Now slum-dwellers will get drinking water at their doorstep

Sri Satya Sai Organisations sponsors tanker lorry

Water check: Local Administration Minister M.K. Stalin tests one of the taps of the water tanker sponsored by Sri Satya Sai Organisations to supply water to slums in Chennai on Monday.

CHENNAI: A water tanker lorry sponsored by Sri Satya Sai Organisations, Tamil Nadu, to supply drinking water to city slums was launched on Monday.

Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi flagged off the 6,000 litre tanker at the Secretariat to facilitate street supply of water to slums without much spillage.

The organisations’ state president, N. Ramani, said the drinking water in the tanker would be obtained from the Chennai Metrowater and supplied to slums that have not been provided with sintex water tanks.

The tanker, worth Rs. 9 lakh, is equipped with 17 taps and a platform on both sides to enable people to draw water with ease.

The tanker, to be initially operated on a trial basis in the slums in R.A. Puram, would be extended to other areas soon, he added.

Highlighting the other projects of the organisation, he said that strengthening of bunds at Red Hills, Chembarambakkam, and Porur lakes would be taken up. The lining work of the Kandaleru – Poondi canal, 25 km between Uthukottai and the Poondi reservoir, was underway.

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Free for all!

Free medical camps conducted by the alumni of Sri Sathya Sai University have benefited lakhs of people, writes Aruna Chandaraju.

At a classroom in Kadugodi Govt Junior College, D Seethalakshmi is receiving a quick lesson in oral hygiene. But no, she is no academic student nor is she being tutored by a college teacher. As part of the monthly medical camp organised at this venue by the alumni of Sri Sathya Sai University, the illiterate Seethalakshmi has not only been given a free consultation from a dentist and a month’s supply of toothpaste and medicines, but also advice on oral health.

Quietly but very effectively, this camp is doing substantial work in the provision of good-quality, zero-cost medical care to the underprivileged. At every camp, held first Sunday of each month, about 2,000 patients are given free medical treatment, provided a month’s supply of medicine free of cost, and served free lunch before they leave. The diabetics are additionally provided breakfast. Since these camps have been functioning for the past 11 years, lakhs of people have benefited from them.

About 30 doctors (and an equal number of nurses) representing specialties like orthopedics, general medicine, pediatrics, gynaecology, ophthalmology, ENT, dentistry, etc., and 60 alumni members have been working to keep this camp running month after month all these years. The doctors, all volunteers, are either successful private practitioners or faculty members at some of Bangalore’s best hospitals.

The Bangalore-based alumni take care of onsite arrangements like setting up clinics with the necessary equipments, organising doctors’ transport, purchasing medicines, stocking pharmacies, organising lunch for patients, etc.

However, the huge amount of finance needed for a philanthropic venture of this kind is met by these Bangaloreans as well as other alumni scattered across India and abroad. The camp is supported solely by Sathya Sai University alumni of the four colleges at Bangalore, Puttaparthi, Allike and Muddanahalli.

Once the consultation is over, patients receive a packet with a month’s supply of medicines. As for treatments which can’t be done here, like advanced procedures or surgeries, the patient is referred to the nearby Sathya Sai General Hospital or the bigger Sathya Sai super-speciality hospital, since both these institutes function on a zero-cost-to-the-patient policy.

The very few cases which can’t be dealt with at either are referred to private hospitals where the alumni and doctors use their contacts to arrange for free-of-cost treatment or at least treatment at a very nominal rate.

By noon, the queues have dwindled as consultations/ treatments are mostly over and lunch is being served. Menu for the lunch is also planned carefully, so that it is nutritious.

Significantly, many of the doctors are not devotees of Guru Sathya Sai Baba. They come here impressed by the concept and inspired by its noble aim to contribute their own bit to society.

Among the patients too, many have never even seen the Guru. And they all belong to different religions, castes and regions. Such is the reputation of the camp that it draws patients not only from the various parts our State, but also from the four neighbouring states.

However, all the patients are full of gratitude for this camp which, they say, has made a great difference to their lives. There are some families whose entire medical needs are being met here for years now. Another remarkable feature of this camp is the readiness of doctors to treat multiple ailments of the same person – and with patience at that.

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Call To Emulate Israel In Water Management

CHENNAI: The importance of replicating the Israeli model of water management for judicious and efficient use of water resources in growing cities such as Chennai was highlighted by Shiv Das Meena, Managing Director, Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board.

Inaugurating a one-day conference on “Augmenting and Conserving Water Resources” organised by the Tamil Nadu State Council of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) on Wednesday, he said water management had always been a politically sensitive issue, including its pricing factor. “We are finding ways and means to tap additional sources to meet the growing demand for water”, Mr. Meena added. The State Government was encouraging creation of check-dams, detection of leaks and rectification initiatives.

A proposal for setting up an Industrial Water Treatment Plant had also been mooted and SIPCOT came out with an Expression of Interest for the project.

Consul-General of Israel Daniel Zohar Zonshine spoke on the water-saving methods through drip irrigation in a predominantly arid zone. Making a detailed technical presentation on judicious and efficient water management practised in Israel, he underscored the need for educating the masses on saving every drop of water. He also invited experts and those interested in conservation of water resources to participate in the water techniques exhibition and convention to be held in Tel Aviv from October 30 to November 1.

B. Suresh, Chief Executive Officer, Mahindra Consulting Engineers, outlined the importance of sustainable public private partnership for water conservation projects.

A. Ramakrishna, former President L & T (ECC) and Director, International Infrastructure Consultants, said public-private partnership could come in handy for meeting the daily water requirements, especially in drought-prone rural areas.

In this context, he highlighted how in 18 months, with financial help of Rs.300 crore from Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust, 750 water-starved villages in Anantapur District in Andhra Pradesh got relief.

M. Rafeeque Ahmed, Chairman, FICCI, Tamil Nadu State Council, spoke on the initiatives planned by the Central Government along with the leather industry in Vaniyambadi to create reverse osmosis water treatment plant to put an end to the effluent pollution.

R. Ramamurthy, Convener, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Panel, and K.S. Shetty, Member, CSR Panel, FICCI, Tamil Nadu State Council, were among those who spoke.

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Plan To Clean Up Cooum, Strengthen Banks

Chennai: Local Administration Minister M.K. Stalin said on Thursday that the Cooum would be cleaned and its banks strengthened like those of the Kandaleru–Poondi canal.

At the inauguration of a Chennai Corporation park near Valluvar Kottam here, Mr. Stalin said he had met Sri Sathya Sai Baba at Puttaparthi earlier this month to discuss the funding of the project. The Sathya Sai Trust had spent Rs. 200 crore on the Kandaleru–Poondi canal to prevent seepage and caving in of the banks. In January this year, when Sai Baba visited Chennai, Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi had requested assistance to clean up the Cooum.

The Sathya Sai Trust and the State Government would work out the technical and cost aspects, Mr. Stalin said. Mr. Stalin said the Chennai Corporation had constructed 65 km of stormwater drains at a cost of Rs. 37 crore as a monsoon preparedness measure. After the inauguration of the park, he inspected the recently renovated diagnostic laboratory in the same locality. The centre offers medical facilities, including X-ray and ultrasonogram, at affordable costs.

The other projects inaugurated by him were a drinking water treatment facility, sponsored by Lions Club at the Valluvar Kottam Corporation Boys Higher Secondary School (at a cost Rs. 2 lakh); a gymnasium on Model School Road (Rs. 7 lakh); high mast lamps at the junction of Whites Road–Westcott Road at Royapettah (Rs. 5.74 lakh) and streetlights on Eldams Road (Rs. 7.9 lakh). Mr. Stalin also laid the foundation stone for 32 Slum Board tenements on Mir Bakshi Ali Street and 60 tenements on Thomaiappan Street in Royapettah.

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Sathya Sai Baba Photo Exhibition In Chennai

Chennai, Sept 20: The Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisations, Tamil Nadu, will organise a 11-day photo exhibition on Satya Sai Baba, secretary of the organisation Ramani said here today.

He told reporters that 600-odd photos, divided into seven categories, will be on show from September 22 to October 3.

Different categories will highlight not only the philosophy of Baba but also the various social welfare projects he has undertaken such as medical services and water projects.

Titled Prema Jyothi, the exhibition will be held at Sri Ramachandra Medical College grounds at Vasudevan Nagar in Tiruvanmiyur and the entry is free.

It is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., he said. (Agencies)

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G.K. Raman Passes Away At Puttaparthi

CHENNAI: G. K. Raman, Chairman of Royal Sundaram Alliance Insurance Co and former Managing Director of Sundaram Finance Ltd (SFL), passed away at Puttaparthi on Monday following a heart attack. He was 76. He is survived by his wife, son, daughter and two grandchildren.

Raman was associated with the SFL for over three decades and was active till the end. He visited the SFL premises on August 25.

Born on September 9, 1931, Mr. Raman had his school and college education in Madurai and thereafter at the Madras Law College. He began his career as a lawyer. After a three-year stint, he joined the Madras Motor and General Insurance Co. in 1958 and served until its nationalisation in 1971.

Later, he moved to the SFL and served as its Managing Director from 1995 to 2003. He was the first Chairman of Royal Sundaram Alliance Insurance Co., a position he held till his demise.

Mr. Raman was a close and trusted associate of T.S. Santhanam, founder-chairman of the Sundaram Finance group of companies. He was a life-long champion in the cause of the road transport sector, as well as the Non-Banking Finance Companies and insurance sectors.

He served on various committees set up by the Reserve Bank of India and the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority.

He was deeply connected with spiritual and charitable causes. He was the convener and treasurer of Sri Sathya Sai Trust, Tamil Nadu, and worked tirelessly for the causes that were close to his heart.

A condolence meeting was held on the company premises here.

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Kandaleru canal work will be over by July 30

Kandaleru canal work will be over by July 30
K. Lakshmi

WORK IN PROGRESS: Public Works Minister Durai Murugan and Local Administration Minister M.K. Stalin inspect the Kandaleru Poondi canal repair work on Tuesday.

CHENNAI: Upgradation work on the Kandaleru-Poondi canal bed, over 25 km from the inter-state border at Uthukottai, to facilitate free flow of Krishna water will be completed by July 30, Public Works Minister Durai Murugan said on Tuesday.

He was talking to mediapersons after inspecting the repair work taken up by Sri Satya Sai Trust on the damaged part of the canal in Othappai, 8 km from the Poondi reservoir, and the entry point at Uthukottai. The work, initiated on May 14 to arrest water seepage, is in progress along the canal towards the Poondi reservoir. Larsen and Toubro was at present on the job in 8 km of the damaged stretch. A concrete retention wall would be constructed to prevent sand caving during monsoon. Stone pitching on the slope above the canal would be provided. Mr. Durai Murugan said the Trust agreed to take up similar work on the damaged portions of the 21 km feeder canal that carried water from Poondi to Red Hills reservoir and the 25-kilometre link canal from Poondi to the Chembarambakkam reservoir.

On completion of the works, water realisation would be augmented by about 20 per cent, he said. The Trust also agreed to take up deepening and desilting of lakes at Retteri and Porur soon, he said.

Mr. Stalin said the desalination plant near Minjur would be completed by next June.

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Does your heart skip a beat?

Does your heart skip a beat?
Aruna Chandaraju

For most of us, the heart beats maintains a steady rhythm thanks to an inbuilt electrical conduction system or natural pacemaker…

For most of us, the heart beats maintains a steady rhythm thanks to an inbuilt electrical conduction system or natural pacemaker. An irregularity in this natural rhythm is called arrhythmia. Stress or anxiety can cause alteration, so, the heart might skip a beat once in a while resulting in a mild palpitation or flutter, but it largely maintains a consistent rhythm through our life.

However, millions have a serious defect in this electrical conduction system, resulting in recurrent arrhythmias. Their heart beats too slow (bradycardia) or too fast (tachycardia), or so irregularly that it sometimes stops beating altogether resulting in Sudden Cardiac Death (SDC). Fortunately, there is a way to save the person by anticipating this. A pager-sized device called Implanatable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) when implanted under the skin monitors heart rate, and performs two functions: 1) cardioversion where the too-fast or too-slow rhythm is corrected and made normal; 2) defibrillation where the heart which has stopped beating is given a shock to revive it, get it out of the cardiac arrest and back to beating normally. Dr Upinder Kaul, Director, Cardiology, Fortis Group of Hospitals, New Delhi, explains:

“Any patient who, four weeks after a heart attack, has a left ventricular ejection fraction of less than 40 percent is a possible candidate for SCD. There are other categories with poor heart function with documented ventricular tachycardia, syncope, and many other indications in primary electrical disorders of the heart.”

No access.
There are lakhs of Indians with this problem. Yet, while thousands of implants are needed every year, only a few hundred are able to access the treatment. As Dr Kaul reveals: “Approximately 350 ICD implants are done every year in India. The number of people needing it is very large––about 50,000 per year at a conservative estimate.”

What accounts for this large gap? A major factor is the cost. As Dr P K Dash, Head, Cardiology, Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, Bangalore, points out, these little lifesavers cost between Rs four lakh to eight lakh each depending on the brand. Besides, there’s the cost of implant and hospital stay which adds up to another lakh or two depending on the hospital. In a country like ours where millions live below the poverty line and where percapita income is low compared to developed countries in Europe or USA, the treatment becomes largely unaffordable, except to a few of those who need it. Also, the reach of medical insurance is not as widespread in India as in developed countries, adds Dr K S Rastogi, Mumbai-based cardiologist.

Complicating this cost factor in India, is the fact that many of the candidates for ICDs are senior citizens who are dependent on others for medical care.

Sometimes, there is a humanitarian initiative that makes this affordable. For eg, last month, eight dual-chamber ICDs were implanted within five days––an Indian medical record––and totally free of cost, at the charitable Sri Sathya Sai Institute in poor, by visiting US-based cardiac specialists.

However, this is a rare phenomenon. So, what’s the solution? Dr Kaul opines: “Continuing medical education programmes for physicians As well the production of low-cost shock devices.”

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Uninterrupted Water Supply To City Soon

Uninterrupted water supply to city soon
NT Bureau
Chennai, May 15:

In keeping with Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s promise made during the Tamil New Year’s day this year, Sri Sathya Sai Seva Trust began renovation works in the Kandaleru-Poondi canal yesterday, to facilitate quicker transit of water to Chennai.

The renovation works began at Aatarambakkam village in Tiruvallur district with a bhoomi pooja in the presence of senior government officials and representatives of Sathya Sai Seva Trust. T Govindarajan, chief engineer of the Public Works Department, and Kondal Rao, former Chief Engineer (water works) of Andhra Pradesh, representing the Trust, were among those present.

The renovation work will be carried out from zero point in Tamilnadu border to Poondi lake, near Chennai. The canal’s stretch is about 25 km long and extends from near Uthukottai to Satyamurti Sagar, popularly known as Poondi lake.

According to sources, the entire work would be completed early next year. Efforts are being taken to ensure that the works do not hamper water flow during July and August.

It may be recalled that the Telugu Ganga Water scheme for Chennai, was conceived during the early 1980s. However, it did not deliver the expected quantum of water and whatever was released also did not reach Chennai because of the absence of a good canal. In this background, Sri Sathya Sai Baba, in a noble gesture to the people of Chennai, repaired and renovated the canal from Kandaleru dam in Andhra Pradesh (AP) upto zero point in the AP-Tamilnadu border at a cost of Rs 200 crore.

As a result of this, it took just five days for the water released at Kandaleru to reach zero point. Before the repair work, it used to take 15 days for the waters to come to the zero point. Despite this Chennai was not able to get water as the canal from zero point to Poondi lake was in a damaged condition. Responding to an appeal of Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, Sai Baba promised complete renovation of the canal in the Tamilnadu terrirtory and the works have now begun.

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Kandaleru-Poondi Canal Renovation Begins

Kandaleru-Poondi canal renovation begins
Special Correspondent

GOOD START: Renovation work on the Kandaleru-Poondi canal stretch in Tamil Nadu began on Monday.

CHENNAI : Renovation work on the Kandaleru-Poondi Canal in the territory of Tamil Nadu formally commenced on Monday.

Extending from near Uthukottai to the Satyamurti Sagar, the Canal’s stretch is 25 km long.

The renovation would be carried out by the Sathya Sai Baba Seva Trust and would be taken up in phases, a senior government official said.

Next year
The official said the entire work would be completed early next year. It had been planned in such a way that the work would not hamper the water flow, which was expected by July end or early August.

A ceremony was performed in Aatarambakkam village in Tiruvallur district in the presence of senior Government officials and representatives of Sathya Sai Seva Trust. T. Govindarajan, chief engineer of the Public Works Department, and Kondal Rao, former Chief Engineer (water works) of Andhra Pradesh representing the Trust, were among those present.

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