Category Archives: Business & Economy

Bengaluru-based cafe gives flight to big dreams of little people

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Records, All

Life has just gotten better for 23-year-old M Rajashekar Reddy, who has finally landed himself a job in the city, after searching for five long years.

The Hobbit, Koramangala, has hired seven dwarves  / Pushkar V
The Hobbit, Koramangala, has hired seven dwarves  / Pushkar V

Bengaluru :

Life has just gotten better for 23-year-old M Rajashekar Reddy, who has finally landed himself a job in the city, after searching for five long years. He had been visiting Bengaluru from Anantapur since 2014 but every employer he approached rejected him due to his height and hearing impairment. “Back home, I used to do farming and earned only a meagre `6,000 a month. My new job now has given me hope for a better future,” said the 3’9’’ footed  man, who lives with dwarfism, a genetic condition that results in shortness in height.

Reddy isn’t the only one feeling relieved these days. Like him, six others with dwarfism have been hired by The Hobbit, a recently-opened cafe in Koramangala. Karthik Raj, the co-owner of the café, said giving back to society was always part of the plan during the cafe’s conceptualisation. “Growing up, I had a neighbour who was a dwarf and I saw how people would tease him by calling him names such as ‘chottu’. Often, people with this condition find it difficult to get a job,” explained Raj.

Agreed Prakash M, a badminton, shot put and discus plater, who will be joining the cafe in a week’s time. Despite being a sportsperson, Prakash struggled for years due to no adequate support from the government to compete in sporting tournaments. He had been applying for a job for a year but even a recent win of `75,000 in the Special Olympics held at Abu Dhabi last month wasn’t enough to lessen his worry since most of the money would be used in paying off his loans. Now, with a job at the cafe in hand, the 4’4’’ footed-man is ‘more than willing to work’ and is looking forward to settling down with a steady source of income.

Chamundeshwari, a 3’7” footed 28-year-old, who works as a cashier at the cafe added that the inclusive work environment motivates him  greatly to learn new things.It took Raj a year to find his seven employees, for six of whom, this will be their first job. He also added that they intend to start an organisation just for people living with the condition.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Preeja Prasad / Express News Service / May 02nd, 2019

‘Rani Abbakka Pade’ launched

Business & Economy, Records, All
Members of 'Rani Abbakka Pade'.
Members of ‘Rani Abbakka Pade’.

With ‘Rani Abbakka Pade’ now becoming a reality, those indulging in stalking and eve teasing need to reform.

Rani Abbakka Pade (RAP), the women-only patrolling team of Mangaluru City Police Commissionerate, will keep vigil in public places in the city and act against lewd gestures targeted at women and children.

The move has come with the objective of instilling a feeling of security among women and children in public places.

Mangaluru Commissioner of Police Sandeep Patil who launched RAP at City Center Mall on Tuesday said that ‘Rani Abbakka Pade’ comprised of 50 women police constables. It was formed as per the IGP’s directions. The 50 member-team is divided into battalions of five lady constables each.

“RAP will be deployed at beaches, parks, malls, colleges and bus shelters. They will also make random checks in buses to check eve-teasing, bag and chain snatching from elderly people in particular. Issues related to child abuse in public places will also be dealt with by RAP. Women suffering eve-teasing and other issues may directly complain to members of Rani Abbakka Pade, who will then hand over the vandals to the jurisdictional police,” he said.

‘Rani Abbakka Pade’ will be headed by Police Sub Inspector Srikala. Similar women-only patrolling teams are active in other districts, Patil added.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State> Mangaluru / by DH News Service, Mangaluru / May 01st, 2019

Bengaluru college students invent smart helmet, apply for patent

Business & Economy, Education, Records, All, Science & Technology

The helmet will be able to send alert GPS location of rider to rescue personnel and has a multi-directional impact protection system.

Smart helmet
Smart helmet

Bengaluru :

Available in the market soon will be a motorcycle accompanied by a smart helmet which will alert riders of emergency situations while also sending out messages to emergency rescue personnel with the location of the rider, in case of an accident. The e-motorcycle and smart helmet is the invention of a group of 3rd year engineering students of the MVJ College of Engineering from the city. Though not a part of a compulsory class project, they worked on it considering how increasingly, two-wheeler riders were becoming victims of accidents.

Talking about their invention, Saivenkat Patro, an Electronics and Communcations (E&C) student said, “We have applied for patents and also have to conduct trials for the vehicle and helmet. Once this is complete, we will work on permissions from authorities to release these in the market for sale.”

The team plans on selling both products as a package instead of as standalone products. “The cost is going to be quite less. We plan to sell both between Rs 7,000 to Rs 10,000,” he said. The team has named the helmet ‘KAWACH’. Other students in the team are Nikitha, Megha S of Electronics and Communication and Surva Pratim Roy of the Computer Science department.

The team is also working on a helmet for construction and mining site workers and will name it Kawach M&C. Another product is a helmet for children named Kawach Junior. “The sensors placed on the helmet alert the supervisor that an accident has occurred and help needs to be sent immediately. Along with the alert message it also sends the location of the accident to make it easier for the help to locate the victim. This helmet also comes with a mechanical SOS button which the person can use when in need.

The advantage of this technology is that the connection between the supervisor and worker is not lost even in adverse conditions like being underground or in a remote area of the site.” explained the members of the team.  “Kawach Junior is a variant specially designed for kids. The smart features included in the helmet are the accident alert system, SOS alert and GPS tracking system.”

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Express News Service / April 06th, 2019

Private spacecraft centre soon in Bengaluru

Business & Economy, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

The new facility will start functioning at Devanahalli in a few months

Bengaluru, home to the country’s space headquarters, looks set to also host the country’s first spacecraft production facility in the private sector.

The new facility, designed for building 2,000-kg communication and Internet broadband spacecraft, is slated to start functioning in a few months at Devanahalli here.

“Our satellite and systems unit is getting ready at Bengaluru and we plan to formally inaugurate it in the second quarter [fiscal] of 2019, that is during the June-September period,” said Anurup Pavuluri, Director of Ananth Technologies Ltd.

The Hyderabad-based family-run company has put up the satellite centre at an estimated cost of ₹150-200 crore. The facility is being built on 3.5 acres of land at Bengaluru’s aerospace park north of the city.

The State Government is developing a 1,000-acre hub at Devanahalli to promote aerospace, defence and high-technology industries and has earmarked 252 acres there as an export-focussed special economic zone for these sectors.

“We want to be the first full-fledged private sector player in assembly integration and testing of satellites in the country,” Mr. Pavuluri told The Hindu recently. “Today, there is demand for satellites from within the country and outside. The government-run ISRO is the sole player in this niche,” he said.

Systems for missiles

An immediate deal is in the process for providing a set of Internet broadband satellites, he said. Besides space systems and satellite imagery services, Ananth also manufactures systems for missiles such as Akash and BrahMos that are made in the country.

Mr. Pavuluri said Ananth’s entry into making full spacecraft was an extension of its space-related activities of many years. It supplies systems for spacecraft, launch vehicles and spacecraft command systems of the Indian Space Research Organisation ISRO.

About 150 employees are already working in its space programme activities in Bengaluru and some more staff would be recruited. Initially the new Space Systems Facility centre would take up assembly of satellites on the ‘i2k’ or 2,000-kg platform. The facility was designed to make four such satellites at a time or two satellites of 4,000-kg category.

About the expertise needed for a niche activity, he said Ananth already has a pool of employees who either worked for or retired from ISRO; his father and company’s founding CEO P.Subba Rao, he said, was also with ISRO for over a decade.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Madhumathi D.S. / Bengaluru – March 07th, 2019

The women who keep Karnataka’s buses going

About Bangalore(Bengaluru) / Karnataka, Amazing Feats, Business & Economy, Records, All, Science & Technology
Women mechanics at a KSRTC depot in Bengaluru. | Photo Credit: G_P_Sampath Kumar
Women mechanics at a KSRTC depot in Bengaluru. | Photo Credit: G_P_Sampath Kumar

The number of women signing up as technical staff is on the rise

Depots and workshops of Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) may be labour intensive work places, but that has not deterred women from signing up as technical staff. Along with their male colleagues, they are responsible for maintenance and electrical work, repairing engines and working on the exterior of the bus.

Deepa Dinesh, who works at the premier AC bus depot of KSRTC at Shantinagar is in charge of inspecting vehicles, fixing technical issues raised by drivers and clearing the vehicles to ply on roads.

“When I joined the corporation 18 years ago, I had my doubts about surviving in this work environment. But the support I received from my colleagues helped me to stay in the profession for all these years.” Today, she oversees maintenance of 32 AC buses, including the high-end Club Class buses. “After attending to technical issues raised by drivers, I sometimes drive the buses inside the depot to check whether problems have been rectified,” she added.

Her colleague, Chaitra, says there is no discrimination in the work done by male and female employees, except when it comes to heavy lifting. Usually, maintenance work of an AC bus is done every 30,000 km. “There are women technical staff who have also got expertise in exterior work [including paint jobs], which gives brand value for the buses,” she added.

KSRTC operates more than 8,700 buses across Karnataka. It has been recruiting women for technical support work since 1999. There is, however, room for more women as the ratio is skewed towards male employees. Currently, the corporation has 5,068 technical staff of which 826 are women.

A similar trend is seen among BMTC’s technical staff. At its Indiranagar depot for instance, of the 80 technical staff, 24 are women.

“I was the first woman technical staff to join this depot 21 years ago,” said Rangamma. “Over the years, the number of women joining this profession has been on the rise. We don’t just do repair work, but also contribute to maintaining the interior of the bus,” she said.

The BMTC has 338 women technical staff out of which 80 are working in central workshops.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Special Correspondent / March 07th, 2019

How this small group of women at NAL has been critical to the Saras programme

Amazing Feats, Business & Economy, Records, All, Science & Technology
Some of the scientists who work on the Saras programme. | Photo Credit: Sudhakara Jain / The Hindu
Some of the scientists who work on the Saras programme. | Photo Credit: Sudhakara Jain / The Hindu

Nearly 10 years after a crash seemed to have ended the Saras dream, the turbo-prop plane soared over the crowds at Aero India. The sorties of the 14-seater twin-engine propeller aircraft were perhaps overshadowed by the roar of jet fighters. But for the women of National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL), the anticipation was thick, and their pride soared higher with each sortie.

“Saras is like our second child,” says Manju Nanda, Principal Senior Scientist, Aerospace Software and Information Systems Division (ASISD), NAL.

Following the crash, when funding for the project stopped in 2013, the scientists felt a sense of betrayal.

“We have seen each and every component being developed, every hurdle being crossed. After the crash, we were angry. We did not avail the passes for the aero show… but our passion remained, and now it has risen from the ashes,” says Akshatha H.T., a senior scientist at NAL’s Centre for Civil Aircraft Design and Development who was part of the team that designed the structure of the plane.

The small group of women — as per their estimates, women form just 17% of NAL’s staff — has been critical to the Saras programme. Among them are J. Jayanthi, Chief Scientist, ASISD, and Dr. Nanda who led the team that developed India’s first Stall Warning System software that has been approved for use in aircraft. Lakshmi Devi, Senior Scientist, C-CADD, plays an important role in the team that looks after the electrical systems and their indigenisation while Sivasakthi M., who has worked her way up from a trainee intern to a scientist, is a part of the flight test instrumentation team that keeps an eye on telemetry.

Ms. Jayanthi was among five girls in the B.Tech course in Madras Institute of Technology. By 1989, she was at NAL when there were less than 10 women scientists in the two divisions she was associated with. “More women have joined since then. NAL and other defense PSUs give equal opportunity for women, but the society’s mindset is such that women do not apply in the numbers we desire,” she said.

Over the years, though more women have completed engineering, it is still the private sector that beckons. The prevalent mindset is that aviation is a place suited for men. But, the women at NAL are determined to change that, whether it is an electrical technician who hauls 200kg batteries, or Sivashakti M. who has to climb 20 feet to check tracking antenna as part of her job.

Women in defence

By rough estimates, women now constitute 24% of the armed forces and defence PSUs. However, this is not evenly spread out, with women having lower representation as pilots or technicians.

The International Women’s Pilots Association, which has over 1,000 members across the country, had opened a Bengaluru chapter last week. The chapter is headed by Tessy Thomas, Director General of Aeronautical Systems at Defence Research and Development Organisation, and the first woman to head a missile programme in India.

“In the coming weeks and months, there will be more collaboration with women professionals from DRDO. We want to highlight opportunities not just as pilots, but as mechanical engineers, flight safety officers and the technical side of aviation,” Harpreet A. De. Singh, President of IWPA had told The Hinduduring Aero India 2019.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Staff Reporter / March 07th, 2019

Bengaluru home to 98 Ultra-High Net-Worth Individuals

Business & Economy, Records, All, World Opinion

Each individual has at least 225 crore of wealth; city has seen 36% growth in these individuals in 5 years.

Bengaluru is home to 98 Ultra-High Net-Worth Individuals (UHNWIs), a growth of 36% over the last five years. Each of these individuals has a wealth of Rs 225 crore ($30 million) or more.

In 2013, the technology hub had 72 UHNWIs, according to The Wealth Report 2019 released by global property consultant Knight Frank on Wednesday.

Globally, Bengaluru is expected to see the highest growth rate of 40% over the next five years among 100 cities. By 2023, it is expected that Bengaluru will have 137 UHNWIs. Bengaluru is followed by Hangzhou in China, which is expected to see a growth of 34% in the next five years.

The Wealth Report 2019 provides global perspectives on prime property and wealth. The annual publication includes the Knight Frank City Wealth Index; price movements across 100 luxury residential property markets; the results of Knight Frank’s Luxury Investment Index; and the Attitudes Survey.

The Wealth Report revealed that Mumbai has jumped to the 12th rank from 18th highlighting significant wealth creation in the city. Bengaluru was placed 60th in terms of investments and superceded Mumbai and Delhi.

Overall, India leads with 39% growth, followed by the Philippines (38%) and China (35%). There are 1,947 UHNWIs in India, which is followed by the Philippines. UHNWIs in India grew by 7% in 2017 to 2018, which is well above the global average of 4% and the Asia average of 3%, the report said.

About 61% of Indian UHNWIs expect their wealth to increase in 2019, which shows confidence in the economic growth of the country.

Bengaluru is home to many companies including Infosys, Wipro, Flipkart, and over 400 multinationals like Microsoft, Hitachi and Samsung. This is supported by the fact that the city has been grossing the country’s highest office absorption volume consecutively for the last 10 years and is expected to lead the office growth trend in terms of investments as well as absorption.

“Despite softening momentum in the region’s economies, growth prospects in Asia remain favourable in the medium term,” said Nicholas Holt, Head of Research, Knight Frank Asia Pacific. “While China’s economy is expected to slow, emerging markets such as India and the Philippines will deliver some of the strongest growth over the coming years.”

Bengaluru has made a commitment to creating a knowledge economy by investing in education centres, including the Indian Institute of Management Bengaluru, the Indian Institute of Science and the National Aerospace Laboratories.

“Bengaluru is the first amongst five eye-catching ‘cities of the future’ based on future economic potential. This growth, backed by its intrinsic potential from strong economic fundamentals, will attract investments from domestic as well as institutional sources,” said Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Business> Business News / by Mahesh Kulkarni / DH News Service, Bengaluru / March 06th, 2019

TEDx event at Ramaiah Institute of Technology today

Amazing Feats, Business & Economy, Education, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Anuradha Vikranth believes that dance enhances the personality and helps to connect with oneself and will be attending the TEDxMSRIT event as a speaker.

Ramaiah Institute of Technology (Photo | RIT Website)
Ramaiah Institute of Technology (Photo | RIT Website)

The talks at the conference, called TED Talks, are then made available on TED.com. Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bengaluru is organising an independent TEDx event on March 2, 9am to 5pm. Renowned speakers will be joining the event. Anuradha Vikranth is a danseuse who has incorporated dance into every aspect of her life. She believes that dance enhances the personality and helps to connect with oneself and will be attending the TEDxMSRIT event as a speaker.

Other speakers include Archana Timmaraju, who has a hearing impairment, and Daniel Sundaram.
Through sheer grit and hardwork, Timmaraju embarked on a journey called ‘Silent Expedition’  with her partner Sundaram to empower the community across India. Dr Prabha Chandra will also be present at the talk.  He is the Head of Psychiatry at NIMHANS and has spent the larger part of her career exploring and unravelling the intricacies of the mind and will enlighten the audience with a talk on the complexities of the mind.  Cohan Sujay Carlos is a researcher and the CEO of Aiaioo labs. The speaker’s brainchild, Mechanical Chef, is a robot that can cook more than 100 Indian dishes.

Kim Sain Jidung will also be joining the panel and is actively involved in the drive against prevention of sex trafficking and empowering survivors to lead a transformed life. Girish Badragond is the son of a farmer and is currently a partner at Santepp Systems, a fast-growing technocrat proprietary firm in the field of agricultural technology manufacture. N M Prathap will also speak at the event and is well-known for being the epitome of a small-town boy from Mandya making it big in the world. He won a gold and silver medal and $1,0000 in International Robotics Exhibition held in Tokyo in 2017.

The event will be held at Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bangalore, on March 2, 9 am – 5pm. Tickets are priced at `800 and available on http://bit.ly/TEDx_Tickets.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Express News Service / March 02nd, 2019

Mudhol hounds in high demand among estate owners

Agriculture, Business & Economy

The hound’s aggressive nature, aptitude for hunting, ability to chase, good stamina and obedience to the owner makes them popular on estates.

A file picture of a Mudhol hound | Express
A file picture of a Mudhol hound | Express

Vijayapura  :

After their introduction in the Indian armed forces, paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force and police squads, the hounds of Mudhol are now in demand among estate owners of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.Coffee and tea planters are showing a keen interest in keeping these faithful hunters on their properties to chase away crop raiding wild animals, and also for vigilance on estates.

The hound’s aggressive nature, aptitude for hunting, ability to chase, good stamina and obedience to the owner makes them popular on estates. Another reason is their low maintenance cost of less than `3,000 per month.    The Canine Research and Information Centre (CRIC) in Thimmapur, near Mudhol of Bagalkot, is the official breeding centre of the dog. CRIC functions under the Karnataka Veterinary, Animal and Fisheries Sciences University of Bidar. The demand for Mudhol hounds has increased in the past five years, say authorities at CRIC, which provides a good platform for marketing the hounds.

CRIC has at least 38 Mudhol hounds which are used for breeding. Every year, more than 130 to 140 puppies are sold at this centre and around 60% of the customers are estate owners from Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The Mudhol puppies are sold at a price of `19,000 a pair. The male puppy costs `10,000 and female `9,000.

CRIC is struggling to meet the demands of estate owners, a few of whom have returned empty-handed. Dr Mahesh S Dodamani, head of CRIC, receives at least 10 phone calls from people from other states, asking about the availability of Mudhol hounds. Some families in the region which have taken up breeding of the hound, which also meets the demand to a large extent.

Dr Doddamani told TNIE, “Mudhol hounds are mainly in demand from coffee and tea estates of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The owners believe that the Mudhol is more faithful than the other breeds and use these faithful hunters mainly to chase away wild animals and also to guard their properties. But we don’t have the same demand from estate owners of Karnataka.”

He concedes that CRIC is unable to meet the huge requirement for the dog. “Mudhol puppies are sold only in two seasons in a year. We sell the puppies on ‘first come first serve’ basis. After the Indian armed forces inducted the Mudhol hound, demand has doubled,” he added.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Mahesh M. Gowdar / Express News Service / February 26th, 2019

Unable to find chef, MBA grad launches baking institute

Business & Economy, Education

Vedkiran was devastated when he wasn’t able to hire the right chef who shared his vision for healthy, tasty and sophisticated desserts in his establishment.

Bangalore-based 'Whitecaps International School of Pastry' was not just a startup but also what Vedkiran needed to equip his own business along with the entire food industry.
Bangalore-based ‘Whitecaps International School of Pastry’ was not just a startup but also what Vedkiran needed to equip his own business along with the entire food industry.

Kochi :

Vedkiran was devastated when he wasn’t able to hire the right chef who shared his vision for healthy, tasty and sophisticated desserts in his establishment. Now, as a businessman himself, he couldn’t afford to go away for a three-year course to learn all the nuances taught in pastry school. “I needed a place that could give practical training in this regard. Theoretical training through conventional courses was not enough,” says Vedkiran. A small look into the state of pastry chefs in the country showed him a bigger picture.

Bangalore-based ‘Whitecaps International School of Pastry’ was not just a startup but also what Vedkiran needed to equip his own business along with the entire food industry. “After failing to find a pastry chef who matches my vision, I did some research into finding professionals and realised that there wasn’t any professional institution to teach confectionery or baking. I always wanted to start up in the food industry and through this research, I also realised the gap that the education sector had with the confectionery industry,” says Vedkiran.

Although some may argue that baking is too niche a category to have an institute for, Vedkiran begs to differ. “We as Indians have a conventional way of seeing things. Anything that isn’t usual, we consider niche. But if you look deeper, most of the urban populace is familiar with international gourmet food. And confectioneries, dessert bars are on a rise lately. You can find sophisticated outlets that exclusively serve desserts running successfully. Today’s urban citizen is not happy with the usual. And, as the industry grows so does the need for professional pastry chefs. That’s where Whitecaps International comes in,” he explains. Whitecaps International School of Pastry offers three-month specialisation courses in various skills required to be a pastry chef with 1 week of industry experience. “Our alumni are already placed in star hotels across the country,” says Vedkiran.

As Vedkiran learns along with students, he also has the help of Aravind Prasad, a celebrity chef who represented India globally. Ved shares, “He helped me structure the courses and his experience and expertise got our students the hands-on learning that they needed to go ahead and pursue their dreams.” Their alumni are placed in prestigious positions in establishments like Shangi La, Ritz Carlton and Hyatt Regency.

Started with a self-funding of `1 crore, Vedkiran after just one year of establishing the institute valuated the company for `11 crores and acquired investment for a 6 per cent share in the company. Besides expanding the infrastructure of the Bengaluru institute, Vedkiran plans on franchising the institute to Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai.

In a Nutshell

  • Vedkiran, a Bengaluru-based MBA grad started Whitecaps International School of Pastry in 2016
  • Self-funded with E1 Cr, the company use their valuation at E11 Cr in a year and got investment for 6 per cent of share
  • The alumni of the institute work at establishments like Shangri La, Ritz Carlton and Hyatt Regency, while most set up their own confectioneries.
  • Vedkiran plans on franchising the institute to Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Kochi / by Srividya Palaparthi / Express News Service / February 28th, 2019