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New Indian Express
24-07-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Orissa HC disposes of PIL after govt cancels appointment of Utkal's in-charge V-C
CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Wednesday disposed of a public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the appointment of Prof Jagneshwar Dandapat as the in-charge vice-chancellor (V-C) of Utkal University, following the state government's decision to cancel the appointment. Filed by high court lawyer and alumnus of Utkal University Prabir Kumar Das, the PIL had questioned the legality of the May 27 appointment, citing non-compliance with Section 6(10) of the Odisha Universities Act, 1989. Das contended that the procedure for appointing an acting V-C had not been followed. When the matter was taken up by the division bench of Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice MR Pathak, Advocate General Pitambar Acharya informed the court that the Chancellor of the university - the Governor of Odisha - had on July 22 issued an order cancelling the appointment of Prof Dandapat, a senior professor from the Biotechnology department. Acharya submitted that the cancellation was in line with the law and further stated that the state cabinet had cleared a proposal to amend the relevant provisions of the Odisha Universities Act through an ordinance. The proposed amendment, aimed at ensuring smoother university administration, would allow for the appointment of any qualified individual - not just sitting V-Cs - to the position of acting V-C, addressing the challenges of one person managing two universities simultaneously.
New Indian Express
18-07-2025
- Health
- New Indian Express
Orissa HC seeks govt reply on delay in expanding NAT-PCR blood testing across state
CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court has sought a detailed response from the state government after a contempt petition was filed by advocate Prabir Kumar Das over its alleged failure to implement nucleic acid testing polymerase chain reaction (NAT-PCR) blood testing facilities in all blood banks as promised. The division bench comprising Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice MS Raman on Thursday directed the commissioner-cum-secretary of the Health and Family Welfare department to file an affidavit within two weeks, outlining the steps taken to fulfil the commitment made in court in November 2023. The matter has been posted for further hearing on August 4. The directive comes in response to a contempt petition filed by Das on April 2, 2025. In his plea, Das contended that the state government had wilfully violated the high court's order dated November 30, 2023, which required the establishment of advanced NAT-PCR testing facilities in all 56 blood collection centres of the state by the end of March 2025. The court order had followed Das' earlier PIL that highlighted the risks associated with blood transfusions using traditional ELISA-based screening. He had argued that the NAT-PCR technology allows for early detection of infections such as HIV 1 and 2, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C, thus ensuring safer transfusions. In its affidavit filed in response to the PIL in November 2023, the Health department had stated that 47 per cent of the blood collected in Odisha was being tested using NAT-PCR technology at 11 centres. The government had assured the court that it would expand the facility to all 56 blood centres at an estimated cost of `200 crore by March 2025. However, Das, appearing in person, submitted that information obtained through RTI queries from the directorate of Blood Safety (March 3, 2025) and the Health department (March 17, 2025) confirmed that only the original 11 centres were equipped with NAT-PCR, and no progress had been made in the remaining 45 centres. Calling the inaction a 'deliberate and wilful violation' of the court's order, Das urged the bench to initiate proceedings under the Contempt of Courts Act against the commissioner-cum-secretary. The court, while not initiating contempt proceedings, has directed the official to respond with a status update in two weeks.
Time of India
17-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
File affidavit detailing NAT-PCR rollout in blood collection centres: HC to govt
1 2 Cuttack: Orissa High Court on Thursday directed the state's health and family welfare department to file an affidavit within two weeks detailing the steps taken to implement Nucleic Acid Testing Polymerase Chain Reaction (NAT-PCR) blood testing facilities in all govt-run blood collection centres. The directive came after a petition was filed by advocate Prabir Kumar Das. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice M S Raman passed the order while hearing the petition, which sought contempt proceedings against the commissioner-cum-secretary of the health and family welfare department for allegedly failing to comply with the court's earlier directive issued on Nov 30, 2023. The court had, at the time, disposed a PIL filed by Das calling for the introduction of advanced NAT-PCR testing in all blood banks, citing that the method allows for earlier detection of HIV 1 & 2, and Hepatitis B and C, compared to the traditional ELISA test. In its 2023 affidavit, the state govt had informed the court that 47% of the state's blood collections were already being tested via NAT-PCR at 11 centres and that it had decided, in principle, to extend the facility to the remaining 45 centres by March 2025 at a cost of Rs 200 crore. However, in his contempt plea filed on April 2 this year, Das submitted that information obtained via RTI from the directorate of blood Safety (on March 3) and the health department (on March 17) revealed that no progress had been made, and NAT-PCR testing remained limited to the same 11 centres. "The govt made a commitment before this court and failed to act on it. This amounts to a deliberate and wilful violation of the court's order," Das said before the bench, appearing in person. Taking note of the submissions, the bench asked the commissioner-cum-secretary to clarify what actions had been initiated since the court's directive and fixed the next hearing for Aug 4. In his original PIL, Das had highlighted the risks of transfusing infected blood due to the limitations of ELISA testing. He urged the court to ensure the implementation of NAT-PCR testing across all centres in a time-bound manner to ensure safer blood transfusion practices.
New Indian Express
10-07-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Odisha High Court tells state govt to speed up regular V-C appointment in public universities
CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Tuesday scheduled July 23 for further hearing on the PIL alleging violation of the Odisha Universities Act, 1989, in appointing a university faculty member as acting vice-chancellor of Utkal University. High Court lawyer and Utkal University alumnus Prabir Kumar Das filed the PIL which specifically challenged the Chancellor's notification dated May 27, 2025, designating Professor Jagneshwar Dandapat, as in-charge V-C until a regular appointment is made. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice MS Raman focused on Section 6(10) of the Odisha Universities (Amendment) Act, 2024 - notified on April 17, 2025 - which now permits the Chancellor, in consultation with the state government, to appoint any vice-chancellor of a public university in the state as acting V-C, instead of restricting the choice to V-Cs from neighbouring universities. The bench noted that the recent amendment sets a maximum period of one year (including extensions) for such interim arrangements. It also took note of a recent Supreme Court directive to expedite permanent V-C appointments, with the state already initiating the process. Appreciating the state's intent to rectify the issue, the court underscored the need to strictly adhere to the statutory provisions. Advocate general Pitambar Acharya assured the bench that he would personally review the matter to ensure compliance with the law. The court has directed the state to take appropriate corrective steps before then. On June 24, the court had observed that Section 6(8) of the Act allows the Chancellor to extend the outgoing V-C's term for up to six months, but the current notification failed to meet this criterion. 'Prime facie, the issue raised needs to be determined finally, as this may become a recurring feature in other universities as well,' the bench remarked. Utkal University has been operating without a regular vice-chancellor since November 24, 2024, following the expiry of the previous incumbent's term.
New Indian Express
25-06-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Orissa HC seeks response on full-time Utkal University V-C posting
CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court has sought response from the government on appointment of regular vice-chancellor of Utkal University, the premier public university of the state. Acting on a PIL filed by advocate Prabir Kumar Das, the bench of Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice MS Raman scheduled the next hearing for July 8 and directed the state counsel to take instructions by then. In his petition, Das pointed out that the University has been without a regular vice- chancellor since November 24 2024. He moved the court after his representation to the Chancellor on March 1, 2025 for taking immediate action to ensure appointment of a regular vice-chancellor evoked no action. Das has sought intervention against inaction of the state government in appointing a regular vice-chancellor of Utkal University in accordance with the mandate contained in Section 6 (1) of Universities Act, 1989. The Utkal University has 27 post-graduate departments with 5,000 students. It has 16 autonomous 298 degree and 149 professional colleges under its administration. The university is currently functioning under in-charge V-C Professor Jagneshwar Dandapat.
