The Thanjavur Medical College Hospital is a renowned healthcare delivery institution catering to the needs of the delta districts of Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, and Nagapattinam for several decades now. After first-aid, patients and casualties from all parts of the districts and even from the eastern regions of Pudukkottai district are rushed to the TMCH as referral cases for more intensive medication and treatment. This makes the institution one of the busiest and important facilities in the State. That being the case, the presence of three TASMAC retail outlets at the three important gates to the TMCH remains a paradox with the public at a loss to know whether the State government is more intent on serving the patients through the TMCH or creating more through the TASMAC outlets there. While the administration and the TASMAC authorities are free to establish outlets anywhere they like, locating three of them to reap the benefits of a gathering of people like those who come to visit the patients in a major medical institution is ridiculous and insensitive. It makes one wonder whether there are any guidelines on allowing liquor shops, that too three of them on a row, in the vicinity of a major medical facility. Not all alcohol has medicinal value, certainly not the ones sold by the TASMAC.
More than their demands, their affiliation to political parties came to the fore at the flash strike launched by transport employees on Sunday. Commuters were left high and dry by the sudden strike which was originally scheduled to start on Monday. However, surprisingly, within a couple of hours of the strike, handbills were seen pasted on the glass panes of buses assuring normal operation of buses on Monday by employees owing allegiance to Anna Employees Union in Tiruchi.
The extent of the strike and its impact varied from district to district. This was because “it all depends on the strength of members of a particular union in a district,” say sources.
