Monthly Archives: March 2015

Mysuru firm develops critical technology for missiles

Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Bengaluru :

On March 13, 2013, India had to destroy its nuclear-ready cruise missile Nirbhay which was on its first flight trial. The reason: Nirbhay deviated from its intended course, sparking fears. The kind of damage and loss such incidents can cause in the absence of a self-destruct mechanism is grave. Yet India doesn’t completely posses the software and intellectual property for such technology.

As the Prime Minister’s Make-in-India campaign gains pitch in the defence sector, the DRDO has found a reliable partner in Kaynes Technology, a Mysuru firm.

A senior DRDO official said the company has developed an Electronic Safe Arm Fire Systems (ESAFS) ballistic missile actuator unit, which is being evaluated by DRDO’s missile teams for integration into various platforms.

Kaynes’ system consists of two processor cards and one communication/connector card that carries the commands, and facilitates relay control.

“Not only can the missile be self-destructed after launch, it also has a feature wherein it destroys itself upon recognizing unauthorized access,” the official explained. Apart from the self-destruction feature, the system also helps prevent tampering and is able to function in most conditions.

“It’s thermal, humidity, vibration and shock-compliant,” he added.

Kaynes vice-president (business development) Lt Col (retd) Sharath Bhatt said: “I can’t comment on the technology as it’s sensitive and DRDO is evaluating it. Only DRDO can speak about it.”

“What such technologies mean is that India will have its own intellectual property in critical areas and will not have to depend on other countries,” Bhatt added.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Business> India Business / by Chethan Kumar, TNN / March 02nd, 2015

Minister in Mufti Team Has State Link

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Leaders

Karwar :

The new Jammu and Kashmir government has a Karnataka link.

Mohammad Ashraf Mir, who took oath as a minister in the Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Cabinet in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, is married to a girl from this port town.

Residents of Bhatkal, especially the Navayath community members, celebrated the news of Mir’s appointment as a minister in the PDP-BJP coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir.

Mir was also in the news after he defeated former chief minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah from Sonawar constituency in last year’s Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir.

While, Mir secured 14,283 votes, Omar Abdullah managed just 9,500 votes.

Mir married Zareen in Bengaluru in 1996. Zareen is the daughter of Farooq Udyavar, a businessman, who is a resident of Port Road in Bhatkal.

A close relative of the family told Express that Mir and Zareen’s marriage was love-cum-arranged.

Mir and Zareen did  MBA at a private college in Bengaluru. At present, Zareen’s parents are residing in Bengaluru as they are renovating their old house in Bhatkal town.

The family members are planning to visit Srinagar to congratulate Mir.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Marx Tejaswi / March 02nd, 2015

Farmers’ start-up launched

Business & Economy, Green Initiatives / Environment, Nature
Suttur seer Shivaratri Deshikendra Swami inaugurating the Raitha Mitra FarmersProducer Company Ltd. in Mysuru on Monday.— PHOTO: M.A. SRIRAM
Suttur seer Shivaratri Deshikendra Swami inaugurating the Raitha Mitra FarmersProducer Company Ltd. in Mysuru on Monday.— PHOTO: M.A. SRIRAM

Farmers in the State have turned entrepreneurial.

They have launched a start-up company to market their produce and provide agricultural inputs, including seeds and fertilizer, at less than market price. The Raitha Mitra Farmers Producer Company Ltd. took 8 months in the making and has 1,000 members from across the State.

Inspired by a similar endeavour of turmeric producers in Erode in Tamil Nadu and coconut cultivators in Kerala, the company was inaugurated by Suttur seer Shivaratri Deshikendra Swami on Tuesday.

The membership is open only to genuine land-holding farmers. Membership is restricted to one representative from each farmer family.

Besides proving agricultural implements at lower price, the company intends extend to loan at nominal interest, create warehouse facilities so that farmers can hold on to their produce instead of engaging in distress sale when the market slumps, said Kurubur Shanthakumar, chairman of the company.

Described as the first-of-its-kind initiative in the State, there are members from Belagavi, Vijayapura, Bagalkot, Karwar, Dharwad, Mysuru, Chamarajanagar, Haveri to name a few, he said.

“Each member farmer has to buy 50 company shares at the rate of Rs. 100 each and the capital will be used in part for financing some of its activities and profits shared in accordance with the share held by the members,” he added.

One of the main objectives is to help reduce cultivation cost by procuring agricultural inputs at cost price and selling it to the members at less than market price, which will add to the company’s profit while resulting in helping farmers save.

“The scourge of middlemen in agriculture will be eliminated to a large extent and the sale of spurious seeds and fertilizers will be scorched,” Mr. Shanthakumar said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Karnataka / by R. Krishna Kumar / Musuru – March 03rd, 2015

BMCRI Achievers Toast Their Success

Education, Records, All
Bangalore Medical College students exulting during the convocation at the institute on Sunday I NAGESH POLALI
Bangalore Medical College students exulting during the convocation at the institute on Sunday I NAGESH POLALI

Bengaluru  :

“I want to serve my nation that has given me an identity as a doctor,” said Dr Gowra Chattannavar, who received five gold medals at the convocation ceremony held by Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute for the 2009 batch MBBS students on Sunday.

She secured gold medals in biochemistry, physiology, pharmacology, general medicine and pediatrics.

Dr Kishen Rao, who hails from Sullia, received the best outgoing student award in sports category. He said, “Now I want to pursue my IAS exam to serve my people and make my poor parents proud of me.”

Dr P K Devadas, dean, Bangalore Medical College and Research, said a trauma centre at Victoria Hospital will become operational from next month. The disaster management unit would be the first in the state, and would have 40 beds for disaster management and 40 beds for intensive care.

Dr Devadas congratulated the 150 graduates and asked them to serve patients without any bias. He said BMCRI has already started the construction of a new seven-storey complex, which will have all the latest facilities including a food court and gym. This will be at a cost of `130 crore.

Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil said more than the students, parents should be congratulated for taking the pain to educate their children.

Dr S S Harsoor, director of medical education, Dr T K Ramesh, director of Minto Eye Hospital, Dr Syed Iqbalulla Khadri, medical superintendent of Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital, Dr Girish, special officer of PMSSY Hospital, Dr I Durganna, medical superintendent of Victoria Hospital, and Dr Gangadhar Velvadi, medical superintendent of Vani Vilas Hospital were present.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Express News Service / March 02nd, 2015

From honcho to farmer, this dreamer has come full circle

Business & Economy, Green Initiatives / Environment, Nature

Mangaluru :

After a long career rat race that took him across the country and the globe, life has come full circle for Chandrakantha Rao, 53, of Inna Village near Padubidri, about 50km from here.

After being the director & president, Swiss Singapore Overseas Enterprises of Aditya Birla Group and managing operations in nine countries, he retired when he turned 50 and settled down at his Praakruti Fruit Farm – a modern model farm with a 1,250 sqft wood house.

He and his wife, Supriya, moved 14 times all over India in the first 24 years of his career and even all over the world in the last five years. And all the while, one question remained on top of his mind: Where to?

Rao said: “What you see around the fruit farm today is a result of my search for that question. It is a model farm getting developed just to show case possibilities in the fertile land of the coast. It started with a dream of putting our quiet village Inna on the map and to create a world class farm to show case possibilities.”

Rao, who completed his graduation from NIT-K with distinction in 1983, wanted to hang his boots when he turned 50. And he worked towards this end. “That was the plan. As soon as I felt independent I decided it to call a day. Once you decide, then you will work towards reasonable financial independence. I was quite clear that I wanted to retire at 50,” he said and added, “The company thinks I’m on sabbatical.”

He quit in 2012 and returned to his village where did his school.

The farm house – built of Green Teak and designed by his Thai friend Nattapoom Raksakul — was completed in 2011. The house is named “Su Kantha I” – derived from Su-priya and Chandra-Kantha) and `I’ from Inna.

Rao visited several progressive farms in Kochi, Karkala, Naravi, Hiriyadka, Belthangady, Puttur and Kundapur and designed the farm with the help of Amit Soans of West Coast Nursery at Uchila. His farm has an acre each for cultivation of mango, chikoo, rambutan, guava, mangosteen and coconut.

He said that an excellent farm cannot be complete without a farm house. A small team from Thailand (Kanchanpuri) guided a local team of 12 carpenters to complete this project in less than three months.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Mangaluru / by Stanley Pinto, TNN / March 02nd, 2015

Newbie no more

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Leaders, World Opinion

AshaBhatBF02mar2015

Newbie no more

AshaBhat ​ returned to her alma mater, RV College of Engineering, for the first time after being crowned Miss Supranatural in Poland last December. The 22-year-old was in college for the inauguration of 8th Mile, the college fest.​ Like a true beauty queen, she was thankful (and less nostalgic, unlike an alumnus) and talked about her days as a newbie in college three years ago. Apparently, the lady “didn’t know anyone” and “approaching the teachers was always difficult”. Oh, that’s the story of 99 per cent of the student population. Of course, things have changed for Bhat in the last four months. Along with the crown came attention (and new found confidence to approach old teachers), which she said was all new to her. “But nice.”

Lit lite

THE Lahore Literary festival which concluded last week was a resounding success. Lahoris queued up by the hundreds to cock a snook at the terror threats and hear some excellent panel discussions. Your diarist, a guest of the festival, was particularly delighted to see the re-emergence of two ladies of a certain vintage into the limelight. We spotted Meher Tarrar, she of the Shashi Tharoor fame, hobnobbing with the Indian contingent. In her heyday, Tarrar had acted in a film or two and her journalistic avatar was a fairly recent one, we were told. The other woman, Tehmina Durrani, of equal renown, was not to be physically espied but was very much a guiding spirit behind the LLF. Those with long memories might recall her as the author of My Feudal Lord, a pulpish bestseller that recounted her years of abusive marriage to powerful Pakistani politician Ghulam Mustafa Khar. With that one book, she became something of an icon on both sides of the border. Tehmina has since moved on. She is now married to Shahbaz Sharif, Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s brother who is also the chief minister of Punjab and a great patron of the LLF. Tehmina, whose taste in men clearly runs to the powerful kind, has told her friends that even though Sharif has married again, she is treated well. Phew!

Hair matters

Doppelgangers, they are — Michael Antony Dias of Mad Orange Fireworks and musician Vasu Dixit of Swarathma. People talk to Dias thinking he is Dixit and vice versa. Blame it on their almost identical funky sky-scraper hairdo. While the duo has a hearty laugh over the mistaken identity, people around them are left confused. Perhaps, a haircut would help. But that’s asking for the moon, isn’t it? Especially when it concerns these two.

Tailpiece 

If the diarist were Srinivasan Narayanan, former director of Mumbai Film Festival, the diarist would be doing cartwheels now. The prestigious Sundance Institute has partnered with Drishyam (Narayanan’s baby), a production company, for the Sundance Institute screenwriters lab that will be held in Goa from April. After films like Margarita, With a Straw and Umrika (won the audience award in the world cinema dramatic category at Sundance this year; and from Drishyam’s stable) and Masaan came out of Sundance Screenwriters Lab, one can only think of the gems that will emerge after the Goa Lab. 2015 seems like a good year for Indian cinema.

source: http://www.bangaloremirror.com / Bangalore Mirror / Home> Columns> Code 560 / Bangalore Mirror Bureau / March 01st, 2015

New app to give access to 30 Kannada classics for free

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will launch the facility on Sunday

Henceforth Kannada bookworms need not keep heavy books for reference. They can just download NewsHunt App on their cell phones and access over 30 classic works of Kannada for free, thanks to the Department of Kannada and Culture that signed a Memorandum of Understanding with NewsHunt, for making available its publication to the mobile phone readers.

Cell phone users can browse, download and read the largest collection of works brought out by the Department of Kannada and Culture in the recent years, including; Kaviraja Marga Mattu Kannada Jagattu by K.V. Subbanna, Uttara Karnatakada Janapada Kathegalu, Kanakadasara Kavya, Aramane by Kum. Veerabhradappa and Shataka Samputa .

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will dedicate the facility on Sunday, besides re-launching the website onVachana and Dasa literature. According to the Director of Kannada and Culture K.A. Dayananda, the attempt is aimed at making volumes of Kannada classics available to younger generation, who don’t have time to refer to hard volumes, but can browse and read on their mobile during their leisure time. Similarly e-readers can access 26,000 Vachanas besides over 13,000 Dasa keerthanas. They can also listen to Vachanas and Keerthanas in musical form by visiting kannadasiri.in website.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Muralidhara Khajane / Bengaluru – March 01st, 2015

KMC doctor Dr Narasimha Pai makes it to FACC fellow

Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Mangaluru :

Dr Narasimha Pai, Associate Professor in the Department of Cardiology, KMC Hospital Ambedkar Circle, here has been made fellow of the elite panel of American College of Cardiology (FACC).

The certification and citation will be officially presented to him at the annual convocation of the college on March 6 in San Diego, California.

“KMC Hospital Mangalore is proud to have Dr Pai on the panel of consultants in Interventional Cardiology. We congratulate him on his achievement” said Dr Anand Venugopal, Medical Superintendent.

Every year, the American College of Cardiology recognizes selected cardiologists from around the world, based on their long term contribution to the field of Cardiology, and inducts them as a fellow of American College of Cardiology (FACC). American College of Cardiology is the foremost professional society, representing heart specialists in the UD and throughout the world. Based on their outstanding credentials, achievements and community contribution to cardiovascular medicine, those who are elected to fellowship can use fellow of the American College of Cardiology (FACC) as a professional designation.

Fellow of the ACC generally are adult cardiologists, paediatric cardiologists, cardiovascular surgeons, researchers and academicians or specialists in the cardiovascular – related field.

Candidates are selected to the elite panel of FACC based on letters of sponsorship from other fellows or faculty, who attest professional competence and commitment to excellence that are at par with the best international standards.

source:http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Mangaluru / by Stanley Pinto, TNN / February 27th, 2015

Vikas wins Bronze Medal in Nationals

Sports

VikasBF01mar2015

Mysuru :

City-lad M.Vikas, a 10th standard student of Ramakrishna Vidyashala, Mysuru, taking part in the 60th National School Games Federation of India’s Diving Competitions held at Gujarat recently won the bronze medal in the U-17 section for Karnataka.

Vikas is a being trained by Ramakrishna Vidyashala, Mysuru’s Diving Coach Guruprasad.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Sports News / Monday – February 23rd, 2015