Raksha Bandhan Special Trains announced for controlling extra rush of passengers during the festival season 2013...

श्रीगंगानगर-हरिद्वार के बीच 21 अगस्त (रक्षाबंधन) से 14711/14712 एक्सप्रेस चलाई जाएगी। रेलवे मुख्यालय द्वारा जारी पत्र के अनुसार यह ट्रेन हरिद्वार से रोजाना दोपहर 1.40 बजे चलेगी। यहां से दोपहर 2.03 रायवाला पहुंचेगी। यहां से दोपहर ढाई बजे ऋषिकेश पहुंच जाएगी। ऋषिकेश में आधा घंटे रुकने के बाद वापसी में दोपहर तीन बजे रायवाला दोपहर 3.23 बजे और दोपहर 3.50 बजे हरिद्वार पहुंचेगी। यह ट्रेन 4.10 बजे हरिद्वार से श्रीगंगानगर के लिए रवाना होगी।

श्रीगंगानगर-हरिद्वार के बीच 21 अगस्त (रक्षाबंधन) से 14711/14712 एक्सप्रेस चलाई जाएगी। रेलवे मुख्यालय द्वारा जारी पत्र के अनुसार यह ट्रेन हरिद्वार से रोजाना दोपहर 1.40 बजे चलेगी। यहां से दोपहर 2.03 रायवाला पहुंचेगी। यहां से दोपहर ढाई बजे ऋषिकेश पहुंच जाएगी। ऋषिकेश में आधा घंटे रुकने के बाद वापसी में दोपहर तीन बजे रायवाला दोपहर 3.23 बजे और दोपहर 3.50 बजे हरिद्वार पहुंचेगी। यह ट्रेन 4.10 बजे हरिद्वार से श्रीगंगानगर के लिए रवाना होगी।

ERODE : 
A total of 600 kg of abandoned PDS rice was seized from unreserved compartments of two trains here, officials said on Sunday.The seizures were made late last night from Chennai-Mangalore Express and Mysore-Myladuthurai Express by Food Cell Revenue officials led by District Supply Officer Durgamurthy following a tip-off, Durgamurthy said.