Date:12/12/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/12/12/stories/2008121254320500.htm

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Tribunal for government staff

Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The government has decided to set up an administrative tribunal to redress the service problems of government employees, Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan has said.

Replying to questions in the Assembly on Thursday, Mr. Achuthanandan said the employees could take up their complaints about harassment by superiors as well as transfers and promotions with the tribunal. The State government had recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into five cases and the High Court has ordered probe by the same agency into 24 cases, he said.

Stipend

Minister for Health and Social Welfare P.K. Sreemathy said the government was considering a proposal to hike the stipend of medical postgraduate students from Rs.10,000 to Rs.18,500. The proposal had been forwarded to the Finance Department. Residency system had been proposed for the students.

A law to monitor infertility clinics was planned. There were 16 licensed adoption placement centres in the State. As many as 6,384 complaints were pending before the Kerala State Women’s Commission, she said.

Minister for Water Resources N.K. Premachandran said the KWA was earning an annual income of Rs.273 crore and additional income of Rs.135 crore through water tariff revision.