** Seven year old Haasini of Porur, Chennai, was sexually assaulted and ruthlessly burnt to death. ** Rithika, a three year old was raped and killed. ** Another child, Nandhini, was kidnapped, raped and killed. The recent increase in such bone chilling, gruesome crimes shook the Chennaiites, who sought to highlight these through various forums last fortnight. One was addressed on Women’s Day by advocate Vijayashree Ramesh who rightly opined that the perpetrators should have no bail access and they should be awarded capital punishment. She added: “There are four types of abuse that happens, physical, emotional, neglect and sexual. What law did till 2012 was to have crimes against women and child under the same sections of IPC (375,376(rape) 354(assault) 509(modesty of a woman)). The passing of the new ‘Protection of children against sexual offences Bill’ of 2012 too was not adequate to protect children since the irony is that victims are targeted mostly by persons known to the family”. As the affected family does not come out in the open for fear of family name and honour, the crime goes on unabated. Earlier, at a seminar organised by Tamil weekly VIJAYABHARATHAM, men and women representing the cross section of society expressed concern over the hazards faced by children these days (Idea: Vijayashree Ramesh).
A container with layers of charcoal and sand could be an effective and lowcost alternative to expensive filters to kill harmful bacteria in water and make it potable. The system’s simple technology uses one layer each of activated charcoal and sand in a 100-litre container. A user pours water directly into the container, within which the sand attracts visible impurities and the charcoal absorbs other sediments and odour. A 2 mg chlorine tablet in the water kills harmful bacteria. The user can collect 20 litres of treated water in 30 minutes from the system. The plan is to take the technology to 1,500 entrepreneurs in five years. Researchers at Indian Institute of Technology-Madras have developed the portable water treatment system. On March 20 they signed a memorandum of understanding with Tamil Nadu Small and Tiny Industries Association (TANSTIA)-FNF Service Centre to take the technology to entrepreneurs. The system – designed for households in poor communities that are most prone to water-borne diseases – is easy to use and made with locally available material. IIT-M did not patent the technology and is giving it away almost free of cost.
If the 2015 Chennai floods jolted the Information Technology (IT) and Information Technology Enabled Service (ITES)companies by inundating the IT corridor in Chennai, the havoc wreaked by cyclone Vardah last year dealt a vicious blow to their functioning, making a search for alternative and safer locale an imperative. Many IT majors and ITES firms are making a beeline for Coimbatore to set up shop. One of the major beneficiaries of the shift has been the TIDEL Park. Set up in 2011, the park housed only one company till recently. However, a look at the park now reveals another tale. With over 70 companies occupying the space. All this happened in the span of two years. It is not just the number of companies that has swelled the TIDEL Park. The influx means that it has become a major money spinner as well. Over 10,000 people work in the various companies in the park. The boom in the IT sector means it would not create employment opportunities for techies alone, but also a host of ancillary sectors. According to the survey of the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), for every single IT job, three non-IT jobs were created. Going by that, job opportunity for 75,000 people in Coimbatore is in the offing.