Latest news with #Appavu
The Hindu
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Speaker Appavu backs actor Kamal Haasan in ‘Kannada came form Tamil' row
Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker M. Appavu has backed actor Kamal Haasan, who had asserted recently that 'Kannada came from Tamil'. Speaking to reporters here on Thursday after participating in a function, Mr. Appavu said the people of then Madras Presidency, which comprised Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra, Karnataka and a part of Orissa spoke Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Kannada, Tulu and Oriya and it was propagated then that Tamil and all other south Indian languages were born from Sanskrit. However, this longstanding myth was smashed by Bishop Caldwell of Northern Ireland, who learnt all the south Indian languages and even Sanskrit and researched about these languages for 18 years. In his book 'A comparative grammar of Dravidian or South Indian Family of Languages' in 1856, Bishop Caldwell, who obtained a degree in a university in Ireland, had declared that Tamil was one among the first three languages of the world. 'In his book, Bishop Caldwell, after 18-year-long research and learning 18 languages, has written that Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, Tulu, Oriya etc. were born from Tamil. Hence, ancient Tamil obtained classical status thanks to the efforts taken by late Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi. And, a statue was erected for Bishop Caldwell in Chennai and a memorial has been created for the late scholar. So, what Kamal Haasan said in this connection is right,' Mr. Appavu said. The Speaker said the accused in the Anna University sexual assault case had been convicted within the shortest possible time only due to the sincere efforts taken by the Tamil Nadu Government to expedite the trial of the case. 'Justice has been done to the victims of infamous Pollachi sexual assault case only after the present Government expedited the trial of the case. Now, the the accused in the Anna University sexual assault case has been found guilty. Everyone expects that the accused would get maximum punishment for this heinous crime. This has instilled confidence in the minds of the women, girls and the minors that they would get justice under the present government,' Mr. Appavu said.
The Hindu
7 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Digitisation of Tamil Nadu Assembly proceedings since 1952 is on: Speaker Appavu
People would soon have access to the historic proceedings of Tamil Nadu Assembly as digitisation of the House proceedings since the year 1952 is going on, Speaker M. Appavu said in Tirunelveli on Tuesday (May 27, 2025). In an informal chat with journalists after participating in the foundation stone laying ceremony for the senior citizens' home coming up in Palayamkottai, Mr. Appavu said active steps had been initiated for digitising the Assembly proceedings since 1952 so that the people could access the historic speeches made in the Assembly by legendary leaders on different topics. Besides, efforts are on to digitise the Assembly proceedings between 1921 and 1952 too. 'I can assure you that the ongoing digitisation exercise will be completed before the tenure of the current Assembly,' Mr. Appavu said. On the live telecast of the Assembly proceedings, the Speaker said the Assembly had formulated norms for streaming live the question hour and discussions were on for live telecasting other sessions too. The legislators were being sensitised on using parliamentary words to maintain the dignity and decorum of the House even during heated debates, he said. 'We are keen that there should be no politicising of any issue taken-up for debates in the Assembly and hence we are contemplating the possibilities of live telecasting all proceedings of the Assembly. We will never say 'no' like the previous (AIADMK) regime,' Mr. Appavu said. Adverting to other issues, he said the locals living around the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project should be given priority in the recruitment of the personnel for 'C' category posts in KKNPP. The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL), the proponent of KKNPP, was giving preference for the locals and the land-losers who had given their lands for the project, till 2011 and the situation changed after 2011. Hence, the locals protested against KKNPP, which was forced to call off the written exam. 'Hence, we are holding talks with the KKNPP and the NPCIL for giving priority for locals in recruitment,' the Speaker said. When asked about Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan's charge that Chief Minister M.K. Stalin was playing dual role in the Centre's 'One Nation, One Election' move, Mr. Appavu said: 'The Chief Minister never acts on any issue as he is only for the welfare of Tamil Nadu and Tamils.'
The Hindu
22-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Undue delay by Governor in giving assent to Bills forced T.N. government to approach SC, says Appavu
While the Governors of BJP-ruled States were giving nod to the Bills passed by the respective Assemblies within the shortest possible time, the Tamil Nadu Governor did not give his assent for the Bills passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly even after a couple of years, which forced the State to approach the Supreme Court to find legal remedy, Speaker M. Appavu said. Speaking to reporters on Thursday, he said the Indian Constitution had made it clear that the Governors should give their assent to the Bills passed by the Assemblies 'as soon as possible'. If the Assembly passed a Bill again after being rejected by the Governor in the first instance, he should give the assent without any delay. While this practice was in vogue in the BJP-ruled States, the Governors of Opposition-ruled States were sitting on the Bills for even 2 or 3 years. 'And, this delay forced the Tamil Nadu Government to approach the Supreme Court in search of legal remedy and the apex court had set deadline for the Governors and even for the President. This verdict had become the lighthouse for the entire country,' Mr. Appavu said. The Speaker, while responding to a question pertaining to the stay given by the Madras High Court for amendments taking away the Governor's powers in appointing Vice-Chancellors to the State universities after a case in this connection had already been disposed of by the Supreme Court, suspected that the case filed in the Madras High Court was a 'pre-planned one' as the plaintiff from Tirunelveli had approached the court directly instead of first filing the case before the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court. He also expressed 'doubt' over the admission and hearing by a vacation bench of Madras High Court a Public Interest Litigation filed by a Tirunelveli-based advocate. 'Instead of approaching the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court first, the plaintiff from Tirunelveli has filed his PIL directly before the vacation bench of the Madras High Court, which has heard the case immediately to give its stay. So, it has raised various doubts among the public, especially among the legal fraternity,' he said.
The Hindu
21-05-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
Speaker, Tirunelveli Collector review progress of ongoing development schemes of Radhapuram constituency
Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker M. Appavu and District Collector R. Sukumar inspected 7 major ongoing development works in the Radhapuram Assembly constituency on Wednesday. Mr. Appavu and Dr. Sukumar inspected the construction of Valliyoor government hospital, apartments with 506 units being built by the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board, Valliyoor Bus-Stand, Valliyoor Market, drinking water project for Kalakkad municipality and 7 town panchayats, another drinking water project costing ₹609 crore for 831 villages in Radhapuram Assembly constituency and groyne construction at Kootapuli at the cost of ₹48.50 crore. The Valliyoor Government Hospital, situated advantageously close to the four-lane national highway, is being built at the cost of ₹30 crore with four modern operation theatres, CT scan facilities and geriatric ward. The upcoming hospital will have all modern facilities to ensure better medical care to the patients. The ground floor of the hospital will have all clinical diagnostic services, CT scan, digital X-ray, ultrasound scan, ECG, general medicine, paediatric, gynaecology, ophthalmology, orthopaedic surgery, psychiatry and dermatology departments and the kitchen for preparing food for the patients. Facility for post-mortem is also being created separately on this campus. The first floor will house in-patient wards, post-operative care ward, dialysis etc. The intensive care units, four operation theaters, tuberculosis ward, de-addiction ward, HIV treatment ward and geriatric ward will be created in the second floor. 'While the geriatric ward is a common feature in a medical college hospital in the modern medicine, for the first time, a geriatric ward is being created in a government hospital for benefiting the senior citizens of Valliyoor and its surroundings. The officials concerned have been instructed to complete the work at the earliest. We expect the Valliyoor government hospital to be ready to receive patients from September this year,' Mr. Appavu hoped. Apart from the hospital, a round the clock, Public Health Laboratory on an outlay of ₹1 crore, which will be vital cog in Department of Public Health's disease surveillance programme, is also coming up on the premises. The upcoming clinical lab will be a boon to the patients from Valliyoor and other areas up to Radhapuram, Thisayanvilai, Nanguneri, Kalakkad and Pazhavoor since a range of microbiological, biochemistry and pathology investigations can be done here. Hence, the lab is expected to play vital role in prevention and control of epidemic-prone diseases in this region. The lab will provide services such as stool culture, blood culture, operation theatre swab analysis, bacteriological analysis of drinking water, serology / ELISA for dengue, chikungunya, viral hepatitis (A and E), measles, leptospirosis, scrub typhus etc. The Speaker, after inspecting the ongoing construction of the Valliyoor bus-stand on an outlay of ₹12.13 crore and the reconstruction of the market at the cost of ₹6.03 crore, reviewed the progress of the groyne construction at Koottapuli. Mr. Appavu and the Collector gave much importance to the early completion of the two drinking water projects meant for Radhapuram Assembly constituency being implemented at the cost of ₹609 crore and the other one costing ₹423.13 crore for Kalakkad municipality and Nanguneri, Ervadi, Moolaikaraipatti and Thirukkurungudi town panchayats, all falling under Nanguneri Assembly constituency, and Valliyoor, Thisayanvilai and Panagudi town panchayats in Radhapuram Assembly segment. 'Both the projects should be expedited and commissioned at the earliest even though December-end is the deadline,' said Mr. Appavu. Even as Mr. Appavu and Dr. Sukumar were inspecting the ongoing construction of the Valliyoor bus-stand, they had to encounter the Valliyoor town panchayat's inefficiency as around 100 residents of Kottaiyadi in ward 18 of the urban civic body heaped their complaints in front of them. The residents complained that they were not getting drinking water in sufficient quantity even as other parts of Valliyoor were ensured decent supply. Moreover, the roads in this area were in pathetic shape, they said. The Speaker and the Collector immediately asked the officials of Valliyoor town panchayat to address these complaints and submit the compliance report within a week.
The Hindu
15-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Centre should bear at least ₹2 lakh crore of Tamil Nadu's loan as a mark of recognising the State's unparalleled growth, says Appavu
The Union Government, which has waived corporate loans to the tune of over ₹16 lakh crore since 2014, should bear a portion of Tamil Nadu's outstanding – at least Rs. 2 lakh crore – as a mark of recognising the State's enviable GDP of 9.69% and unparalleled development among the Indian States, Assembly Speaker M. Apapvu has said. Speaking to reporters in Palayamkottai on Thursday after participating in a function, Mr. Appavu, while responding to a question on the growing borrowings of Tamil Nadu, said the State Government had borrowed only within the limits fixed by the Union Government. The State's outstanding, which stood at ₹4.50 lakh crore when the present government led by Chief Minister M. K. Stalin assumed office in 2021 had risen to ₹8.33 lakh crore as Tamil Nadu, in the absence of Central assistance, had to borrow for creating investor-friendly infrastructure. 'With the borrowings, Tamil Nadu has achieved the highest GDP in entire India by registering 9.69%. The State has created investor-friendly infrastructure which has attracted multinational companies towards Tamil Nadu for setting-up their offices and manufacturing units to provide employment to several lakh youth. We've developed 32 industrial parks in the past four years,' Mr. Appavu said. On President Draupadi Murmu's submission in the Supreme Court questioning the deadline set to the Governors for giving assent to the Bills from the State Governments, the Speaker said the President had given her nod for the Bills from the Parliament within 24 hours while the Governor was sitting on the Bills passed by Tamil Nadu Assembly for several months.
