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Huts gutted

ERODE : Three thatched huts were destroyed in a fire. According to police, there was a sudden fire in Aavudayakadau on Monday night and three huts were gutted. The fire started from a hut and spread to two other huts. Fire and Rescue Service Personnel doused the flames. The loss is estimated at about Rs 50,000. - Staff Reporter

STF personnel fined

ERODE: The District Forest Officer, Sathyamangalam fined seven STF personnel on Monday evening for cutting of trees in the forest without permission from the Forest Department. According to forest officials on February 18 the forest personnel checked a Special Task Force Police van at Arepalayam forest area in Thalawady forest. They noticed some tree logs kept inside the van. The STF personnel admitted that they cut the trees for fuel. The District Forest Officer, Sampathlal Gupta conducted an enquiry and ordered the seven STF personnel to pay a fine of Rs 13,500. - Staff Reporter

Two arrested

ERODE: The Gobichettipalayam police arrested two persons for possession of a countrymade gun and explosives. According to police on Monday the police were on night patrol at Varapalayam. On seeing the police three persons, moving in the area, started running. The police caught two, Karuppasamy, 40 and Velan, 34 and seized from them a countrymade gun, 100 litres of illicit arrack and gunpowder. - Staff Reporter

Plea for water

ERODE: More than 100 villagers of Arikkaranvalasu near Moolanure presented a petition to Collector, D. Karthikeyan for regular water supply. They said they used to get water from Cauvery and Amaravathy but for the past one month were not getting supply. - Staff Reporter

Burglary bid foiled

ERODE: A burglary bid in a Panchayat Middle school on Monday night was foiled by the public. According to police, some persons raised an alarm and the burglars escaped. On a complaint by the Headmaster, police are investigating. - Staff Reporter

Distribution inspected

PUDUKOTTAI: Collector P. Sonai inspected the distribution of Electors Photo Identity Cards to voters at Annavasal block on Monday. He also inspected EPIC works at Perumanadu, Karaiyur, Sadaymapatti and Oliyamangalam.

DMK chief in Karur

KARUR: The DMK President, M. Karunanidhi, on Tuesday visited the ailing former party Women's Wing State Patron, Porselvi Ilamurugu, in Kulithalai.

He invited her to grace the party's Tiruchi State conference. DMK Deputy General Secretary, M.K. Stalin, the Union Minister for Environment and Forest, A. Raja, DMK Tiruchi district secretary, K.N. Nehru, former Minister, Ko. Si. Mani,were with Mr. Karunanidhi.

Grievance day meet

TIRUVARUR: The monthly farmers' grievance day meeting will be held here at 4 p.m. on February 24.

Farmers can air their grievances in the meeting, an official press release said.

Mettur level

Tiruchi: The water level at the Mettur dam stood at 112.25 feet on Tuesday. The inflow was 1,366 cusecs and the outflow, 1000 cusecs. — Staff Reporter

Voter identity cards to be issued from today

Nagercoil: The Government has decided to issue photo identity cards to the electorate from February 22 in the district, to facilitate for casting their vote in the coming Assembly elections, said Collector Sunil Paliwal.

Speaking to presspersons, he said the district administration had set up 95 online EPIC centres at Kanyakumari, 69 in Nagercoil, 91 in Colachel, 82 in Padmanabhapuram, 71 in Thiruvattar, 90 in Vilavancode and 78 in Killiyur Assembly constituencies.

Form 001 would be distributed at houses to those who wanted to be photographed.

Photo identity cards had been distributed to 57 percent of voters and the remainder would get their cards soon.

Dharna staged to remove encroachments

TIRUNELVELI: Members of All India Youth Federation staged a dharna here on Tuesday, demanding immediate removal of encroachments on public land at Nesa Nainar Street, Palayamkottai.

Speakers at the protest venue said the Corporation had failed in its duty of removing these encroachments made by some "influential individuals" even after several representations. As the fire tenders could not enter into the street owing to these encroachments, a young woman was killed in a recent fire accident. Moreover, construction of a public toilet on this site was forcibly stopped by the encroachers.

Man killed

Tuticorin: S. Murugan (38) was fatally knocked down by a lorry while he was riding a motorcycle at Koramballam near here on Tuesday. Lorry driver M. Muthiah was arrested. — Staff Reporter

Seven kg of heroin seized

TUTICORIN: Three Sri Lankan nationals were apprehended by the Coast Guard Intelligence and Narcotics Control Bureau, while they allegedly tried to smuggle 7 kg of heroin, worth Rs. 7 crore, from here on Monday.

Official sources said E. Malgam (35), P. Antony (45) and L. Lorin (34) were taken into the custody from a boat 20 nautical miles off Tiruchendur.

They were remanded by a judicial magistrate court here on Tuesday. - Staff Reporter

Panel for selection of Vice-Chancellor

CHENNAI: The Government has recommended a panel of three names to the Chancellor for selection of Vice-Chancellor to the Tamil Nadu Open University.

A notification, issued here, said S.V. Chittibabu, former Vice-Chancellor, Annamalai University (Chancellor's nominee), will be the convenor. K. Aludiapillai, former Vice-Chancellor, Madurai Kamaraj University (government nominee), and S. Sivasubramanian, Vice-Chancellor, Bharathiar University (Syndicate nominee), will be the members. - Special Correspondent

Congress treasurer

CHENNAI: D. Sudarsanam, Congress MLA, has been made treasurer of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee and member of the election committee in charge of secretarial work, says a release issued by TNCC president M. Krishnasswamy. - Special Correspondent

Four-laning project

CHENNAI: Two road overbridges and flyovers each, four major bridges and two vehicle underpasses are part of the Madurai-Tuticorin four-laning project to be launched on Saturday.

The project, which is estimated to cost Rs. 629 crore and covering a distance of 128 km, will be executed on a build-operate-transfer basis. The road overbridges will be built at Aruppukkottai and Tuticorin and bypasses at Kariapatti-Kallakkurichi and Pandalkudi.

Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways T.R. Baalu will lay the foundation in Tuticorin, says a release. - Special Correspondent

ISO certificate for coach factory

CHENNAI: The Integral Coach Factory, Chennai, has been awarded the ISO-9001: 2000 certificate by M/s TUV India for the third consecutive term. The ISO certification is awarded in accordance with the TUV certificate for quality systems in design, development, manufacture and commissioning of powered and non-powered air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned railway passenger coaches, including luxury ones.R.R. Bhandari, Member, Mechanical, Railway Board, New Delhi, received the certificate from D. Sridharan, Lead Auditor, M/s. TUV, in the presence of P. Raja Goundan, General Manager, ICF, at a function on Sunday. - Special Correspondent

Student dies as bus falls into ditch

CUDDALORE: Prabhakaran (20), a postgraduate student of Annamalai University, died and 50 others, including three girl students, sustained injuries when a mini-bus slid down a slope and fell into a ditch at Palamankarai in Chidambaram on Tuesday.

The police said the bus was on its way from Chidambaram to Perampattu via Annamalai Nagar.

The driver, while negotiating a turn, saw a speeding autorickshaw. He tried to avert a collision and lost control.

Prabhakaran was rushed to Chidambaram Government Hospital where he succumbed to injuries.

Those injured included university students Aswitha (19), Vishnupriya (19) and Vimala (20). — Special Correspondent

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