Now, UP gets its Rs 2,900 crore Toilet Scam

April 26, 2012

indian_toilet

Lucknow, April 26: This one really stinks. UP, home to scams of all kinds, ranging from NRHM to land, now has a filthy new entrant: the Toilet Scam.

The state was to build toilets in rural households under the Centre-sponsored Total Sanitation Campaign. The state panchayati raj department told the ministry of rural development that it got 1.71 crore toilets constructed under the scheme in the past one decade. But the household census data says that only 55 lakh rural households have toilets. Which means, 1.16 crore toilets in rural UP are "missing".

The Total Sanitation Campaign was launched in 1999 to end open defecation in India by 2017. The scheme got functional in UP in 2002. Under the programme, various sections of the society were given a subsidy to get permanent toilets built in their houses. In 2002, the amount was about Rs 600; now, this has gone up to around Rs 4,500. Assuming the average expenditure on construction of new toilets was Rs 2,500, the Toilet Scam would work out to Rs 2,900 crore.

The extent of over-reporting has been close to three times , say experts. According to TSC reports, there are only 17.50% households without toilets in rural UP. whereas the census reports that more than 78% of the households do not have latrines within their premises. According to TSC online data, there are two districts in UP, Lakhimpur Kheri and Farrukhabad, where 100% households have toilets whereas census 2011 reports show 81.7% and 76.10% households are without toilets in the respective districts.

The extent of over-reporting has been extremely high in Lucknow as well. The official data for households without toilets says that one in 10 (10.16%) houses don't have toilets. In other words government data says that 89.84% of the households in Lucknow have a toilet. But the census figures say that only 65.6% households have toilets on their premises.

Because of this scam, the very aim of TSC stands defeated in the state with actually now more people defecating in the open. During the decade 2001-2011, of all the people defecating in open in the country, UP alone accounts for 39.05%. In absolute terms, 35.31 lakh households are defecating in the open in the state. And 93% of them are in rural areas. Sources claimed that lack of a monitoring mechanism led to the problem. The union government is now mulling over whether to get the flagship programme examined by CAG auditors.

"A peep into the house of a villager in UP shows how women live without toilets. They go in groups to fields every morning. Some women feel that loose motions are a curse as they have to run to the fields during the day," said Madhu Garg, secretary, All India Democratic Women's Association. She added that the problem for women in urban slums was worse. "In pakka talaab area of Chinhat for instance, women are exposed to eve-teasing when they go out for nature's call," she said.

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News Network
June 24,2020

New Delhi, Jun 24: With the highest single-day spike of 15,968 cases and 465 deaths in the last 24 hours, India's COVID-19 count reached 4,56,183 on Wednesday.

According to the latest update by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), 14,476 deaths have been recorded due to the infection so far in the country.

The count includes 1,83,022 active cases, and 2,58,685 cured/discharged/migrated patients.

Maharashtra with 1,39,010 confirmed cases remains the worst-affected by the infection so far in the country. The state's count includes 62,848 active, 69,631 cured, discharged patients while 6,531 deaths have been reported due to the infection so far.

Meanwhile, the national capital's confirmed coronavirus cases reached 66,602.

2,301 deaths have been reported in Delhi due to the infection so far.

Tamil Nadu has reported 64,603 cases so far with the death toll reaching 833.

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News Network
February 19,2020

Feb 19: Pay increases across India’s organized sector will probably grow at the slowest pace since 2009 this year, according to a survey from Aon Plc.

Companies will increase average pay by 9.1% in 2020, down from 9.3% in 2019 and 9.5% the previous year, Aon said in a report published Tuesday. The small increase reflects a deep slowdown in Asia’s third-largest economy, where growing pessimism about job prospects have led many to cut down on consumption -- the main driver to growth.

India still leads the Asia-Pacific region in pay rises, but that is mainly due to higher inflation and a “war for key talent and niche skills,” Aon said.

“There is a general air of caution about the economy as we enter into 2020,” Tzeitel Fernandes, partner for rewards solutions at Aon, told reporters in New Delhi. “Low GDP projection and weak consumer sentiment are the reasons behind our lowest ever prediction.”

E-commerce companies and start-ups will probably get the biggest salary increases, projected at an above-average 10%, while financial institutions will hand out 8.5%. Unsurprisingly, the auto sector witnessed the biggest drop in growth -- down to 8.3% from 10.1% in 2018, according to Aon. The survey covered more than 1,000 companies across over 20 industries.

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Agencies
May 19,2020

Lucknow, May 19: The administration of the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI) has ordered a probe into the cardiac procedure conducted on a corona positive patient in the hospital.

The patient underwent a cardiac procedure without being tested for corona before the surgery. He later tested positive for COVID-19, leading to panic among the staff and other patients.

The medical staff that came in contact with the patient were quarantined on Monday while the area was sanitized.

As per orders from the State Medical Education Department, even in emergency cases, patients are to be screened for Covid-19 before procedures are done.

According to the SGPGI administration, the incident took place late on Sunday night.

In an official statement, director, Prof R.K. Dhiman said, "The 63-year-old patient was a case of complete cardiac blockage and needed an urgent temporary pacemaker. The patient was admitted to the holding area of the institute and later shifted to the MICU for permanent pace making."

He said that when the patient's corona status was found to be positive on the Hospital Information System, she was shifted to the Rajdhani COVID Hospital.

The Director said, "Though the involved areas have been sanitized and healthcare workers were quarantined as per protocol, a probe has been ordered to investigate the lapses."

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