Tamil Nadu

Briefly

Financier escapes

COIMBATORE: The Hyderabad-based financier Pongu Venakata Rao who was in the custody of the Income Tax officials and police from Andhra Pradesh gave the slip on Thursday. The financier is accused of having evaded tax to a tune of over Rs. 5 crore in Andhra Pradesh and had settled in Coimbatore. The Tax Recovery Officer of Income Tax Department, Coimbatore, took the financier into custody and informed their counterparts in Hyderabad who, along with the Andhra Pradesh police personnel, arrived here for taking the financier on a transit warrant. The officials, on reaching Coimbatore, took the financier to a bank on DB Road in R.S. Puram on Thursday afternoon for verification of his account and statements. Even as the process was going on, he is said to have given the slip. The Andhra Pradesh police preferred a complaint with the R.S. Puram police who have launched a hunt. — Staff Reporter

Textile delegation to visit Russia, Japan

ERODE: An official Textile delegation, led by Union Textile Minister Shankar Sinh Vaghela, will visit the Russian Federation and Japan from April 1 to 8. According to Chairman of Powerloom Development and Export Promotion Council M.S. Mathivanan, the delegation consists of members from Apparel Export Promotion Council, the Cotton Textile Export Promotion Council, Synthetic and Ryon Textile Export Promotion Council and PDEXCIL.

The team will attend the 9th International Trade expo for Decorative Textiles and Window at Russia, conducted by Decotex, Russia. In Japan the delegation will meet officials of Japan External Trade Organisation and the Chief officials of YKK, the leading zipper manufacturer. — Staff Reporter

Speaker's appeal to leaders

CHENNAI: Speaker of the Assembly R. Avudaiappan on Friday appealed to leaders of all legislature parties to "shun political differences and take part in the historic event of felicitating Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi to mark the golden jubilee of his service as Member of the House."

Mr. Avudaiappan told reporters here that President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam would felicitate Mr. Karunanidhi in the Assembly on May 10. The President's speech would be followed by felicitations by leaders of legislature parties on May 11, he said.

The general debate on the budget for 2007-2008 would be from March 26 to 30, he said adding that there would be no Question Hour on these days. Discussions on various demands for grants would be taken up from April 2 to May 9, he said. — Special Correspondent

2 arrested in ball bearing case

RAMANATHAPURAM: The `Q' branch police on Friday arrested two persons in connection with the ball bearing case. Police sources said Raja (42), son of Karuppaiah of Puduroad in Rameswaram, and Karunakaran alias Kannan (33), son of Kalimuthu, who was also from Rameswaram, played a key role in smuggling of contraband to Sri Lanka.

At least two cases of smuggling of explosives to Sri Lanka were pending against Raja. The cases were registered against him before 2000.

Enquiries have revealed that he had transported ball bearings and other material from Madurai to Rameswaram by his own lorry. Kannan was reportedly arranged `load men' at Thirupalakudi near here for loading the material on to a boat.

Special Correspondent from Chennai writes

The arrests were a follow-up to the nabbing of eight persons, including five Sri Lankan Tamils, in Chennai on January 23 this year and later one in Tuticorin.

During interrogation, the police had information that a consignment had already been smuggled to Sri Lanka. — Staff Reporter

Municipal chief resigns

NAGAPATTINAM: Chairperson of the Nagapattinam Municipality Thangapillai on Thursday resigned her post and faxed a letter to Local Administration Minister M.K. Stalin, in anticipation of the Madras High Court judgment on her holding the office.

Thangapillai on Friday said that irrespective of the verdict, she had decided to quit the post. AIADMK councillor Arivazhagan filed a petition challenging her election as chairperson. The petitioner had also prayed for unseating of all the 16 councillors. — Special Correspondent

Farmers' meeting

ERODE: Collector T. Udhaychandran said on Friday that the monthly farmers grievances day meeting would be conducted on March 30 at 10.30 a.m. in the Collectorate. He wanted the farmers and the agriculturists' associations to represent their grievances for redressal.

Grievances day

COIMBATORE: The Tamil Nadu Electricity Board will conduct a grievances redressal day meeting for consumers at Sathyamangalam in Erode district on March 24. It will be held at the office of the Executive Engineer on Athani Road at 11 a.m., a release from TNEB said.

Spurious liquor

SALEM: Police seized 360 bottles of spurious liquor and a car, which was used for smuggling them near Edapadi here recently. Sources said during a vehicle check, the Poolampatti police tried to intercept a car. After bringing the vehicle to a halt, the driver and another person fled the spot.

Killed as lorry overturns

Tuticorin: One person was killed when a lorry overturned while it was travelling from Ettayapuram to Aruppukottai on Thursday.

K. Nagaraj (22), cleaner of the lorry, died on the spot.

The Ettayapuram Police have arrested lorry driver T. Suresh (24).

Life term in murder case

Tuticorin: S. Ramamoorthy, a Fast-Track Court judge, sentenced M. Benedict (33) to life imprisonment here on Friday.

The accused had murdered his wife, Roshini (30), at Authoor near here on December 4, 2006, owing to family problems.

Telecom employees observe fast

Nagercoil: The activists of National Federation of Telephone Employees (NFTE) Association observed a token fast in front of the telephone exchange here on Friday.

They wanted the Government to accept their 10-point charter of demands, including the removal of pay anomalies and setting up of cable spares. The State president of NFTE, Kaleesmatt, and the district secretary, Joseph, led the agitation.

Alcoholic Anonymous unit set up

Nagercoil: The Athencottasan Muthamizh Kazhagam, a non-governmental organization at Naduvoorkarai near Mandaikadu, has formed a fifth alcoholic anonymous group at Padanthalumoodu for the benefit of the poor.

The MLA of Vilavancode Assembly constituency, John Joseph, inaugurated the group. - Staff Reporter

M.Phil. examinations

TIRUCHI: The Centre for Distance Education, Bharathidasan University, has announced that M.Phil examinations for various subjects will be conducted at the venues within and outside the State on March 31 and April 1. Paper I and Paper II of science subjects will be conducted on the two days between 9.00 a.m. and 12.30 p.m., and for Paper I and Paper II of Arts subjects from 1.00 to 4.30 p.m. A release said intimation letters indicating the venue had been sent to candidates and instructed them to collect the hall ticket from the venue two days before commencement of the examination.

Rs. 20 lakh for research project

TIRUCHI: Under the Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) Fast Track Scheme for Young Scientists, the Department of Science and Technology, New Delhi, has sanctioned a research project for Rs. 20 lakh to R. Karvembu, Lecturer, Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology-Tiruchi (NIT-T).

The project will focus on conversion of racemic secondary alcohols to the corresponding enantiomerically pure acetates by immobilised ruthenium-enzyme combo analysis. The findings will be significant due to increasing interest and need for enantiomerically pure compounds in pharmaceutical and agricultural industry.

Training programme

TIRUCHI: Nearly 200 women self-help group members in Tiruverumbur panchayat benefited from a training programme on `Cyanopith Biofertiliser Preparation' organised by the District Rural Development Agency and Bharathidasan University . P. Malliga, Reader, Department of National Facility for Marine Cyanobacteria, on biofertiliser for sustainable agriculture.

Mettur level

TIRUCHI: The level in the Mettur dam stood at 79.32 feet against its full level of 120 feet on Friday. The inflow was 1,632 cusecs and the discharge from the dam was 1,500 cusecs.

— Staff Reporter

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