Doctors sacked in Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur (PTI): Malaysia has terminated the contracts of over 100 expatriate doctors, including 20 Indians, and put on hold fresh recruitments, citing incompetence and poor language proficiency as the main reasons behind the move.

“Many of them faced problems such as language barri-ers.? Their contracts were also terminated due to poor performance or other reasons like tardiness, being irresponsible when called to come for duty after ‘on-call’ hours, not adhering to their rostered schedules and not having sufficient expertise,” health minister Chua Soi Lek said on Tuesday.

The services of 118 such doctors were terminated between 2003 and June 2006. Besides Indians, 43 were from Pakistan, 36 from Egypt and the rest from other nations.

“Though the ministry is entitled to hire another 600, it is not going to do so,” Lek said, adding that 698 expatriate doctors were still serving across the country. However, Malaysia is not planning to freeze its in-take, he said.

House relief to Pramod kin

New Delhi (PTI): The Rajya Sabha House Committee has allowed the family of the late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan to keep his Safdarjung Road bungalow till November 4 on humanitarian grounds.

The bungalow was allotted to Mahajan, who was killed in May by his brother, in 1999 when he was the political adviser to then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

In June, the committee had contemplated cancelling a three-month extension granted to the family after an alleged drug overdose at the house killed Mahajan’s aide Bibek Moitra and sent the BJP leader’s son, Rahul, to jail.

Gender notice

New Delhi (PTI): Delhi High Court has issued a notice to the defence ministry on a public interest litigation alleging a gender bias and discrimination against women in the forces.

The court asked the ministry on Tuesday to respond to the petition filed by one Sandeep Garg within two weeks. The case will be heard again on October 9.

Refugee rush

Ramanathapuram (PTI): At least 64 Lankan refugees have arrived at Tamil Nadu’s Dhanushkodi area. With the arrival of these people, the number of refugees since January 12 has gone up to 5,051.

Sex racket plea

Srinagar (PTI): Former Jammu and Kashmir minister G.A. Mir and IAS officer Iqbal Khanday, under arrest in the sex racket case, have filed appeals against rejection of their bail applications on Friday. Khanday has also sought transfer of the case outside the state.For the first time in the history of the Tirupati temple, 24 women barbers have been recruited for its tonsure centre. They were chosen on Tuesday from among 90 women applicants.