TNIE Impact: Survey of India (SoI) has begun restoring a two-century-old Great Trigonometrical Survey (GT) station at Uthayathur village near Radhapuram. A team of SoI officials, including Officer Surveyor M Thayalan, and officials from State Survey Department visited the site and inaugurated the restoration works, which include repairing damaged portions, painting and fencing the structure. The @xpresstn had reported in July that the heritage GT station had been damaged by miscreants and that the surrounding land had been encroached upon by nearby landowners.
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@Collectortnv
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Activists have demanded Tirunelveli @Collectortnv to protect British-era Great Trigonometrical Survey station at Radhapuram. They also said nearby landowners encroached upon much of the government land around the station
Tirunelveli District Survey Office has finally released a list of 16 Great Trigonometrical Survey (GT) stations for the first time amid allegations that the officials had failed to prevent individuals from damaging the two-century-old heritage structures and encroaching on government land surrounding them.
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TIRUNELVELI: A 24-year-old Bihar native, who was working as a teacher at a Veda patashala at Nanguneri in Tirunelveli district, was arrested on Thursday under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act for allegedly sexually assaulting several students aged between seven and 12 on multiple occasions at the institute. His arrest came after a 10-year-old’s parents filed a police complaint
The accused, Durgesh Tiwari, teaches in the traditional school run by a woman, whose identity the police did not reveal. “Tiwari was working in a Mamallapuram-based patashala when the woman brought him to the Nanguneri region in 2024. He came with two Bihari children, and gradually increased the student strength,” an official said, requesting anonymity. Of the nine children from Bihar who stayed at the patashala, eight were allegedly sexually assaulted by Tiwari at night on different occasions
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After the 10-year-old survivor told the building owner about the incident, she informed his parents, who arrived in Tirunelveli and filed a complaint. “Police have advised parents of all students to come to Tirunelveli and cooperate in the inquiry. District child protection office authorities will meet the children at the patashala building and take necessary steps to shift them to a safe location,” the official said.
Police have registered a case under relevant sections of Pocso Act, 2012, for repeated aggravated penetrative sexual assault of children below 12 years of age by a person of authority in an educational institution. Tiwari has been produced before the Nanguneri Judicial Magistrate court, which remanded him in jail.
The boy, whose parents filed a complaint, has been provided medical treatment and counselling, police said.
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An ostracised family in Tenkasi district was allegedly forced to pay Rs 2.1 lakh to cremate an 85-year-old man at a common crematorium after a community kangaroo court blocked the funeral.
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The Chairman of the Education Ministry’s Review Committee on NEP 2020, Mamidela Jagadesh Kumar, said it was rigorously pushing for students to be 'work-ready ’ through tie-ups with companies and employers across the country.
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TNIE EXCLUSIVE: Chairperson of the @EduMinOfIndia
review committee for NEP2020 Jagadish Mamidela Kumar speaks to @NewIndianXpress on the steps taken by them to act as a bridge btwn students and employers to make them work-ready @xpresstn
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A lively meeting of minds at yesterday’s jury deliberations for The @NewIndianXpress’s RamNath Goenka Sahitya Samman 2026. A pleasure to chair a spirited exchange with fellow jurors on books, ideas and the remarkable diversity of Indian writing. The difficult part, of course, is choosing among them, but we managed to achieve consensus without any volumes being flung!
Kangaroo court of the Nadar community in Sambavarvadakarai town allegedly prevented one of the ostracised families of same community from cremating the body of an 85-year-old man at the common crematorium on Thursday. The cremation was delayed for hours and was allowed only after the family paid a penalty of Rs 2.1 lakh.
The deceased was identified as K V Ramaraj, father of R Senthil Vel, whose family is among eight ostracised families. According to CPM area secretary R Pattabiraman, one Vignesh’s family was first ostracised by the naattamai P Venkatesh after he refused to accept the kangaroo court’s order in a land dispute a few years ago. The families of Senthil and others were also ostracised for speaking to Vignesh’s family, he added.
Ramaraj died of age-related ailments around 11.30 pm on Wednesday. “When Senthil and his family members attempted to cremate him at the common crematorium, members of the community refused to allow them. Some people removed the wooden logs stacked at the crematorium for the funeral. Police personnel who inquired into the matter advised Senthil’s family to obey the kangaroo court’s order and pay the penalty,” Pattabiraman said. When contacted by TNIE, S Puvana, daughter-in-law of the deceased, said the kangaroo court had ordered them to pay a penalty of Rs 2.1 lakh to cremate his body.
The family later paid the amount and cremated Ramaraj’s body. However, Vignesh, who refused to pay the penalty, was allegedly forced to fall at the feet of the kangaroo court administrators and was ordered not to attend Ramaraj’s funeral, even though the deceased was his paternal uncle.
“If I attend the funeral, Senthil’s family will face severe action from the kangaroo court. Hence, I did not attend the event. Two of the eight ostracised families have paid fines so far. When the kangaroo court convenes, the mobile phones of all those attending are collected to prevent photographs from being taken. Even a police personnel from an intelligence wing was expelled from the illegal court on Thursday,” Vignesh told TNIE.
District Collector Ranjeet Singh could not be reached over phone. Superintendent of Police S Ashok Kumar said that his administration would look into the matter and take necessary steps.
TNIE reported the ostracism in February 2025, following which the district administration and district police stated on their respective X handles that legal action was being taken under Protection of Civil Rights Act against Venkatesh and others. However, the ostracised families have received no relief so far, even after the National Human Rights Commission took suo motu cognisance of the issue last year based on TNIE’s report.
Kangaroo court of the Nadar community in Sambavarvadakarai, Tenkasi- Failure of police & revenue depts despite being aware of the issue- Ostracised family prevented from cremating elderly deceased-Penalty being imposed @CMOTamilnadu @tnpoliceoffl @CollrTenkasi @TenkasiPolice @India_NHRC
KV Ramaraj Nadar (85), a member of one of the ostracised families, died around 11.30 pm on Wednesday. His community members prevented his family from cremating him in the common crematorium. SV Karai police, an incharge DSP & revenue officials allegedly refused to intervene, asking the family to obey the kangaroo court. Ramaraj's daughter-in-law, whom I spoke to while she was attending the kangaroo court at 2.30 pm, said the naattamai was demanding penalty of Rs 2.5 lakh to allow them to use the crematorium.
Kangaroo court of the Nadar community in Sambavarvadakarai, Tenkasi- Failure of police & revenue depts despite being aware of the issue- Ostracised family prevented from cremating elderly deceased-Penalty being imposed @CMOTamilnadu @tnpoliceoffl @CollrTenkasi @TenkasiPolice @India_NHRC
KV Ramaraj Nadar (85), a member of one of the ostracised families, died around 11.30 pm on Wednesday. His community members prevented his family from cremating him in the common crematorium. SV Karai police, an incharge DSP & revenue officials allegedly refused to intervene, asking the family to obey the kangaroo court. Ramaraj's daughter-in-law, whom I spoke to while she was attending the kangaroo court at 2.30 pm, said the naattamai was demanding penalty of Rs 2.5 lakh to allow them to use the crematorium.
Tamil Nadu: Kangaroo court led by naattamai P Venkatesh ostracized eight families in Sambavarvadakarai. Instead of initiating legal action against him, Tenkasi district administration/RDO @CollrTenkasi is pleading him to revoke ostracism by arranging peace committee meeting, said CPM union secretary R Pattabiraman.
He added that village naattamai ostracized these families in violation of the Constitution, barring them from accessing local stores and other facilities as well as speaking with other residents. "If we protest against ostracism and officials' inaction, the police arrest us not Venkatesh," he said.
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Both @CollrTenkasi @TenkasiPolice promised a solution last year. However, nothing happened
Even NHRC's intervention did not give relief to the ostracised families
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NHRC, India takes suo motu cognisance of the reported ostracisation of 30 people of 8 families by a village chief over a land dispute in Sambavarvadakarai town, Tenkasi, TN. May like to refer to the press release at: nhrc.nic.in/media/press-rele…
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Sankarankovil police in Tenkasi registered a case against the Sankarankovil municipality vice-chairperson for allegedly sexually assaulting a 44-year-old woman after promising to provide her livelihood assistance.
Russion's Rosatom said it has completed supply of safety system equipment to Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project's Unit 3 and 4.































