Disruptive technology poses challenges to lawyers: President
Belagavi (Karnataka), Sep 15 : With the time span between innovation and its application shrinking, President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday called upon lawyers to respond quickly as disruptive technology threw up challenges for the legal fraternity.
"As time span between innovation and application is shortening, it poses challenges for law in genetic engineering, bioethics and artificial intelligence. Lawyers have to respond quickly. I hope our legal minds will put their thoughts into it,a said Kovind here in Karnataka's northwest region, about 500 km from Bengaluru.
Inaugurating the platinum jubilee celebrations of the Karnataka Law Society (KLS) and Raja Lakhamgouda Law College, Kovind said in the age of technology and entrepreneurship, the fourth Industrial Revolution (4.0) was changing how people live and work and the aspirations of the younger generation.
"Our educational institutions have to become compatible with this quest for innovation and excellence. They have to become compatible with the 21st century," he asserted.
Terming the law humans wrote was the basis of civilisation for discipline and orderliness, the President said even lawyers and judges were seekers of truth.
"That is why so many lawyers were part of the national movement. Mahatma Gandhi and Babasaheb Ambedkar were both lawyers with a spirit of public service. The Constitution is a modern scripture of our national identity," Kovind recalled.
Hinting that India was in the midst of dramatic changes, the President said decisions being taken would influence not just in the near future, but the rest of the century.
"We have young and talented population and an economy, brimming with opportunities. In the previous quarter, the GDP grew at 8.2 per cent, which indicates the pace and our potential. We live in an age of technology and of entrepreneurship," he reiterated.
With the overhauling of the regulatory framework for higher education and upgrading it to meet the present needs, the President said graded autonomy was granted to 60 top universities across the country.
"In addition, 20 institutions of higher education have been promoted as institutes of eminence, which enable them to recruit faculty and revamp the curricula for achieving global standards," added Kovind.
Besides Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala and Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, Supreme Court Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Attorney General K.K. Venugopal, an alumni of the college, participated in the function.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
