Category Archives: Uncategorized

Thambis celebrate 178 years in Bangalore

Business & Economy, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, Uncategorized

Bangalore:

They were one of the earliest settlers who made Bangalore Cantonment their home. The Madras Sappers came here in 1834 and this year, the Madras Engineer Group & Centre is celebrating its 232 years since raising and 178 years in Bangalore.

As you walk into the campus of the MEG & Centre on the banks of Ulsoor Lake, you can spot the series of milestones that make its evolution. From battles in Egypt in the early 17{+t}{+h} century to the Seringapatnam battle, Sappers have had a wide reach.

They took ‘Bangalore’ to the world much before IT happened. The city became a common word among World War I and II when Sappers invented the Bangalore torpedo. These were long tubes filled with explosives which could clear minefields and enemy barbwires.

During the Kargil conflict, Sappers scaled hostile heights and cleared the ground littered with mine and other obstacles for other troops.

They played a pioneering role in Bangalore’s development. They built many buildings in Cantonment, including the Oriental Building and BRV Theatre. They still desilt Ulsoor Lake regularly and play a prominent role in preserving the water body.

“As Sappers, we are primarily combat engineers. Our job is to ensure the momentum and mobility of our own troops and to delay and restrict advance of our adversary. From the era of handling and planting explosives, constructing bridges quickly, over the years we have graduated to modern warfare where nations are strengthening their nuclear capabilities,” said Lt Col Sanjay Sharma, who looks after training at MEG & Centre.

“A recruit is made to undergo rigorous training and the overall development as a combat engineer and an intellectual warrior is monitored with precision. On successful completion of training here, a Sapper could be posted anywhere in the country — from the highest battlefield in the world, Siachen, the desert of Rajasthan or jungles of North-East India,” he added.

Distinctive headgear

In the early days, Madras Sappers comprised soldiers mostly from South India and the men were referred to as ‘Thambi’ (younger brother in Tamil). “Over the years, we’ve had people from North India too but even a man from Punjab or Rajasthan is called a Thambi,” said an officer of the regiment.

The Sappers’ headgear is a gift from the Cheshire Regiment during the battle of Meanee in 1743. They adopted the headgear since then.

Filed by: Arun/ Cleared by: S Prasad/es

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Bangalore / TNN, by Arun Dev / September 28th, 2012

Making a real difference

Amazing Feats, Education, Leaders, Records, All, Uncategorized

Muscat:

He’s one of the wealthiest men in the world -“ he’s India’s third wealthiest man and the world’s 36th -“ but what gives Wipro chairman Azim Premji immense joy and fulfillment is devoting time and money to philanthropy.

That, of course, is evident through the innumerable acts of generosity he has indulged in all through the 40 years he has headed Wipro. Premji, in fact, is one of the first industrialists in India to devote a significant portion of his wealth to philanthropy (he donated $2 billion for the purpose of improving education). This money has been used for activities of the Azim Premji Foundation that works to promote education in rural India as well as the Azim Premji University in Bangalore.

For Azim Premji, the chairman of Indian multinational Wipro, social responsibility is a serious vocation, which is why they have appointed a full time CEO for their philanthropy movement, as he revealed to Times of Oman in an exclusive interview, while also lavishing high praise on the Oman government for creating a business-friendly environment . /Photo by Jun Estrada


The Wipro founder, who considers social responsibility his greatest duty in life, sheds light on his philosophy of philanthropy thus: “I have been lucky to have created quite a lot of wealth and feel that it should be used for the betterment of the society.-

Azim Premji was in Oman recently on an official visit when Times of Oman caught up with him.

Why this emphasis on education?
Premji replied, “We figured that we have a certain social responsibility and decided to focus on one area. So we focused on education. Through our foundation we focused on school education in the villages of India. Since the beginning, we worked in close partnership with various authorities, to help contribute to the improvement of the quality of education. We found the need for change and the need for improvement in the education sector was the most pressing there. That’s why we’ve been single mindedly focusing on education for the last 10 to 11 years and the good thing is that we have found success.-

Informing that the group is scaling up its operations now, Premji said, “We are using Azim Premji University for training teachers and for training in leadership and community development. We are taking young people with about two to three years experience, preferably from small towns, in the hope that at the end of the two-year course they’ll go back and use the learning in leadership in the places they come from.-
The university, he informed, has around 68 world class professors on the role.

“We have been pleasantly surprised at the quality of the talent we have been able to recruit. This goes to show that if we want to do sustained and honest work, people want to be part of the team. They think there’s a lot of pride, learning, and a sense of being able to contribute to that atmosphere,- he explained.
Premji believes that good education is crucial to building a just, fair, compassionate and sustainable society.

“We want to contribute significantly towards improvement of education in India, and through that towards building a better society. Next year we plan to launch a four-year bachelors’ programme.-

He is happy that his team has been making a difference.
“Our programme, called Wipro Applying Thought in School, has covered a million programmes so far accumulatively. The intent of this initiative is to improve the quality of education -“ so that opportunities and possibilities are expanded for everyone.-

Talking about a programme called Mission 10X launched in 2007 for engineering schools, Premji said, “India sees around 700,000 engineers graduate every year of which only a third are employable by the industry. The rest are not employable because the curriculum is primarily not current and professors are not taught well or up to date on technology. The Mission10X is basically a not-for-profit initiative created by Wipro to enhance employability skills of engineering graduates.-
Wipro has dedicated some 15 full time professors for this purpose from its training and leadership institute.

“We have also covered 30,000 professors. We feel if we can bring up the quality of teaching in the engineering students, the quality of students will improve, which in turn will result in the eligible students going up by 50 per cent,- he explained.
As for the philanthropy meet Premji hosted along with Bill Gates and Ratan Tata in Bangalore recently, he said, “This will be an annual event with workshops in between. There is a lot of wealth in our country. So we thought let’s together assemble corporates that have shown a track record of philanthropy and get some common understanding with them.

“We started off with this thought and now, as per the need, we have appointed a full time CEO for this philanthropy movement. Four to five of us are funding in terms infrastructure and people cost. We have formed four groups (education, healthcare, water and agriculture). Each group has a chairman who is a member of the large core group. We’ll have small workshops throughout the year so that more specialised discussion can take place.

“We are satisfied with the interest we got and what we are doing. We are all serious people because we didn’t want a tamasha. We had shown a track record of doing serious work and we hope to see success. We have started and plan to expand it. But we hope to do something which has a possibility of success.-

Recently, his wife, Yasmeen Premji, launched her first book, Days of Gold and Sepia and Azim Premji looks very proud of this endeavour. “I have read the book twice. It is an interesting book which is well written. I am not saying that because she is my wife. It has to be good; she has taken 20 years to write it,- he told Times of Oman.

On investing in India, Pemji said, “I think you have to have faith in India. It is a sound democracy. The voter is mature. Besides, the leadership is there in the country so it can change or get modified. Politicians can see the threat of survival and change themselves in terms of survival. Overall, I am optimistic. Besides, we wouldn’t be investing so much in India if we were frightened.-

About his impressions about Oman, he said, “I think it’s a country which has a great future. Government and companies are open to do business here, which is why they are open to meet companies.-

And at this note, he concluded: “I will back to Oman within a year.-

source: http://www.TimesofOman.com / Home> News / by Mrudu Naik, mrudu@timesofoman.com / September 13th, 2012

Paintings of Tipu’s death & Hindu temple for auction at UK

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, Uncategorized

Mysore, Sept. 12

Mullock’s Auctions, United Kingdom, will be auctioning a selection of Indian artifacts, some after the annexation of Mysore by the British, including an important 18th century watercolour of a Hindu Temple and a painting of Tipu Sultan on Sept. 27 at Ludlow Racecourse, Shropshire, UK. A British School painting depicting death of Tipu Sultan dating to 1828 is expected to fetch 2000 – 3000 pounds.

Another 18th century water-colour painting of Gavi Gangadhareshwara Temple in Mysore by British artist Lt. James Hunter will also be auctioned. James Hunter was a Lieutenant in the Royal Artillery under Cornwallis during the Third Anglo-Mysore War where British and Company troops defeated Tipu Sultan.

The watercolor was published in the book Picturesque Views in the Kingdom of Mysore in 1804 and is expected to fetch between £600 to £800. Other notable pieces include several early books on Mahatma Gandhi and historical documents relating to India.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / General News / September 12th, 2012

Sample mouth-watering sweets

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Uncategorized

When it comes to South Indian sweets, Dharwad pedas are something that one craves for. The sweet has become a brand in itself.


And for nearly 14 years, ‘Mishra Sweets’, located opposite Kanteerava Indoor Stadium, has been sourcing authentic Dharwad pedas from Dharwad for its customers. But that’s not all, this old sweet shop has a lot more to offer.

It has traditional sweets like kaju katli, boondi ladoo, gulab jamun, Mysore pak, sohan papdi and modern ones like Horlicks barfi, Cadbury burfi and Mango barfi.

Anyone who comes here for the first item, goes for the Dharwad mishra peda.
Ajay Hari Dubey, who runs the shop, says that in all these years, he has never compromised on the quality of ingredients or the taste.

“Honesty is important for us,” says Ajay, while adding, “And it is that honesty that reflects in the sweets as well.”

Apart from the pedas, customers also prefer other traditional sweets like kardant, which is made of pure ghee, jaggery, coconut and dry fruits.

“Even the kunda is very popular here. This is a popular Belgaum sweet, which is prepared from milk and khowa,” explains Ajay. The crowd pours in as early as nine in the morning and during festivals, the place is filled with  regulars who come for pedas and other traditional items.

“Since we don’t make Dharwad pedas here, we generally take orders a day or two in advance and source it to our customers,” says Ajay.

Though the sweet shop is located on the main road and parking could be a bit of a hassle, Ajay says that majority of his customers are people who live in and around the neighbourhood.

“When we first moved in here, we were the only sweet shop in the locality. But now the City has changed and so has the area. The floating crowd is very rare. Most of our customers are regulars, who have been coming here for a long time,” he adds.
Within a year of the opening of the store, namkeens and chaats too were included in the menu.

Chakalis, mixtures and samosas and kachoris are made here itself and sold fresh. “We also have the regular chaats like masala puri, paani puri, dahi puri and sev puri,” says Ajay.

Soon the eatery is planning to expand by offering its customers bakery items as well. “There is always scope for improvement but for us at ‘Mishra Sweets’, the mantra has always been to be honest in whatever we do or serve,” wraps up Ajay.
‘Mishra Sweets’ is located at No 28, Raja Ram Mohan Roy Road, Opposite the Kanteerava Indoor Stadium. For details, call 22124988

source: http://www.DeccanHerald.com / Home> Supplements> Metrolife / by Megha Shenoy / September 08th, 2012

Nandini Mysore Pak, Cashew Burfi in 100 gm packings released

Business & Economy, Science & Technology, Uncategorized

Mysore, July 17

Nandini has now come out with its popular Mysore Pak and Cashew Burfi in 100 gm packings which were released by Karnataka Housing Board Chairman G.T. Devegowda at a programme organised by Mymul at the Mysore Dairy premises yesterday.

Speaking on the occasion, GTD lauded Mysore Dairy in coming out with tasty and hygienically packed milk products to the consumers.

Managing Director Dr. Suresh Babu said that the Farmers Welfare Trust was doing yeomen service for the milk producers by providing good facilities for their meritorious children. He added that a building belonging to MyMUL at Alanahalli was being renovated to a hostel for the students.

MDCC Bank President C. Basavegowda, District Co-operative Union President H.V. Rajeev, KMF Director S.C. Ashok and Mymul Chairman C. Omprakash were present.

Mymul donates dialysis machines

Mymul has donated dialysis machines to two hospitals in city. KHB Chairman G.T. Deve-gowda and MDCC Bank President Basavegowda launched the operation of the two machines at Cauvery Hospital in Siddarthanagar and River View Hospital in Hebbal yesterday.

They said that the facility would help the MyMul members suffering from renal problems by providing dialysis at reasonable rates. They announced that each dialysis would cost Rs. 600 for the members as against the usual Rs. 1,300 and assured to top up further with more people-friendly programmes in future.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / General News / July 17th, 2012

Rs 100 cr for renovation of monuments

Uncategorized

The Union government has released a sum of Rs 100 crore to the State for renovation of historic monuments maintained by the Archaeology Department.

Of the 24,000 monuments in the State, 700 come under the purview of the State Archaeology Department. The money will be used to renovate them over a period of four years, said Basavaraju, Secretary to Kannada and Culture, Information Department here on Wednesday. As many as 100 temples had been renovated in association with Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara Trust.

While the Trust and the Department have shared the expenses at 40 pc each, the temple managements and local people have contributed the balance 20 per cent, he said.  Infosys Foundation had come forward to take up renovation of the Someshwara temple at Lakshmeshwara in Gadag district at a cost of Rs three crore, he said.

The grants being given to drama companies which have completed 25 years would be increased soon. Monthly honorarium is being paid to about 1,600 artistes and around 1,000 applications seeking the allowance have been received. The Finance Department had given approval to provide honorarium to 400 more artistes this year, he said.

source: http://www.DeccanHerald.com / Home> State / DHNS, Hubli, July 04th, 2012

Vijay Mallya on cloud nine after team’s best performance of season

Sports, Uncategorized

Ferrari’s Spanish driver Fernando Alonso, Caterham F1 Team’s Finnish driver Heikki Kovalainen, Ferrari’s Brazilian driver Felipe Massa and Force India’s German driver Nico Hulkenberg drive at the Valencia Street Circuit – AFP

Vijay Mallya was over the moon on Sunday as his Formula One team Sahara Force India enjoyed its strongest performance of the season at the European Grand Prix in Valencia. German Nico Hulkenberg finished fifth and Scot Paul Di Resta came home seventh as the Indian-owned team earned 16 world championship points.

Mallya said he was delighted to see his cars in top-10. “A thoroughly enjoyable race. It was a rollercoaster contest with many twists and turns, but I feel we have come away with the points we deserved given our performance level this weekend. Both drivers pushed hard, kept out of trouble and made their different strategies work. Paul recovered the ground he lost under the safety car and Nico had to drive most of the race without KERS, so it was an excellent performance by him,” the business tycoon added.

Mallya vowed that the team’s strong show will continue. “It has set us up perfectly for Silverstone in two weeks’ time where we will be determined to build on this momentum in our local race (the team’s factory is based in England),” Mallya added.

Hulkenberg, who posted his best rest in Formula One career, said, ” A great result for everyone in the team and for me personally. Fifth place is a great achievement after a very long and difficult race. The
two-stop strategy worked well, but the last stint was very long and it was hard to hold off the cars behind me on fresher tyres in the last few laps. So the race was a bit messy at times, but very entertaining and it feels great to come through and score such a good result for the team. We got a bit lucky with some cars dropping out, but we were in the right place to capitalise on things,” the German said.

source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> Channels> SPORT> Motor Racing / by C. Santosh Kumar, DC / Chennai / Monday, June 25th, 2012

Hyderabad: Rs 25-lakh Bonanza from Andhra Govt for ’Golden Girl’ Mamata Poojary

Records, All, Sports, Uncategorized

Hyderabad, 24 Jun 2012:

In the middle of complaints that only cricket hogs all the limelight and only cricketers get large gifts as incentives, here is some soothing news.

Captain of the first women’s World Cup-winning India Kabaddi team Mamata Poojary and another member of the team Nagalakshmi have won prizes of Rs 25 lakh each from the Andhra Pradesh government.

The announcement was made by chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy on Saturday, June 23.

Mamata hails from Hermunde in Karkala taluk of Udupi district and if anyone wonders what made the AP government choose her, she happens to be an employee of Railways, based in Secunderabad. Nagalakshmi hails from AP.

Recently, the AP government had announced a prize of Rs 50 lakh in appreciation of badminton star Saina Nehwal from the state. There was discontent that the government had neglected the Kabaddi achievers.

source: http://www.bellevision.com / by PTI / Hyderabad, June 24th, 2012

Fashionista in the making

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Leaders, Uncategorized

To wear lingerie that fits perfectly, is a dream come true for a woman, and this young NIFT student aims to do just that. 20-year-old Pooja Upadhyay just bagged the Triumph International Award in Mumbai and come October, she will be representing India in the finals at Shanghai.

Designing and art always inspired Pooja, who never thought about a career in fashion until a few years ago. “My father encouraged me to pursue fashion as a career and there has been no looking back ever since.” Though based in Mumbai, Pooja’s maternal and paternal grandparents hail from the state and she is enamoured by what the city has to offer to the world of fashion. “Bengaluru has a huge market for fashion and people are clued in to the proceedings. It’s just a matter of time before the city will be reckoned as a fashion hub in India,” claims the young design student.

The award came as a complete surprise to Pooja. She contested with several people across the country and was chosen in the top ten for the finals. “We had to depict duality in our design. I have combined the dragon and butterfly coming together in my lingerie design. I also had to consider the flow of the garment, since lingerie has to be well-fitting and accentuate a woman’s curves. The idea is to make the garment sensuous, not vulgar.”

Inspired by designers like Alexander McQueen, Ritu Beri, brands like Victoria’s Secret among others, Pooja too aims to launch her own fashion line one day. “Making the cut in this industry is not easy. Apart from a unique sense of design, you also need to have excellent social skills.” One particular designer who inspires her is, “Manish Arora. He was the artistic director for Paco Rabane and that’s very inspiring. Indian designers are being recognised by international brands.”

So what does it take to carve a niche in this fiercely competitive industry? “From what I’ve seen, handmade creations are deeply valued. At the turn of the millenium, trends were leaning towards the sporty side. Solid colours and bold cuts dominated the fashion preference. Now, people are inching towards surface ornamentation. It’s challenging and opens up a window of opportunties.”

Pooja has spent a good number of weeks in interior Karnataka, researching on local art and design. “My personal favourite is the lambani design. I would love to incorporate them in my work in the future.” In her spare time, Pooja loves shopping and reading up on the latest fashion trends. “I also sing, but that’s only in front of my close friends!” adds the bubbly youngster with a laugh.

source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> Channels> Lifestyle> Fashion / by Sindhuja Balaji / DC, May 17th, 2012

 

Saviours of native seeds

Green Initiatives / Environment, Nature, Uncategorized

PRESERVING TRADITION: Gurusamy with his collection of native seed varieties. Photo: M.J. Prabu / The Hindu

Farmers like Gurusamy have been reaching out to their community

Inside a dingy and dark room of a house at Odayarpalayam village in Karnataka’s Chamrajnagar district, old earthen pots and worn-out plastic jars are lined up on ramshackle wooden shelves. Inside them are colourful beads and seeds, labelled neatly.

These are native seeds, painstakingly collected and documented by Gurusamy, a traditional seed collector and farmer, who has been in the business for the past 10 years.

P. Rajachar, Programme Officer of the Mysore Resettlement and Development Agency (Myrada), says that thanks to Mr. Gurusamy’s efforts, hundreds of varieties of native seeds have been collected and distributed to farmers. These varieties are now grown on nearly 25 acres.

“I think there are more than 3,000 farmers in Karnataka who grow and maintain such seed varieties. We’ve a good network of suppliers who see to it that our bank balance [read seed bank] doesn’t go down,” adds the self-effacing farmer, who has sustained his efforts creditably.

His suppliers are mainly farmers who want to grow native varieties. “Mostly my suppliers are growers who are eager to preserve native varieties. While supplying seeds, I reach an informal agreement with them to give me back a portion of the seeds after the harvest,” says Mr. Gurusamy.

Seeds, symbols of fertility and vitality, have been a part of Indian culture and heritage for long; to a farmer they personify self-respect. In fact, long before hybrid seed companies set up shop and went commercial, the traditional farmer had saved his own seeds, swapped them with neighbours or exchanged them with others.

Mr. Gurusamy said:

“Sadly, this intimate knowledge of the farmer and his traditional wisdom have been systematically devalued by several scientists, who are keen to promote technologies and seeds that are not suited to a particular area or community.

“High-yielding seed varieties and chemical fertilizers and pesticides that came with the Green Revolution destroyed several indigenous seed varieties. As farmers stopped saving and exchanging seeds, and instead started buying them from the market, their native expertise became irrelevant and crop diversity suffered. In a land that once had several thousand varieties of crops, most of them are no more to be found.

“Farmers used to grow these, swap them with neighbours and preserve them for tough times. These seeds have beaten several odds. In fact, even today we’re able to hold out against the multinational seed companies that are trying to dislodge us and our collection.

“I normally do not charge for the seeds if the farmer desires to grow it in a small area, say, in his backyard. I simply request him to return a small portion of the seeds. But for those growing the crop on four to 10 acres, I charge a nominal amount. It could be anything between Rs. 5 to Rs. 20, depending on the seed one wants.”

There are four persons who help Mr. Gurusamy in his work. They go to various places in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to source seeds, and update and maintain a database of native growers.

“Like Mr. Gurusamy, C. Rudriah from Kadambur, C. Palaniammal from Bargur, V. Narayanan from Kottamallan, D. Mahesh from Kadatti, N. Alamma from Kottarai and B. Ambamani from Hongalvadi are some of the farmers who preserve and supply native seeds,” says Mr. Rajachar.

These people are simple farmers who cultivate on their meagre holdings. It is their interest in protecting local and native seed varieties that has turned them into seed saviours.

Mr. Gurusamy’s phone number is 09008167819; Mr. Rajachar’s is 09449203217.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> S&T> Agriculture / by M. J. Prabu / Chamrajnagar, May 02nd, 2012