The district panchayat has initiated steps to establish the geriatric centre which will include an inpatient physiotherapy centre and a dialysis centre.
Ernakulam district will soon have a government-run geriatric centre.The district panchayat has initiated steps to establish the geriatric centre which will include an inpatient physiotherapy centre and a dialysis centre. The centre, which will be useful for patients who need long-term physiotherapy, will come up at the district hospital in Aluva.“A major concern we have is addressing the caregiving needs of the elderly in the district. We are placing much emphasis on formulating programmes for the elderly. The geriatric centre, with an inpatient physiotherapy facility, has been envisaged as part of this,” said district panchayat president K.G. Radhakrishnan.As part of this, a new building is being constructed at the district hospital in Aluva. “Construction is under way at the hospital. Along with this, we are also planning to upgrade the dialysis unit. While we do have a 28-bed dialysis centre at the hospital, we intend to modernise and upgrade the facilities. So the first floor of the geriatric centre will have a modernised and well-equipped dialysis facility,” said Mr. Radhakrishnan.The other two floors will house an inpatient physiotherapy centre for patients receiving palliative care. “There is no inpatient physiotherapy facility in the government sector in the State. This is a pressing need that can be addressed through the centre. Private facilities are available, but they are expensive,” the president said. The panchayat has envisaged the centre as a low-cost inpatient facility.“Many elderly people require physiotherapy but are unable to access it because of limited facilities. Several elderly patients require extended treatment, which may require hospitalisation. The facility will be affordable to the general public,” said the president. The facility is expected to become operational within a year. Published - July 13, 2026 12:23 am IST
Union Home Minister Amit Shah. | In a July 9 letter to the Chief Secretaries of States and the Secretaries to Union Ministries, Joint Secretary Arvind Khare stated that the “Orders relating to National Song specifies that — when the National Song and the National Anthem are sung or played, National Song will be sung or played first.”‘Follow correct diction’The letter noted that while singing or playing the National Song and the National Anthem, “their correct script/text and diction/pronunciations should be followed strictly”.The letter attached an order issued earlier that contains the exhaustive list of occasions during which the National Song and the National Anthem “shall be played or sung” at the beginning or end of an event or twice. “It is requested that suitable instructions in this regard may please be issued to all concerned institutions/organisations under your jurisdiction, for strict compliance,” the MHA said.February orderEarlier, on February 6, the MHA, in a set of instructions to the States and other government bodies, advised that all the six stanzas of Vande Mataram, around 3.10 minutes long, be sung or played at official events and be given precedence over the National Anthem.Vande Mataram, the salutation of India imagined as a mother, was written by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay and published with his novel Anandamath in the early 1880s. In 1937, leaders of the Indian National Congress, which was leading the national movement, decided to use the first two stanzas at its gatherings. The Constitution of the modern Republic of India accorded it the status of the National Song.Jana Gana Mana was written and composed by Rabindranath Tagore.On May 5, the Union Cabinet gave the go-ahead to amend The Prevention of Insults To National Honour Act, 1971 to make any insult or obstruction to the singing of Vande Mataram a punishable offence. A Bill to this effect is likely to be tabled in the Monsoon Session of Parliament that is to begin on July 20.At present, insults to Jana Gana Mana, the National Flag, and the Constitution of India is mentioned in the 1971 Act and is punishable by an imprisonment of up to three years or fine or both. Published - July 11, 2026 09:25 pm IST
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