Two kinds of Euthanasia defined.
1:Active euthanasia : It involves administering medicine or poison to end the life of a terminally ill patient.
2:Passive euthanasia :A terminally ill patient is allowed to die by stopping life support or medicines.
Euthanasia has been a controversial issue across the globe. Most countries don’t allow active euthanasia .
Definition:
The intentional killing by act or omission of a dependent human being for his or her alleged benefit. (If death is not intended, it is not an act of euthanasia)
Arguments For Euthanasia:
It provides a way of relief when a person’s quality of life is low.
Frees up medical funds to help other people.
It is another case of freedom of choice.
Arguments Against Euthanasia:
Euthanasia devalues human life.
Euthanasia can become a means of health care cost containment.
Physicians and other medical care people should not be involved in directly causing death.
There is a “slippery slope” effect that has occurred where euthanasia has been first been legalized for only
the terminally ill and later laws are changed to allow it for other people or to be done non-voluntarily.
mActive euthanasia is legal in Netheralands, Luxembourg and Belgium while passive euthanasia has got wider acceptance and is allowed in most states in the United States, Germany, Japan, Switzerland, and Albania.
In India, the law doesn’t permit either active or passive euthanasia but in 2011 the Supreme Court had ruled in favour of passive euthanasia with certain strict safeguards. The SC had said life support system can be withdrawn only on the recommendation of a panel of doctors after permission of the high court concerned on an application by family members or next friend.
These guidelines,the Centre said, shall remain in force until a law is framed.
The controversy revolves around a provision in the Medical Council of India Act that declares practicing euthanasia an unethical act.
After a patient is brain dead, should the question of withdrawing life support be decided by team of doctors or just by the treating physician alone? These are some of the questions the Supreme court of India is likely to consider.
India today became the number one side in the ICC T20 rankings after whitewashing Australia in the three-match series here today.
India, who are also the number one in Tests, overtook the West Indies to reach the top sport in the shortest format. India have 120 rating points, two more than the Caribbean unit. Sri Lanka also have 118 rating points like the West Indies but they are third in the charts.
India have hit top form in the T20 format ahead of the World T20 to be held at home in March-April. They had famously won the inaugural World T20 in South Africa in 2007.
England (117 rating points) are fourth in the rankings ahead of New Zealand (116), South Africa (115), Pakistan (113) and Australia (110). Afghanistan (80) and Scotland (66) round up the top-10.
@Agency report.
WASHINGTON: Three major Indian IT companies — Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro — have joined US President Barack Obama’s ambitious ‘computer science for all’ initiative as part of a public-private collaboration, pledging thousands of dollars in grants.
Obama announced his ‘Computer Sciences for All’ plan in his weekly address on Saturday as he emphasized on the need for teaching the subject as a “basic skill” to all children across schools in the country in a changing economy.
While Infosys has pledged a $1 million in donation, Tata Consultancy Services is providing support in the form of grants to teachers in 27 US cities, the White House said in a fact sheet, also issued on Saturday.
Wipro announced a $2.8 million grant for multi-year project in partnership with the Michigan University to involve over a hundred school teachers, with the aim of nurturing excellence in science and mathematics.
This would start with the public school systems of Chicago, Obama’s hometown.
According to White House, the TCS and Infosys pledge is part of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) effort to collaborate with the private sector to support high-school CS teachers.
“Infosys Foundation USA will be a founding member of this public-private collaboration with a $1 million philanthropic donation, and, as an initial participant, Tata Consultancy Services is providing additional support in the form of grants to teachers in 27 US cities.
“This collaboration will ultimately provide opportunities for as many as 2,000 middle- and high-school teachers to deepen their understanding of CS,” said the White House.
A joint Wipro and Michigan University statement said the Wipro STEM Fellowship Programme will focus on building leadership in these disciplines in urban schools by leveraging on research validated expertise of the College of Education at the university in designing transformative and innovative instructional experiences.
New Delhi : Amid talks of a fresh spectrum auction soon, Congress has cautioned the Narendra Modi government against focusing on profit, insisting that “service and not profit” should be its motto as the purpose is to serve the common man.
“With respect to spectrum allocation, service not profit, should be the motto of the government.
“In the spectrum auctions, financially burdened Telcos will be shelling out inflated amounts for spectrum. And there are no prizes for guessing how and from whom they will recover this expenditure – the common man. That’s you and me,” the party said.
In a piece on its website, the party said, “Modiji, you are the PM of India, not its CEO. Your focus should be welfare, not profits.”
“What is the purpose of a government? Is it to provide governance and easy access to services for the largest number of people, or is it to increase profits of the government and benefits of a few private companies?” it asked.
Noting that seeking profit from spectrum auction could hurt development, it wondered how will the PM’s mobile-based pet schemes be implemented if tariffs rise.
“Modi thinks his policies are beyond criticism despite the fact that India is currently sitting in the middle of an economic crisis the burden of which is being felt not by the PM and his businessmen friends but by the other 99% people of India,” the party said.
The opposition party said the duty of the government is to create a conducive atmosphere for businesses to flourish and provide policy framework that encourages investment benefits of which are reaped by the maximum number of people.
“It is not their duty to behave like a large corporate house trying to increase profits. ”
It insisted that when governments run after profits, welfare suffers and people who need support of the government are abandoned, as ministers look at the bottom line. “Modi is the Prime Minister of India not its CEO. We are citizens and not shareholders. We require services not dividends.”
Reports had it that the government is planning for spectrum auction and it will help ease fiscal deficit in a big way. As per Budget 2015-16, the government had pegged Rs 42,865 crore revenue from communication which include spectrum sale and licence fee. If the government goes ahead with spectrum auction, Department of Telecom will definitely surpass its budget estimate, it was said.
The sudden replacement of Telecom Secretary has led to speculation about spectrum auction happening in March this year.
@Agency news.
New Delhi : A plea has been moved in the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of the recently-passed juvenile law that allows delinquent minors of 16 years of age and above to be tried as adults if they commit heinous offenses like rape and murder.
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, cleared in the winter session of Parliament, repeals and recasts the old Act.
The PIL, filed by Congress leader and activist Tahseen Poonawalla, said that the new law is unreasonable, arbitrary and in violation of Article 14 (right to equality) of the Constitution.
It challenges section 15 of the new Act which says in case of a heinous offense alleged to have been committed by a child, who has completed or is above the age of 16 years, the Juvenile Justice Board shall conduct a preliminary inquiry to determine whether a juvenile offender is to be sent for rehabilitation or be tried as an adult.
The plea said the impugned amended Act is “draconian and unconstitutional” which instead of providing care and protection to children deems them as adult in cases where the alleged commission of crime by them is heinous in nature.
It further said that the amendment goes against the letter and spirit of The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and is against the protection accorded to Child and adolescent criminals since 1800s.
On January 4, the President of India has accorded his assent to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.
The Act also allows that any 16-18-year-old who commits a less serious offense may be tried as an adult only if he is apprehended after the age of 21 years.
As soon as a child alleged to be in conflict with the law is apprehended by police, such a child shall be placed under the charge of the special juvenile police unit or the designated child welfare police officer who shall produce the child before the Juvenile Justice Board without any loss of time but within a period of 24 hours of apprehending the child.
@Agency report.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Transgenders, who are striving hard to find a place in mainstream society, will soon turn entrepreneurs in Kerala with the launch of a taxi service which will be owned and operated by them, a first in the state.
@Agency news.