Rural Development Minister H K Patil said, a target had been set to free Karnataka of open defecation by 2018.
He launched a special drive under Nirmala Bharat by inaugurating a toilet at Keelara, near Mandya, on Monday. He said, the government hoped to construct 10 lakh toilets this year and this target could be achieved if one lakh of them were constructed in Mandya district.
“Under Gaurava scheme, the government plans to construct one lakh units, which would comprise of bathrooms as well as toilets. To make toilets user-friendly for senior citizens and physically handicapped persons, western commodes will be fitted in toilets, wherever necessary,” he said.
Drawing a comparison between south and north Karnataka, Patil said, the southern districts were lagging behind in implementation of various government programmes and schemes.
Directing the officials to lay stress on implementing the programmes, he said, even people demanded only roads and bhavans here. “They do not care to seek grants for playgrounds, drying yards, toilets, etc.”MP C S Puttaraju said, some shameful incidents had occurred in the district due to the lack of toilets, so people should take the issue seriously and make use of the scheme judiciously.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / DHNS – Mandya, July 08th, 2014
‘Beeja Jathre,’ a festival of seeds and grains will be held at Nanjaraja Bahadur Choultry in city on July 5 and 6 under the aegis of Sahaja Samrudha.
Farmers and consumers can apprise themselves of nearly 1,500 indigenous varieties of seeds, of which more than 900 will be of different varieties of paddy, said G. Seema of Sahaja Samrudha and State Coordinator of Save Our Rice Movement here yesterday.
Krishnaprasad, founder of Sahaja Samrudha, said that more than 50 groups of seed conservators from all over South India will participate and showcase at least 35 varieties of ragi, 50 varieties of brinjal and more than 900 varieties of rice.
In addition, indigenous delicacies made of organic products will be displayed and also sold during the festival.
This is the first such seed fest being held in Mysore, and on the occasion, the organisers will felicitate some farmers who have taken up seed conservation.
The festival will be inaugurated by Zilla Panchayat CEO P.A. Gopal. A book titled “Beeja Bangara” authored by G.S. Jayadeva of Deenabandhu Trust will be released on the occasion.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / July 03rd,2014
The decoction of leaves of the Paradise tree is being used as a complement to chemotherapy | Wikipedia
Paradise tree, a native of South and Central America and now grown widely in Karnataka, is fast becoming a tree of solace for many cancer patients in the state. The decoction of leaves is being used as a complement to chemotherapy, with patients vouching that it drastically improves the quality of life and even cure the cancer.
The leaves are sourced from Bangalore, where two retired agricultural scientists, Syamasundar Joshi and Shantha Joshi, are engaged in popularising this tree and the decoction. They do it without taking any money, charging patients only labour cost.
“We just want people to grow this tree. It is like taking health insurance,’’ said 73-year-old Syamsundar Joshi. The scientist duo said that the tree was originally brought to India to tide over the edible oil crisis. They noticed the plant was anti-bacterial, anti-tumorous and was good for gynaecological problems.
It was effective for cancer patients and the scientist couple found that the decoction could also bring down side effects of chemotherapy, minimise appetite loss and ensure fast recovery.
Shyla Ramdas of Vazhuthacaud here, who had heard about this decoction, was at first hesitant to give it to her husband, a stage-four cancer patient, who had malignancy in and around his intestine.
“The doctors were not very hopeful about his case and he kept on losing weight. But once he started taking this decoction, he was much healthier, driving the car and generally managing on his own. He even gained back the weight he had lost,’’ said Shyla.
Scientifically, validations are yet to come but isolated studies have shown that several compounds such as the quassinoids in Simarouba has anti-tumour and anti-leukemic (against blood cancer) action. Glaucarubinone, one such compound, has been found to have activity against drug-resistant mammary tumours in mice and anti-leukemic activity, again in mice. It has also been found to improve mitochondrial metabolism and extend lifespan in the nematode, Caenohabditis elegans.
Most patients that ‘Express’ talked to were willing to let chemotherapy or surgery take credit for their recovery, but in their hearts, believed that it was the Simarouba leaves that made them better. Simarouba glauca is the scientific name of the tree, the local one being ‘Lakshmitaru.’ The leaves are considered to be very effective in curing cancer of first and second stages, whereas in later stages, improvement in quality of life is what is expected. But for Lakshmidevi Pillai of Thrissur, who was suffering with an ovarian cancer that had spread to kidney and intestine, these leaves seemed to have worked.
‘’I had to undergo several rounds of chemotherapy and surgery, but on my last check-up date on October 28, they said everything was fine with me. I continue to drink the decoction,’’ said Shyla, who got her treatment in Gujarat, where her husband worked. Many of the patients, like Pearly Karun of Vazhuthacaud, came to know of these leaves from friends or relatives.
Pearly, whose malignancy had spread from the uterus to the lung, still had a 0.4 cm big tumour even after her chemotherapy.
“I used to feel drained but after starting on this decoction, my fatigue just disappeared. My stamina increased and I have become at least ten times more active now. I am sure that whatever is left of my tumour, will go away,” Pearly sounds confident.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Kerala / by Reema Narendran / ENS – Thiruvananthapuram / January 18th, 2013
A stall being readied for the Mygreen- 2014 expo at the Mysore Builders’ Charitable Trust premises on Sterling Theatre road, which will be inaugurated this evening.
Mysore :
NIE-CREST, a centre for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technologies in city will be displaying the technologies for various energy saving concepts at the three-day Mygreen- 2014 expo to be inaugurated this evening at the Mysore Builders’ Charitable Trust premises on Sterling Theatre Road in city.
Technologies that will be displayed are: Waste to Wealth Systems (Kitchen Waste Biogas Plants), Biodiesel from non edible seeds like Pongamia (Honge), Mahua and Jatropha, Solar Energy Technologies (Parabolic concentrators, Solar Box type cooker), Sustainable building materials (Stabilised Mud Blocks and Alternative building materials), Biomass based energy systems- Astra-ole (fuel efficient biomass chullas), Water conservation technologies like Rainwater harvesting systems and Tippy tap systems, Muscle powered water pumps, Charcoal cookers, Muscle powered flour mill and more.
An Organic Food mela will also be held in the evenings on all three days.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Friday – June 27th, 2014
A Moscovy duck born after being artificially hatched in an incubator at Pilikula Biological Park. — PHOTO: RAVIPRASAD KAMILA / The Hindu
More than 25 birds in Pilikula Biological Park born out of incubators
If you spot jungle fowls Moscovy ducks or yellow and red pheasants chirping in Pilikula Biological Park, they could have been born through artificial hatching of eggs.
The park has gone a step forward after the success of captive breeding of animals. It took up artificial hatching of eggs of some birds under controlled environment a year ago. As a result, more than 25 birds have born in this fashion, according to its director H. Jayaprakash Bhandary.
The park took to artificial hatching as some birds in captivity (in aviary) got disturbed by the movement of visitors and some birds did not sit on eggs for hatching. As a result success rate was less, he told The Hindu.
Thus, some grey and red jungle fowl, Moscovy ducks and yellow and red pheasants have born out of hatching in a controlled environment, he said.
Mr. Bhandary said that eggs were first put in an incubator for the hatching process under a controlled environment. Once the young ones came out of eggs they would be shifted to a brooder for a few days.
Then the young ones would be shifted to a mini cage and once they grew up, they are moved to the aviary. The entire process of artificial hatching would take between 21 days and 24 days.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Mangalore / by Ramprasad Kamila / Mangalore – June 19th, 2014
The National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) is ready for the commercialisation of instant ragi mudde mix, a patent-pending product of the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru’s (UAS-B) Department of Food Science and Nutrition (FSN) of Process Technology.
The department, led by Dr H B Shivaleela, professor and university head, FSN, academic council member and scheme head. She, along with S Meenakumari and Rani Arvind, provided the technical know-how about the product to NRDC, which could be accessed by the small and medium food companies in India.
The instant ragi mudde mix formula has been developed to suit both small-scale and mechanised processing. It does not involve a tedious process or require advanced processing equipment.
It could simply be blended with a specific amount of water in the desired cups/bowls, and heated in a microwave for four minutes, or steamed for four minutes in a pressure cooker.
“Ragi is known for its phyto-chemicals and calcium and fibre content. Developing an instant ragi mudde mix would now allow consumers easy access to the required daily nutrition intake,” said Dr Shivaleela.
The invention is aimed at developing simple process to prepare the ragi-based dumpling mix, which is a specialty food of Karnataka. The mix has brought stability and enhanced the value addition to cater to the growing demand of the product, particularly by the natives of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
“There is also immense export potential for the instant ragi mix. People from Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh residing overseas can now pick it off supermarket shelves,” said N G Lakshminarayan, manager, business development; coordinator, IPFC, and chief vigilance officer, NRDC.
“A novel feature of the invention is that the mudde mix is a processed flour blend and ready to be used to prepare the Karnataka specialty, which is consumed by all strata of the local population,” said Dr Shivleela.
“In fact, the readymade mix is far more convenient with no lump formation during the predation process in contrast to the conventional process of preparing ragi mudde, which requires skill,” she added.
Therefore, UAS-B viewed it as a nutritionally-improved value-added processed food, saving considerable time vis-a-vis the traditional mode of preparation.
The option of easy preparation and cooking in microwave ovens could attract modern consumers towards instant ragi mixes in an age of ready- to-cook versions of processed foods.
source: http://www.fnbnews.com / FnBnews.com / Home> WideView> Top News / by Nandita Vijay, Bengaluru / Saturday – June 07th, 2014
Despite severe droughts for the past three years, oil palm cultivators in the district have started planting as they are hopeful of a good monsoon this year.
A total of 267 farmers in seven taluks have taken up the oil palm cultivation in about 270 hectares in Mandya. It has been reported that 86 farmers who planted in 103 hectares got a good yield of 550 metric tonnes in 2013-14. The rest of the area where the oil palm is grown is still in the initial stage.
The Central government has proposed to spend `3,507 crore during the 12th Five Year Plan to boost oil seeds output and bring additional area of 1.25 lakh hectares under oil palm.
Under the Rastriya Krishi Vigyan Yojana (RKVY), the government has allocated `22.28 crore to the state for Oil Palm Area Expansion (OPAE). The government has signed a memorandum of understanding with five companies – Ruchi Soya Industries Ltd, Godrej Agrovet, Badhravathi Balaji Oil Mills, Simhapuri Agro Industries Ltd and 3F Oils Ltd regarding the implementation of the oil palm cultivation.
Ruchi Soya Industries Ltd AGM (Plantation) S Janardhanan told Express that the farmers can get an average yield of 25 MT/Ha by applying the recommended dosage of fertilisers and regularly irrigating the crop.
He said a farmer at Hebbani village has 13.95 hectares of oil palm and he got a yield of 272 MT last year with an average yield of 19.50 MT/Ha. His yield is expected to increase to 25 MT/Ha this year. The farmer has become an inspiration and model for other farmers, he added.
In 2013-14, 85 hectares of oil palm was planted in the district and in 2014-15, the plantation has been increased to 125 hectares by the Horticulture Department in co-operation with Ruchi Soya Industries.
Assistant Director (Horticulture) M Shantha told Expres: “With proper maintenance a minimum yield of 25 MT/Ha can be achieved and a minimum profit of `1 lakh to `1.25 lakh per hectare can be earned.”
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Express News Service / May 19th, 2014
Bandipur is situated at the southern edge of Karnataka, and the National Park located there has drawn its fair share of visitors. Sharing its boundaries with three other national parks — Nagarhole, Mudumalai and Wayanad — which together form the Nilgiri biosphere reserve, Bandipur makes the ‘must-see’ list for most nature lovers. This belt is considered an eco-sensitive region and is also a part of the Project Tiger scheme since it has a considerable tiger population.
Bandipur’ s biggest lure is its promise of wildlife sightings. The reserve is home to a variety of species, including tigers, leopards and sloth bears, which is the reason for visitors to come. Bandipur National Park is amongst the most beautiful and oldest national parks in the country. Declared as a National Park in 1974, it once served as a hunting ground of the Mysore Maharajas. Bandipur National Park covers an area of 890 sq km, housing some of the most exotic species of flora and fauna along with Nagarhole National Park, it is the largest protected area in south India and a part of the Nilgiris, which is located 560 km from Chennai and 80 km from Mysore, Karnataka.
Bandipur lies in the rain shadow region of the Western Ghats and hence the vegetation is rather dry and deciduous but this lack of forest cover increases one’s chances of spotting wildlife. The yellowish-brown grass and scrub that covers the land is reminiscent of the African savannah and the occasional tree with its widespread branches seems like the perfect location to spot a wild cat lounging around. When we visited Bandipur, it was just before the monsoons, the weather cool in the evenings only.
This is the route we took when we drove to Bandipur and Mudumalai from Chennai: It was Chennai — Ranipet — Chittoor — Bangalore — Mysore — Bandipur, a journey of about 560 km that took us eight hours, with stops at Chittoor, Bangalore and Mysore.
The four of us set out at 11pm from Chennai. We stopped at Chittoor for coffee. By 4 am we were in Bengaluru, where we stopped for about 15 minutes before going on to Mysore. The weather was pleasant, perfect for driving without an AC. By 7 am, we were on the last leg of our journey from Mysore.
We were stopped by security when we reached the forest area for the toll fee and for safety and environment conservation tips. This was a strictly plastic-free zone and the speed limit 30 km. There was pin drop silence in the forest. We spotted a deer and peacock the moment we began our slow drive through the 13 km to the resort where we were going to stay.
source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Lifestyle> Travel / DC / by S. Somasundaram / May 15th, 2014
Dr. M. Mahadevappa and his wife Sudha being feted by JSS Mahavidyapeetha Director T.D. Subbanna as Prof. Maleyur Guruswamy, Principal M.B. Mallikarjuna Pandit and others look on.
Mysore :
“Though the country is capable enough to produce food for the entire world, we are lagging behind in full utilisation of technology in agriculture,” opined Dr. M. Mahadevappa, Padma Bhushan awardee and Chairman, Task Force, SC/ST and Rural Development, Department of Bio-technology, New Delhi and Director, JSS Rural Development Division, JSS Mahavidyapeetha, Mysore.
He was speaking after receiving a felicitation at the valedictory programme of the PG Cultural Forum of JSS College of Arts, Science and Commerce at its premises on Ooty Road here on May 10.
Dr. Mahadevappa pointed out that in China, the quantity of agricultural produce per unit area was more than twice the quantity in India indicating the advancement of technology there. He said that most of the students look for cushy jobs with hand some salaries thus indirectly triggering an imbalance in society.
Dr. Mahadevappa and his wife Sudha were feted on the occasion.
Retd. Professor Maleyur Guruswamy was the chief guest. JSS Mahavidyapeetha Director (College Education) T.D. Subbanna presided.
Principal M.B. Mallikarjuna Pandit welcomed.
http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / May 13th, 2014
The University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, has sent a proposal to the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), Canberra, Australia, seeking collaboration in natural resources management, crop improvement and agriculture business development.
The proposal was submitted to Dr Ejaz Qureshi, the research programme manager of the Agricultural Development Programme for South Asia and the Pacific (ACIAR). The varsity is in the process of signing an MoU with the government of Monitoba.
If it happens then the varsity can have the expertise in food technology to provide exposure in the food processing technology. It is also decided to create experiential learning opportunities for students, establishing pilot plants for food technology centre and academic exchange programme for scientists.
The initiation was taken up during the visit of Dr Robin Young, project coordinator of Food Development Centre, Government of Monitoba, Canada in the month of February, 2014, said Dr Rajendra Potdar, Head, Project Planning & Monitoring Cell, UAS.: The University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, has sent a proposal to the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), Canberra, Australia, seeking collaboration in natural resources management, crop improvement and agriculture business development.
The proposal was submitted to Dr Ejaz Qureshi, the research programme manager of the Agricultural Development Programme for South Asia and the Pacific (ACIAR). The varsity is in the process of signing an MoU with the government of Monitoba.
If it happens then the varsity can have the expertise in food technology to provide exposure in the food processing technology. It is also decided to create experiential learning opportunities for students, establishing pilot plants for food technology centre and academic exchange programme for scientists.
The initiation was taken up during the visit of Dr Robin Young, project co-ordinator of Food Development Centre, Government of Monitoba, Canada in the month of February, 2014, said Dr Rajendra Potdar, Head, Project Planning & Monitoring Cell, UAS.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hubli / by Srinivas Reddy, TNN / April 23rd, 2014
