Latest news with #Coimbatore-based
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
Coimbatore police pick up cyber fraudster from Chennai
1 2 Coimbatore: The Coimbatore cybercrime police picked up a 34-year-old man from Royapuram in Chennai on Thursday and brought him to the city in connection with a Rs 1.14 crore cheating case. Krishnakumar, 56, from Kuniyamuthur in Coimbatore city, had saved Rs 1.14 crore in his bank account. A retired employee, Krishnakumar was approached by online fraudsters last year and was asked to download a mobile application by clicking a link sent by them. When Krishnakumar downloaded a fake online trading mobile application, the cyberfraudsters swindled Rs 1.14 crore from his account in several instalments. Based on Krishnakumar's complaint, police registered a case. Police tracked the bank transactions and discovered that the amount was transferred to the bank account owned by G Rajkumar, 34, from Royapuram in Chennai. Police picked him up from Chennai and brought him to Coimbatore city on Friday morning. Rajkumar was not aware that his bank account was misused by the cyberfraudsters. "Around Rs 7 crore worth of transactions were reported in his account. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Top Game Deals – Up to 90% Off! Shop Now Undo However, police let him off on Friday evening," a police source said. In a similar case, a cyber fraudster was arrested for cheating a Coimbatore-based man to the tune of Rs 4.19 lakh. The arrested person was identified as N Pradeev, from Vattakadu at Sankarapalayam in Erode district. The police seized two mobile phones, two SIM cards, one bank passbook, and three debit cards from him.
The Hindu
2 days ago
- Health
- The Hindu
Kashmiri Muslim doctor forgoes DNB seat in Coimbatore hospital over beard row
The Jammu and Kashmir Students' Association on Thursday alleged that a Muslim doctor from Kashmir Valley was forced to forgo his DNB (nephrology) seat at a Coimbatore-based private hospital, after he was asked to sign a 'policy document' that 'prohibited' sporting a beard. The association sought the intervention of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in the matter. The letter, posted on X, alleged that Zubair Ahmad faced religious discrimination at the Kovai Medical Center and Hospital (KMCH). However, hospital sources alleged that he was only asked to trim his beard. Association national convenor Nasir Khuehami said Dr. Ahmad was allotted the seat through the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test for Super Specialty (NEET SS) courses. When the allottee went to the hospital for completing admission formalities, he was allegedly instructed to sign a 'policy document' that prohibited the sporting of a beard, 'a condition that directly contradicts his religious obligations as a practising Muslim', the association alleged. It alleged that despite offering to conceal his beard with a surgical mask and expressing willingness to comply with all hygiene protocols and institutional dress codes, the hospital administration told him that failure to trim or shave his beard would result in denial of enrolment. According to the association, had the policy on the beard been transparently disclosed during the counselling process, the doctor would not have applied to the institution. Request to NBEMS Dr. Ahmad had no other choice but to withdraw from the programme. He had requested permission from the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) to attend the third round of counselling and sought the return of his security deposit of ₹2 lakh made during the admission process. A hospital source alleged that since Dr. Ahmad had a very long beard, which could not be covered with a mask, he was merely asked to trim it. Since a doctor pursuing DNB (nephrology) must undergo training in operation theatres, where complex procedures, including organ harvesting and transplantation, are performed, he was told a very long beard might come in contact with the operating area or surgical equipment. However, the doctor did not want to trim the beard and left without joining the course, the source said. The source said Muslim students from Jammu and Kashmir study at the hospital and there was no restrictions for anyone to keep neatly trimmed beards. Besides requesting the doctor and advising him to join the course, a Kashmiri student also spoke to a Muslim cleric in Srinagar on the mater. The cleric also told the doctor there was nothing wrong in trimming the beard to follow hygiene practices as part of medical education, the hospital source said. After the doctor wrote to NBEMS alleging denial of seat, the hospital was asked to admit him. The hospital replied that he was not denied admission and he was permitted to join. The NBEMS later extended the time for the doctor to join the hospital, the source said. The hospital's Medical Director refused to comment on the matter. Though attempts were made to reach the students' association over phone for further clarifications, it did not respond.
The Hindu
6 days ago
- Health
- The Hindu
Fighting antimicrobial resistance with insect-based livestock feed
Traditional livestock production systems have severe environmental consequences, including high greenhouse gas emissions, extensive land and water use, and risk of fostering antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Together with the steadily rising demand for nutrition, global and regional food systems have been exploring alternative ways to sustainably maintain their supply chains. Insect-based feed has emerged as one promising candidate. The Indian Council of Agriculture (ICAR) and its affiliated centres have already been strengthening the adoption of insect-based feeds in the country. In March 2023, the ICAR-Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (CIBA) signed an MoU with Ultra Nutri India, Pvt. Ltd. to explore the possibility of using insect-based feed in aquaculture. The aim was to use black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae as an ingredient in aqua-feed to improve growth and immunity. In June 2024, CIBA and Loopworm, a Bengaluru-based manufacturer of insect-based proteins and fats, inked another MoU to evaluate the use of insect-based feed products in shrimp and Asian seabass. In January 2025, the ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute confirmed a formal MoU with Coimbatore-based Bhairav Renderers. AMR and livestock production Animal husbandry accounts for more than half of all antibiotic use around the world and is expected to increase to 200,000 tonnes by 2030, up 53% from 2013. Over the last 70 years, antimicrobial compounds have been becoming embedded in livestock feed. They are used to treat diseases as well as to boost growth, in turn raising productivity. The excessive or inappropriate use of antibiotics in this regard can lead to AMR, which endangers public health. Traces of antibiotics left behind in the intestinal environments of livestock impose selective pressure for bacteria in the gut to acquire and maintain antibiotic resistance genes. These genes replicate when they are expelled into the surrounding environment, such as soil or water, increasing the possibility of human exposure, especially for those who work in agriculture. It has been projected that the number of deaths worldwide from antibiotic-resistant infections will increase from 700,000 a year in 2014 to 10 million by 2050. The increasing demand for proteins of animal origin has in turn increased the costs of production and has encouraged farming practices to intensify. Ultimately, farmers are forced to use non-essential antibiotics to boost growth. The use of such antibiotics remains mostly unregulated in many countries, especially in LMICs. The type and frequency of antibiotic-based animal feed consumption differs across continents and depends highly on socioeconomic conditions, regional demand and production, farming systems, and the national legislative framework. Some common antibiotics in use as feedstock in LMICs are chloramphenicol, tylosin, and TCN (a powdered mixture of oxytetracycline, chloramphenicol, and neomycin); developed countries have banned their use. In humans, over-exposure to these drugs can eventually increase the risk of kidney disease, cancers, and aplastic anaemia. These realities prompted researchers to explore the use of insect-based feed to keep AMR at bay. As of today, 40 countries have accepted and issued regulations to use insect-based feed for animals. Examples of such insects include black soldier flies, house flies (Musca domestica), compost worm (Perionyx excavatus), grasshoppers (Locusts), small mealworms (Alphitobius), house crickets (Acheta localus), tropical crickets (Gryllodes sigillatus), and Jamaican field crickets (Gryllus assimilis). Pros of insect-based livestock feed Insects are nutritious and are healthy additions to human and animal diet. They are good sources of fats, proteins, fibres, and micronutrients like zinc, calcium, and iron. In their natural habitat, both aquatic and terrestrial animals eat insects. Rearing insects emits less greenhouse gases than rearing other sources of animal protein. In most cases, insects are raised on organic waste because they can quickly transform low-grade waste into high-grade crude proteins, fats, and energy. For example, to generate the same quantity of proteins, crickets consume 12-times less feed than cattle. Rearing insects also requires fewer resources, especially land and water, compared to other livestock production enterprises. Insect-based livestock feed is also an attractive option because of its lower overall cost and the ease with which producing it can be made a sustainable activity. In other words, such feed has a better benefit-to-cost ratio in terms of production cost. In fact, some studies have shown that the use of insect-based feed can be even more cost-effective because it provides better digestible proteins than fishmeal- or soybean-based feeds. For example, per one estimate, one kilogram of fish meal can be replaced with 0.76 g of crickets (75% crude proteins), 0.81 g of termites or silkworms (70%), 0.85 g of black soldier flies (66%), 0.91 g of locusts or yellow mealworms (60%), and 950 g of mopane worms (56%). Similarly, one kilogram of soybean meal (49% crude proteins) can be replaced with 0.74 g, 0.79 g, 0.83 g, 0.89 g, and 930 g of the same insect species, respectively. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation has estimated that food production will have to be increased by 70% by 2050 (with meat production expected to double) to meet the world's demand. Unregulated and excessive use of non-essential antibiotics increases the risk of environmental antibiotic-resistant genes in livestock farms. Research has outlined the potential for insect-based feed to become a climate-smart alternative to conventional feed because of its ability to shrink the environmental footprint of livestock farming. At the macroscopic level, the ICAR is still streamlining research and collaboration on insect-based feeds; all the same, efforts should be made at the system's periphery to raise awareness. Given its advantages for the environment, biology, and economy, insect-based feed stands to be a crucial component of livestock production. Irfan Shakeer is an epidemiologist at Clarivate India. Iswarya Lakshmi is senior research associate, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Bengaluru.
The Hindu
20-06-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
CRI Solar bags orders for solar pumps from Maharashtra, Punjab and Haryana energy development agencies
CRI Solar, a division of Coimbatore-based CRI Pumps, has bagged orders from the Maharashtra Energy Development Agency (MEDA), Haryana Renewable Energy Development Agency (HAREDA) and Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) to instal and commission 6,894 solar pumping systems, cumulatively valued at ₹210 crore. A press release from CRI said project deployment will commence in accordance with the respective agency timelines. G. Soundararajan, chairman of CRI Group, said in the release, 'These projects go beyond infrastructure—they are enablers of rural prosperity, energy efficiency and environmental responsibility.'
The Hindu
18-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
NIA arrests four more in Tamil Nadu ISIS radicalisation, recruitment case
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday arrested four more persons in the Tamil Nadu ISIS radicalisation and recruitment case involving Coimbatore-based Kovai Arabic College. With this, NIA has made eight arrests in the case, which is an off-shoot of the Coimbatore car bomb blast case. The arrested have been identified as Ahmed Ali of Thirumarai Nagar at Podanur, Jawahar Sathik of Pullukkadu housing unit near Ukkadam, Raja Abdullah alias 'Mac' Raja, and Sheik Dawood. According to the NIA, the four men had been radicalised by Jameel Basha, the founder of Madras Arabic College, who, along with his associates, was involved in recruiting gullible youth and subtly infusing Salafi -Jihadi ideology into them, in the guise of imparting Arabic language classes in Tamil Nadu. NIA had earlier arrested and charge-sheeted Basha, his associates Irshath, Syed Abdur Rahman and Mohammed Hussain, who had been using the classrooms and social platforms to carry out their anti-national radicalisation and recruitment activities, the agency stated in a release. NIA investigations revealed that the accused had promoted Khilafat ideology and martyrdom through jihad, advocating violence and armed struggle to establish an Islamic state, after removing the democratically-elected government, it stated. According to the agency, the radicalisation and recruitment activities had led to the Coimbatore car bomb blast in October 2022, in which the suicide bomber Jamesha Mubeen carried out a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device attack in front of Sangameswarar temple in Coimbatore. The agency added that it was continuing with its investigation in the Tamil Nadu ISIS radicalisation and recruitment case as part of its efforts to check radical terror activities against the nation.
