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S. Ramanathan passes away

Education, Leaders

RamanathanCF16jul2015

Mysuru :

S. Ramanathan (76), Chairman of Sharada Educational Trust and Sri Sharada Public School, Mysuru, passed away this morning at a private hospital here following brief illness.

He leaves behind his wife Kusuma Ramanathan, sons Srivatsa and Manjunath, daughter Uma Anil, daughters-in-law Shubha and Shwetha, son-in-law Anil Sadanand, grand children and a host of relatives and friends.

Born on Nov. 22, 1939, Ramanathan was a resident of Saraswathipuram in city and was also the Founder-Secretary of Vijaya Vittala Vidyashala, Chief of Administration and Liaison, BEML, Mysuru and Head of Sales and Service, Mysore area of Indian Telephone Industries.

Last rites will be held today evening, according to family sources.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Friday – July 10th, 2015

Unions to unite Sheep Breeders in State

Business & Economy
Karnataka Sheep and Wool Development Corporation Ltd., Chairman Panditrao Chidri (second from left) is seen addressing a press meet at DC office in city this morning. Also seen are (from left) Animal Husbandry Deputy Director Dr. Devdas, ZP member Patel Javaregowda and State Kuruba Sangha President Prakash.
Karnataka Sheep and Wool Development Corporation Ltd., Chairman Panditrao Chidri (second from left) is seen addressing a press meet at DC office in city this morning. Also seen are (from left) Animal Husbandry Deputy Director Dr. Devdas, ZP member Patel Javaregowda and State Kuruba Sangha President Prakash.

Mysuru :

Karnataka Sheep and Wool Development Corporation Ltd (KSWDCL) has plans to set up Sheep Breeders’ Union, similar to that of Milk Unions in the State, said KSWDCL Chairman Panditrao Chidri, here this morning.

Addressing the press persons at the Deputy Commissioner’s office in city, he said that the KSWDCL had decided to the set up unions across the State to help the sheep breeders to secure more funds from the State Government.

Chidri said that he planned to set up a total of 1,000 sheep breeders’ unions in the State and later, a federation of sheep breeders’ unions. Adding that farmers were being granted various loans in the State, Chidri said that State Government had announced Rs. 1.20 crore for purchase of 20 sheep and one Ram under the ‘Pashu Bhagya’ scheme. This apart, he also mentioned that sheep breeders were granted an interest-free loan of Rs. 50 lakh through District Co-operative Central (DCC) Banks in the State.

He also added that considering the increase in the number of sheep deaths in State, the KSWDCL had announced for compulsory vaccination of sheep to avoid them being infected by diseases and said that vaccinations worth Rs. 2 crore had been procured by KSWDCL.

Chidri also announced that 18 ambulances have been purchased to check for sheep diseases throughout the State. The ambulances will work similar to that of 108 ambulances and visit various places to check for sheep diseases based on the complaints received.

He also added that the KSWDCL had already distributed compensation of Rs. 8 crore for sheep breeders in the State and said that another Rs. 1.5 crore was pending to be distributed.

Adding that sheep breeders were being cheated in the market, Chidri said that a Committee headed by an IAS officer had been formed to look into the irregularities in the sheep market and also added that the KSWDCL would soon install about 50 weighing machines at sheep markets across the State at a cost of Rs. 5 crore to help breeders weigh their sheep scientifically.

The KSWDCL has taken up artificial insemination of sheep in the State to breed good quality of sheep and ‘Narisuvarna’ , a special sheep breed from Maharashtra would be brought to the State to help in production of good breed, said Chidri.

Adding that the Chief Minister Siddharamaiah had granted Rs. 100 crore for KSWDCL, Chidri said that though the KSWDCL was started in 1974 during Devaraja Urs regime as CM, it was being granted only Rs. 6 crore per year as funds. He said that State Government had also been asked to announce support price for wool.

The KSWDCL has already organised sheep breeders’ conventions in 19 districts and plans to organise a State-level convention at Davanagere soon, said Chidri.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com /Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Wednesday -July 08th, 2015

‘We are among the top 3 in water heaters’

Business & Economy, World Opinion

The response to A O Smith from the consumer and trade community in India has been so good that it has encouraged us to make more investments.

ParagKulkarniBF13jul2015

It has only been seven years since A O Smith, the world’s No.1 water heater maker, entered the Indian market. The NYSE-listed, $2.36-billion (2014 revenues) company first introduced its range of water heaters in the India market, and now claims to be a leading player in the segment. Very recently, the company started selling its water purifiers as well. Deccan Herald’sGeorgy S Thomas recently sat down with A O Smith’s newly appointed India Managing Director Parag Kulkarni to discuss the company’s journey so far and its future strategies. Excerpts:

When did your India journey begin?

We started operations in India seven years back. Our first manufacturing plant was inaugurated in 2010 at Harohalli, KIADB Industrial Area, just outside Bengaluru. We have 20 acres of land over there. In the first phase, we set up a plant spread over 75,000 square feet. Our water heaters are manufactured there. It has been received well by the market as a premium offering. We are among the most recalled brands in the modern retail outlets.

What is your product range in water heaters? How are they priced?

Our water heaters range from 1-litre capacity to about 100-litre capacity. Prices start from Rs 3,000 for the 1-litre offering to Rs 15,000 for the 25-litre offering. The 100-litre offering is custom-built and targeted at commercial establishments like hospitals, hotels, etc. Our water heaters boast of patented, unique blue diamond technology (glass coating) which increases the life of the inner tank. The lining is stronger and more corrosion-resistant than that of competing products. The A O Smith range of water heaters come with five‐star rating for energy efficiency. They feature digital and wireless remote control which not only enables the user to set temperature, but also shows the energy consumed by the unit and has a real time clock and a built-in timer.

Another feature on the aesthetics front is that our water heaters come with interchangeable decorative front panels in eight different colours. The colours can be changed to match that of the tiles in the bathroom. We transformed the water heater industry in the country.

What is your market share in water heaters?

This is data which is very difficult to pull out because nobody publishes it. Suffice it to say that we are among the top three players in the market.

What are the volumes that you do?

Again these are unpublished data and difficult to share. What I can tell you is that the response to A O Smith from the consumer and trade community in India has been so good that it has encouraged us to make more investments.

What is you installed plant capacity?

What I can tell you is that 75,000-square feet is what was invested earlier. But very recently we have gone ahead and made another investment, and now the plant size is 226,000 square feet. Our installed capacity is much ahead of our current requirements. It is 3,100 water heaters per day and 300 water purifiers per day.

What’s the size of the India water heater market?

It is estimated at around Rs 800 crore. South India is the largest market for organised water heaters.

What else is new at A O Smith?

We recently entered the reverse osmosis (RO) water purifier market. There are three models in the market now. One of them is called PURITEE+ HOT. It has 10-litre capacity, of which 9.8 litres is for regular water, and 0.2 litres for hot water.

What is the price range of your water purifiers? What is their value proposition?

Prices for the water purifiers range from Rs 17,000 to Rs 25,000. We offer two-year warranties which are much higher than that of our competitors.

Our unique patented Side Stream technology gives RO membrane life of 12,000 litres from the usual 6,000 litres. Our purifiers boast of seven-stage amino purification process.

Two of our water purifiers come with the unique ColourMatch system which can be matched to the kitchen decor. We have also introduced ‘The Greatest Buy Back’ offer where you can get Rs 3,000 off on exchange of any water purifier to upgrade to an AO Smith model.

What is the size of the water purifier market?

The water purifier market in India is approximately estimated at Rs 3,500 crore. Of this, the RO market is estimated at Rs 1,200 crore. The RO market in India is growing at 22-25 per cent CAGR.

In which all markets do you distribute your products?

We distribute water heaters in 23 class A cities, 61 of 67 class B cities, and 314 of 400 class C cities. Our water purifiers are distributed only in the Delhi/NCR and Bengaluru markets.

What about customer service?

We have launched the ‘Power of 1’ service, which is one of its kind. We are committed to respond to the customer’s problem within one hour of the call being registered on the toll-free number. The customer problem will be rectified and closed within one working day. And the solution will be provided the first time itself. We have an outsourced call centre, where calls will be attended by AO Smith-trained operators. They take the call and house visits are done by our A O Smith-trained technicians. This service is available in the top ten cities of the country.

What are your investments so far in India?

We have invested upwards of $50 million in India so far. We will be investing more in India to grow the market.

Do you do research and development (R&D) in India?

We have a full-fledged R&D centre in India, which commenced operations in 2010. We have an R&D team of around 35-40 people who work on products for the Indian market. Innovations by the India R&D team include the hot water dispensing purifier, remote control for temperature in water heaters, side membrane technology, ColourMatch system for the water purifiers and water heaters, etc.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> Economy & Business / by George S. Thomas / DHNS – June 29th, 2015

City’s Sonam, Shashidhar pair triumphs

Records, All, Sports, World Opinion

Mysuru :

The Indian pair of Sonam Chugh from Mysuru and Shashidhar Reddy saw off 31 other teams to win the 22nd World Corporate Golf Challenge at the Oitavos Dunes Golf Course in Cascais, Portugal, recently.

Sonam Chugh is a product of the JWGC, Mysuru. In a tournament that was played in the stableford format on a par-71 course, Sonam Chugh (handicap 3) scored a total of 66 points over two days (34, 32) while Reddy (handicap 5) collected 62 points (33, 29).

The two, representing Ramesh Swiss Watch, posted a total of 128 to claim a seven-point victory.

Chugh and Reddy reached the World Finals after edging out 13 corporate teams in the National Finals of the Take Solutions Corporate Golf Challenge.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Sports News / Monday – July 06th, 2015

‘Chittani Award’ conferred on Yakshagana Scholar Dr.Kabbinale V. Bharadwaj: ‘Yakshagana poets lack the recognition they deserve’

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
Yakshagana Scholar Dr. Kabbinale Vasantha Bharadwaj, who was conferred with 'Chittani Award' during the valedictory of the three-day Badagu Yaksha Vaibhava, organised under the aegis of Innovative, Mysuru and Department of Kannada and Culture, Mysuru, at Jaganmohan Palace in city yesterday, is seen with LabLand Chairman Dr. Sudhir Shetty, Yuvaraja College Registrar (Evaluation) Dr. S.N. Hegde, Mysore University former Vice-Chancellor Dr. J. Shashidhara Prasad, Yakshagana exponent G.S. Bhat of Innovative Mysore, Bellipadi Yaksha Samskrutika Vedike President Dr. Bellipadi Satish Rai, Journalist Ravindra Bhat and others. Picture right shows a scene from Yakshagana 'Sri Krishna Sandhana' performed last evening.
Yakshagana Scholar Dr. Kabbinale Vasantha Bharadwaj, who was conferred with ‘Chittani Award’ during the valedictory of the three-day Badagu Yaksha Vaibhava, organised under the aegis of Innovative, Mysuru and Department of Kannada and Culture, Mysuru, at Jaganmohan Palace in city yesterday, is seen with LabLand Chairman Dr. Sudhir Shetty, Yuvaraja College Registrar (Evaluation) Dr. S.N. Hegde, Mysore University former Vice-Chancellor Dr. J. Shashidhara Prasad, Yakshagana exponent G.S. Bhat of Innovative Mysore, Bellipadi Yaksha Samskrutika Vedike President Dr. Bellipadi Satish Rai, Journalist Ravindra Bhat and others. Picture right shows a scene from Yakshagana ‘Sri Krishna Sandhana’ performed last evening.

Mysuru :

Expressing concern over the lack of recognition and exclusion of Yakshagana Poets in the history of Kannada Literature, Yakshagana Scholar and artiste Dr. Kabbinale Vasantha Bharadwaj said that the yakshagana-poets in Karnataka have not got the required space in Kannada literary history and added that while Himmela, Mummela, Chenda and others belonging to the Yakshagana troupe are being recognised, the poets have been neglected.

Dr. Bharadwaj was speaking, after being conferred with the Chittani Award, at the closing ceremony of the three-day Badagu Yaksha Vaibhava held at Jaganmohan Palace in city yesterday evening. Dr. Bharadwaj said that there are around 1,500 yakshagana-poets in the State who have composed around 5,000 literary works while unfortunately, a person who writes four lines for a film song gets more recognition and this has been the same even with the Kannada literary circles.

He further said that the poetry is the basis of Yakshagana and the poems become an inspiration to the actor while the actor’s enactment justifies the poetic elements in the composition. Dr. Bharadwaj dedicated the award to all the Yakshagana-poets in the State who still remain unrecognised even in the literary field.

Bellipadi Yaksha Samskrutika Vedike President Dr. Bellipadi Satish Rai, who was the chief guest on the occasion, said that Yakshagana is one of the most attractive forms of stage-based art forms and it would not be an exaggeration if he says that the people of coastal Karnataka have learnt Kannada language through Yakshagana. He further urged the people of Karnataka to protect the art form and added that the State Government should do its best to protect and propagate Yakshagana like how it is done in Kerala for Kathakali.

Former Vice-Chancellor of University of Mysore, Dr. J. Shashidhara Prasad, presented the Chittani Award to Bharadwaj.

LabLand Chairman Dr. Sudhir Shetty, Yakshagana exponent G.S. Bhat, Dakshin Kannada Zilla Sangha President V. Sreenivasa Rao, Yuvaraja College Registrar (Evaluation) Dr. S.N. Hegde and others were present.

The award ceremony was followed by the staging of the Yakshagana ‘Sri Krishna Sandhana.’ The three-day workshop was organised by Innovative, Mysuru and Department of Kannada and Culture, Mysuru.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Monday – July 06th, 2015

Book Talk: Mysuru ,The Catalyst for ‘Bougainvilla Magic’

Arts, Culture & Entertainment
Title: Bougainvilla Magic, Author: Lalitha Rao, Columnist and Writer, Pages: 160, Printed at: Surina Graphics, Year: 2015.
Title: Bougainvilla Magic, Author: Lalitha Rao, Columnist and Writer, Pages: 160, Printed at: Surina Graphics, Year: 2015.

Title: Bougainvilla Magic, Author: Lalitha Rao, Columnist and Writer, Pages: 160, Printed at: Surina Graphics, Year: 2015.

In her first publication in book form, writer Lalitha Rao, who has travelled far and wide in India and abroad, presents a collection of 48 articles published in different newspapers and magazines, including Star of Mysore, over the past 20 years under nine chapters, laced with artfully created illustrations by Pankaj Moghe.

The author has dedicated this 160-page book ‘Bougainvilla Magic’ to her Ma and Dad.

The author refers to the decades-old reputation of Mysuru as a laid-back, slowly-strolling-through-life kind of city that seemed to have undergone a change — shopping malls had sprung up, supermarkets glitteringly invited one to shop breathlessly and life was not about mosaranna and bise bele bath alone: KFC and Pizza Hut too have arrived on scene.

“Mysuru possesses a culture and social ambience quite unlike other cities (Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai) where she has lived in. The joy of waking up to cool breezes, or rainy mornings, or gusty winds, is unparalleled. Even the vegetables taste better here and I’m sure that’s not just my imagination,” Lalitha Rao describes with unadulterated joy.

Recalling her childhood visits to Ooty, about 160 kms away from Mysuru, which were mostly in the nature of picnics, the author says she used to fall into streams regularly and her mummy had to carry an extra frock along as routine exercise.

On her stay abroad, Lalitha Rao says the Magic of Oman lies partly in the friendly and helpful nature of its people.

The author also acknowledges the inspiration she got from the following books: The Fountainhead and Anthem by Ayn Rand; Othello by Shakespeare; Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach; Novels and short stories by P.G. Wodehouse and, of course, the Ramayana and Mahabharata as retold by C. Rajagopala.

The author also recalls about a time when she used to wake up to the tanpura drone of All India Radio as it alerted her about the new day. It was the signal to get out of bed, brush and slowly sip tea and peruse the newspaper. Today, she delays switching on the TV as long as possible, as the news in full 3D, with the anchor booming or shrilling across your senses, is more than what she can take… “Listening to radio has for most of us become an activity we follow while driving to get somewhere.”

“Coorg is barely a hundred kilometres away from Mysuru, but the specialties there are predominantly non-vegetarian, with pork taking centrestage. In the old days the plantation owners would down every mouthful with fresh, foaming glasses of toddy,” says the author with awe about Kodavas.

School days: Recalling her school days in Simla, she says it was an overcharged hormonal world of 16-year-olds; the one who kept them on track with her sheer presence was her class teacher, Mother Joseph Catherine.

“Today if I write, it is because of this great teacher who found something of value in me and has nurtured it all these years. Mother Joseph Catherine, Irish nun, and my mentor, is probably in heaven now. I hope she looks down sometimes at her former pupils and smiles.”

Writing about the librarians in her book, the author talks about how the librarians are used to the strangest demands. “I have always felt that a library should be the friendliest place, where you can curl up in a corner with your book or browse shelves undisturbed by time or crowds.”

Lalitha Rao, who joins a select band of women-writers of Mysuru, is the daughter of an army officer and wife of an architect. She has Master’s degrees in English Literature and Library Science and worked at the Alliance Francaise in Chennai and the Caledonian College of Engineering in Muscat, Oman.

Her book Bougainvilla Magic is scheduled for launch tomorrow (July 6) at 6 pm at Club House terrace, Sankalp Central Park, Jawa Main Road, Yadavagiri, Mysuru. —NGB

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / Sunday – July 05th, 2015

City’s Dr.Sushma Jairam secures 119th rank in UPSC exam

Education, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features
Dr. Sushma Jairam
Dr. Sushma Jairam

Mysuru :

Dr. Sushma Jairam has brought laurels to the city by securing 119th rank in the civil services exam (2014) conducted by the UPSC. She is the daughter of K.L. Jairam and Triveni couple, residents of J.P. Nagar in city. Jairam is currently serving as Principal General Manager of BSNL at Bengaluru.

Dr. Sushma, who secured 275th rank in UPSC 2013 exam, was selected to the Central Excise Department and underwent training at Humnabad and Hyderabad. The 24-year-old has succeeded in getting into the top in her second attempt in 2014.

After having her Primary and Middle School education at Cochin, Dr. Sushma studied 8th and 9th std. at Sadvidya High School in city and SSLC and PUC at Karwar. She completed her MBBS at Bangalore Medical College.

Dr. Sushma, who is currently on a tour with her friends, shared her joy with SOM, over phone. Stating that she chose Medical Sciences as optional subject for the civil services exam, Dr. Sushma said she did not put much effort in studying the subject as she had already learnt the subject while studying MBBS. She said she regularly read Kannada, Hindi and English newspapers, NCERT books and surfed the internet to keep herself updated.

Pointing out that she did not attend coaching classes, she said that she studied whenever she found time.

Stating that her parents supported her fully in her preparations for the exam, Sushma said she may get selected for the Indian Foreign Service (IFS), considering her 119th ranking.

She said that working in the IFS would be a challenge to her, especially in the wake of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s push for Foreign Direct Investment and efforts to maintain good relationship with countries across the world.

Meanwhile, Sushma’s uncle Subramanya, who is the Chairman-elect (2016-2017) of Mysuru Centre of Builders Association of India (BAI), speaking to SOM, expressed delight over his niece’s achievement.

Stating that Sushma’s father Jairam became the BSNL’s Principal General Manager after entering the Indian Telecom Service, Subramanya said that Jairam himself had dreamt of becoming an IAS or IPS officer but now his daughter has realised his dream.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Sunday – July 05th, 2015

19 Railway Stations in State to Change to New Names

Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All

Bengaluru :

The names of 19 railway stations in the state will have to be changed to their new names, as per a notification issued by the Indian Railway Conference Association, New Delhi.

The letter was issued on July 7 by the Secretary General of the Association, Sudhansu Jyoti Sinha, to the Chief Commercial Manager, South Western Railway, Hubballi.

The following will be the altered names of stations (old names in brackets):

Bengaluru Cantonment (Bangalore Cantonment); Bengaluru City Junction (Bangalore City Junction), Bengaluru East (Bangalore East), Ballari Cantonment (Bellary Cantonment), Ballari Junction (Bellary Junction), Vijayapura (Bijapur), Belagavi (Belgaum), Chikkamagaluru (Chikkamagalur), Mysuru (Mysore), Mysuru New Goods Terminal (Mysore New Goods Terminal), Hosapete D Cabin (Hospet D Cabin), Hosapete (Hospet), Shivamogga Bidare (Shimoga Bidare), Shivamogga H (Shimoga H), Shivamogga Town (Shimoga Town), Hubballi Junction (Hubli Junction), Hubballi Shops (Hubli Shops), Hubballi South (Hubli South) and Tumakuru (Tumkur).

Ghanshyam Verma, Deputy General Manager and Chief Public Relations Officer, South Western Railway told Express that the process of implementing the order has already begun. “It will take some time to change the display names on both sides of the station, on the official letterheads, on trains and on tickets. But the work has commenced,” he said.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Express News Service / July 09th, 2015

Loud patterns, bold statements

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy
Ajay Kumar
Ajay Kumar

Bengaluru’s designer Ajay Kumar marks his fashion week debut with his quirky menswear collection

At first look, Ajay Kumar’s clothes scream “look at me”. Face to face with the quirkily-dressed man, and you know his collection is all him. He’s wearing floral-printed cream pants, a white sharply cut bib shirt, sports a very Italian brown-brogues-without-socks look, a waxed twirly moustache, and a Mohawk hairdo to boot. He shows me a flaming red jacket he usually wears.

“I like flamboyant,” he declares with a hearty laugh and a twinkle in his eyes. A NIFT graduate who’s worked with Blackberry’s, Indigo Nation, Reid & Taylor, and Peter England, Ajay has embarked on his own creative journey now — he will be launching his eponymous menswear label “Mr. Ajay Kumar” at the Gen Next designer platform of Lakmé Fashion Week in its Winter/Festive 2015 edition in August. “If someone has achieved something they should show it. I was inspired by the movies, by the corporate life and look…you should not hide behind anything. I like to dress up, look bold. You should be someone to look up to,” he says with finality.

The 36-year-old Bengaluru-based designer is from Uttar Pradesh and makes no bones of his lower middle class upbringing. He grew up in Bokaro Steel City, Jharkhand, where his father was Deputy Post Master; he credits his parents with being his biggest support, specially having come from a small town where a career in fashion is far removed from life. He talks of how he almost applied to be an aeronautical engineer, then got through a hotel management course, before he finally landed in National Institute of Fashion Technology, Delhi. He now lives in Bengaluru with wife Lavanya Venkatraman, co-founder at a fashion startup, and son Siddhanth. He wanted to be in Bengaluru, the corporate hub, and live the life with a beautiful house, car, and clothes. Ajay’s collection ‘Consonance & Dissonance’ is taking shape at his newly set-up studio in HSR Layout. On one side hang his sports collection and after-office wear, “bread-and-butter” shirts he designs with his partner Bhupesh. “Every designer uses market input to create something that sells. Then, there are the things he makes for his passion.” He says he styles for photo-shoots to sustain. “I like to style a whole look. I’ve always done that.”

On the opposite end of his studio, is his “passion” — the collection he’s taking to LFW. “Everything has importance in our lives. The problem is that we try to make everything perfect. But in every person there is something positive and negative. And if I don’t have the negativity, I don’t have personality. Even in a piano, the black and white keys are about consonance and dissonance…So my collection has lots of layering of patterns, colours; they are multitudinous. I’ve not tried to synchronise anything.” Earlier everyone looked toward the West but now there’s a turnaround and everyone looks towards India, even for silhouettes, he says.

Out of the eight ensembles he’s taking to the LFW 2015, six are ready. “The silhouettes are structured yet flowy, Indian yet contemporary. I’ve always created very constructed patterns. A guy should look sleek. You’ll find in this collection drop-crotch pants, cowl necked shirts, angrakha styled shirts, Rajasthani- style Bhagatri en’s kurtas fused with formal white collars, a tuxedo-inspired jacket, a kilt-inspired pant with an overskirt…” Black and white geometric patterns are interrupted with colourful flowers, elephants, birds, and motifs of men in pagdi, twirling their moustaches! “This elaborate surface work is hypnotic and like the kaleidoscope.” Bib shirts and layers, really, though, are his thing. “I can wear anything. I can look like what I want. We can experiment. We all have licence to do it.” That quite sums up the man, and his creations.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by Bhumika .K / July 09th, 2015

Premji gives half of his stake in Wipro for charity

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features, Leaders, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion
In Wipro's annual report for the year ended March 2015, Premji said he has now allocated the equivalent of 39% of the company's shares to a trust focussed on philanthropic initiatives, mainly primary education.
In Wipro’s annual report for the year ended March 2015, Premji said he has now allocated the equivalent of 39% of the company’s shares to a trust focussed on philanthropic initiatives, mainly primary education.

Bengaluru :

Wipro’s billionaire chairman Azim Premji, the first Indian to sign the Giving Pledge, has set aside more than half of his wealth for charity by allocating an additional 18% stake in the company to fund philanthropy.

Premji, who will turn 70 this month, controls a 73.39% stake in India’s third-largest software company, which is worth about Rs 99,500 crore ($15.7 billion). In Wipro’s annual report for the year ended March 2015, Premji said he has now allocated the equivalent of 39% of the company’s shares to a trust focussed on philanthropic initiatives, mainly primary education. The additional 18% stake forms the latest tranche of shares Premji has allocated for charity.

The Giving Pledge is an effort to invite the world’s wealthiest individuals and families to commit half of their wealth to philanthropic causes and charitable organisations. In his pledge in 2013, Premji said he believes that those who are privileged to have wealth should contribute significantly to try and create a better world for the millions who are far less privileged. “Over the past 15 years, I have tried to put this belief into action through my personal philanthropic work. Over these years, I have irrevocably transferred a significant part of the shareholding in WiproBSE -0.03 %, amounting to 39% of the shares of Wipro, to a trust (of which ownership of 21.14% was transferred and for the balance, the trust is entitled to the beneficial interest of dividends and sale proceeds),” Premji wrote in a letter to shareholders.

People close to Premji said he has been quietly and steadily been transferring wealth to fund philanthropy.

“Apart from the Tata Trust, nothing comes close to the commitment made by him on this front,” said a person who knows him well. “And now, he has two engines to carry on philanthropy—the Azim Premji Foundation, and the newly formed Philanthropic Initiatives formed to making grants to NGOs.”

Last year, Premji hired Amnesty India head G Anantha Padmanabhan to build an organization that will offer grants to external agencies.

“The new initiative of making grants to NGOs has just started under what we call Philanthropic Initiatives. We are continuing to look at various areas, e.g., nutrition, water — the only area that we have decided on is support to NGOs working with the most vulnerable people — eg, street children, urban homeless, teenage girls from disadvantaged communities, women at risk of violence,” said Anurag Behar, CEO of Azim Premji Foundation and vice-chancellor of Azim Premji University.

“The Foundation’s work continues to expand and deepen in helping improve public (government) school education across seven states, which have about 350,000 schools. The university that we run also continues to expand. This year, we have launched a Master’s in public policy and governance and also our undergraduate programme,” Behar added.

Philanthropy has been on the rise among the rich in India as Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates , the world’s richest person, and business magnate Warren Buffet urged the wealthy to give their fortunes to charitable causes.

According to the Hurun Research Institute, at least 50 individuals donated over Rs 10 crore to philanthropic causes in 2014.

Premji, Anil Agarwal, Shiv Nadar and Ratan Tata were the most generous givers in India, according to the Hurun India Philanthropy List 2014.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Business> India Business / by Pankaj Mishra, ET Bureau / July 08th, 2015