Monthly Archives: March 2012

National – level ‘Rally De Mysore’ on Apr.1

Sports

Caption: Kodava Samaja Cultural & Sports Club President M.M. Karumbaiah addressing a press meet at Patrakartara Bhavan this morning. Others seen are (from left) ace racer Lohit Urs, Club Treasurer P. Raja Poovaiah, Vice-President M.M. Kuttappa and Hon. Secretary B. Rathan Ponnappa.

Mysore, Mar. 28

Rally De Mysore, a national level bikes and cars rally, will be held in city on Apr. 1, under the joint auspices of Kodava Samaja Cultural & Sports Club (KSC&SC), Mysore and Indian Motor Sports Club (IMSC).
Mysore’s ace racer Lohit Urs, who is in-charge of the rally, provided details about the rally at a press conference held at the Patrakartara Bhavan today.
The event is run in accordance with Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) which is the governing body for Motor-sports in India.
The event will start from The Roost hotel on Hunsur Road in Mysore at 9 am on Sunday (Apr. 1) and conclude in the same place by 6 pm, said KSC&SC President Mechanda M. Karumbaiah, adding that Police Superintendent R. Dilip will flag off the rally.
City Police Commissioner K.L. Sudheer will give away prizes during the valedictory function to be held at the same venue in the evening.
The rally will cover a distance of 140 km around Mysore and pass through interior roads near Yelwal, Bilikere, K.R. Nagar and Hunsur. The main sponsors are Graviti 9.
The rally is run on Time Speed Distance (TSD) format. In this event, the main focus is on navigation rather than speed. The competitors are given the route map and the speed at which they should cover the distance.
source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / General News / March 28th, 2012

‘Bhramara Awards’ presented to eminent Scientists

Records, All, Science & Technology

Caption: Scientists Dr. Tej Pal Singh and Dr. Debashis Mitra being presented with the Bhramara Awards at a function held at Sri Shivarathri Rajendra Bhavan in JSS Medical College last evening. Others seen are (from left) JSS Medical College Principal Dr. H. Basavana Gowdappa, Suttur Seer Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Swamiji, KSOU VC Prof. K.S. Rangappa, Bhramara Trustee Prof. R. Srinivasan, Managing Trustee Madhuri Thathachari and Director of National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore, Prof. K. Vijayaraghavan.

Mysore, Mar. 29

Dr. Tej Pal Singh, Distinguished bio-technology research professor of AIIMS, New Delhi, was conferred with the prestigious Bhramara’s Lifetime Achievement Award instituted by the city-based Bhramara Trust of Y.T. & Madhuri Thathachari at a function held at Dr. Shivarathri Rajendra Auditorium in JSS Medical College on Mysore-Bangalore road here last evening.
Dr. Debashis Mitra, Scientist in National Centre for Cell Science, Pune, was presented with the Prof. Y.T. Thathachari Prestigi-ous Research Award for Science while JSS Medical College Principal Dr. H. Basavana Gowdappa was presented with the endowment prize for the Best Research Paper. This endowment prize is for the faculty or PG student of JSS Medical College who present the best research paper.
Karnataka State Open University (KSOU) Vice-Chancellor Prof. K.S. Rangappa spoke as the chief guest.
Prof. K. Vijayaraghavan, Director of National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore, delivering the presidential address, praised the initiative of Bhramara Trust for creating a link between the society and the achievers in the field of science and fine arts.
“Researchers and artists get to do what they love to do and get paid for it too. But, despite being paid by the people, they seldom get the due recognition. This drawback has been made good by organisations like the Bharama Trust,” he said.
He also praised the JSS institutions for grooming the younger generation into useful citizens of India. “India has the largest population of Under-15 who need proper education and jobs. If groomed properly, they would be a boon for the world; if not, they might be a disaster for the world,” he opined.
Suttur Seer Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Swamiji, who inaugurated the programme earlier, said in his benediction address that the scientists were noble souls who dedicated their entire lives to the service of mankind. Mentioning about the general notion that researchers cannot be good administrators, the Seer lauded the administrative skills of Prof. Rangappa as the KSOU Vice-Chancellor, despite being a chemistry research scholar.
The Seer also appreciated the presence of some well-known personalities of the city among the audience by naming some like industrialist K.V. Murthy, Bharathiya Vidya Bhavan, Mysore Kendra Chairman Prof. A.V. Narasimha Murthy, danseuse Dr. Vasundhara Doreswamy, art critic S.R. Krishnamurthy, litterateurs, auditors, etc.
Yesterday being the 30th wedding anniversary of Dr. Tej Pal Singh, he and his wife Dr. Meera Singh, Deputy Director General, Indian Council for Medical Research, were felicitated by the Seer.
Managing Trustee Madhuri Thathachari welcomed. Trustee Prof. R. Srinivasan explained about the selection process. Annapurna Srikanth rendered the invocation. Jyothi proposed a vote of thanks.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / General News / March 29th, 2012

Sharing experience…: with love… from the land of Golden Gate bridge-3

Nri's / Pio's

On May 30, 1995, Star of Mysore had published a news item titled PUC: City gets 2 ranks in which two students B.S. Manjula of JSS College for Women (9th rank in Arts) and B.S. Suryanarayan (9th rank in Science) were featured.


Now, after 17 years, Manjula, a regular reader of Star of Mysore, has written about her experiences at San Francisco State University from where she obtained an MA in Economics.

Currently residing in Fremont, California, Manjula is working as a Research Analyst at Steele Foundation, San Francisco (home to the famed Golden Gate Bridge).

She is the daughter of late Bhadraswamy, a reader at Government B.Ed. College, KSOU and Amrutha. Here we publish the third in a series of her articles which she sent to SOM, saying ‘My day begins with Star of Mysore!’

Daly City Bart became part of my life throughout San Francisco State University (SFSU) days. The impression it left on my mind is something unique. Even today, whenever I see a Bart train (Bay Area Rapid Transit System) whistling through the wind like a tea kettle, I go down the memory lane, riding Bart, re-calling my long association with it.

Bart is a fast-moving train which stops for a few minutes at every station for passengers to board and get off. It was my only means of transport to the University. I travelled from Fremont to Daly city, one-and-a-half-hours one way, weekly four days. SFSU is located on Daly city border. So from Daly City Bart station to the University, SFSU shuttle which would ply every 15 minutes would take us to the University free-of-cost.

I spent time either “relaxing” or observing people. There were people attired in business suites reading a book or working on their laptop as they travelled to San Francisco. There were students chit chatting with their friends, young mothers with the baby still sleeping in the stroller, beautiful women gently applying make-up and sometimes bubbly school kids visiting some place of interest with their teachers.

Morning 8 to 9 and evening 5 to 7, the train would be full to the brim with tired Indian software engineers, a heavy bag dangling from their shoulders obviously containing a laptop. If there were any baseball matches in the Oakland Coliseum (Stadium), the train would be swarmed with men wearing green T-shirts and green caps, even during 10.30 in the night! There were sometimes beggars begging with decency — “Ma’am could you spare some change please.”

I travelled most of the time off peak hours, closing my eyes, relaxing, unmindful of surroundings and co-passengers. Because of this “relaxing” habit, I landed in many embarrassing situations.

Once it so happened, while returning home I dozed off. I was supposed to get down at Bay Fair station and transfer to the Fremont Bart as there were no direct trains after 7 pm to Fremont from Daly City. When I woke up, I was in Castro station which was way ahead of my destination. I immediately got down from the Bart and boarded the San Francisco train. This time, without fail, I got down at Bay Fair and took a Fremont train home. I reached home at 9.30 pm instead of 8.30 pm. In another such “relaxing moment,” I lost my cell phone worth 200 dollars !

Vending machine Vs long queues

I couldn’t help but compare American transport system with our own Indian transport system. Passengers can buy tickets without any hassle by depositing money in the vending machine or get it from any departmental stores like Safe-way or Rallies. When entering the station, just swipe the ticket at the gate and voila ! you are in.

But Indian railway stations are packed all the time. People should enter the station one hour before they begin their journey only to buy tickets standing in queue getting pushed by all. You are lucky if only pushed by people! Recently, I read that online counters are being introduced in India where you can book your tickets in advance. Thanks to the former Railway Minister Laluji ! I had great expectations from Dinesh Trivedi, a trained pilot, highly educated and widely travelled politician, who was sacked last week for taking a bold step which could have improved the Indian Railways.

During peak hours, like our KSRTC and local trains in Mumbai, Bart was also crowded, but I never saw passengers standing on footsteps of a bus or dangling from the windows. Bart doors once closed could not be opened, unless the driver wished to. Another thing that struck me was punctuality of the system. Trains would arrive and depart exactly at the announced time. The driver would announce the approaching station a few minutes before he entered the station so that the passengers could get ready to disembark the train and there would be no delay in continuing the journey.

Cleanliness is another remarkable feature. There were cleaners wearing hand gloves who came in and cleaned the Bart from time to time at several stops, collecting newspapers and empty plastic cups littered on seats or floor.

Poverty in ‘God’s own land’

Bart train was a home to many homeless and old folks who did not have their own place to live. Often I came across such people who travelled from one end to the other just because they wanted to remain inside the train which was a safe refuge to them from the chilling cold and rain. They slept like a log unaware of the climate while the driver announced our arrival at the Daly City station, the last stop in the line.

Poverty or homelessness was not new to me. It was poverty in America, ‘God’s own land’ that was new to me! Even today several people are under the assumption that US is heaven and there is no poverty in there. People with signboards asking for money, people sitting or sleeping with all their belongings in big plastic bags is not uncommon, especially on the streets of San Francisco. They look like a bundle of rags, no life left in their eyes. The problem has worsened with the collapse of housing market, increasing foreclosures and unemployment in the face of recession. Like any other government, the US government is also trying to help these people in the low rungs of the ladder. How far they have been successful, that is a big question mark with increasing numbers carrying sign-boards on the streets.

Understanding ‘Manku Thimmana Kagga’

I got acquainted with some students who were travelling like me to the University everyday by Bart, who later on became my good friends. One day, I was waiting for the Fremont Bart after I finished my economics class. It was around 6.45 pm. I felt someone pulling my sweater and turned to find a Sardar standing, grinning like a Cheshire cat. He was my classmate Surinder Singh (name changed) who was also enrolled in the same graduate economics class as I were. He was about to graduate the next semester. I had never spoken to him earlier. I would literally run soon after the class to catch my Bart since I was always in a hurry to reach home for I had other responsibilities as a woman.

“Hi,” I greeted him.

“Are you travelling to East Bay?” he asked.

“Yes, to Fremont. You?”

“I stay in Oakland… You come all the way from Fremont! Boy, that’s long commute. I often visit Fremont… I come to the Indian restaurants in Fremont and visit Naz Cinemas to watch Hindi movies,” he replied.

By that time, Fremont train arrived and we hopped on to it. Many times he travelled with me in Bart passionately talking about his ambitions. Surinder was born in India but he migrated to US when he was 9 years old with his parents. He was working for a non-profit organisation in Oakland. Though he spent most of his life in US, he still retained love and respect for India. After his graduation, he wanted go to India and do research in sociology. His eyes gleamed whenever he spoke about his research.

Alas, fate had other plans in store for him. After the semester, I rarely saw him as he finished all required courses. When I heard about him again, he was dead.

It was my last semester in the school. I was sitting in the lab working on my research paper. A Japanese friend of mine came and asked me, “Hey, do you know Surinder?”

“Yes I know him. He was with me in Public econ and Macro class. It has been a long time since I met him. What is the matter?” I questioned.

“He is dead,” he said with a grief-stricken voice.

“What? Surinder is dead? How did he die?” I could not believe he was dead. My friend explained that Surinder was in Hongkong with a group of protesters, protesting against WTO. He returned home safely, but after a week, he died in his apartment alone. He must have caught some infectious disease there which caused his death. My friend even showed me a website in which many of Surinder’s friends had paid their homage.

I was shocked to hear about his death. He was too young to die. He aspired to take up the cause of underprivileged and downtrodden. His death left me with many unanswered questions. Was he in pain when he died? Did he want to see his near and dear ones and talk to them at that moment? Did he want to complete his unfinished tasks before he left this world? What was his fault?

He had vanished like that Cheshire cat in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland leaving behind only his smile hanging in the air.

“That’s the way of life. Everyone has to go one day. Birth and death, pain and pleasure, childhood and old age — no one can ever escape from this cycle,” my husband said when I narrated the incident to him.

“Yes I know, it is inevitable. But it is so hard to accept that he is no more,” I said.

“Yes, I know, it is hard to believe. Accept it or not, that is the eternal truth and we must live with it,” he declared.

There was this song from Manku Thimmana Kagga playing on our music stereo in the car—”Baduku jataka bandi, Vidhi adara saheba; Kudure neen, Avanu peldante payanigaru; Maduvego masanako hogenda kadegodu; Pada kusiye nelavihudu mankuthimma.”

[Meaning: Life is a horse driven cart, fate its driver,

You’re the horse, passengers in it decided by God,

Go wherever fate decides, either to burial ground or marriage hall,

When stumbled, God will support you.]

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / Features/ Tuesday, March 27th, 2012

Respect the Girl Child: Prema Cariappa

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features, Leaders, Uncategorized

Caption: Prema Cariappa, Chairperson, Central Social Welfare Board, inaugurating the International Women’s Day celebration organised by Karnataka State Social Welfare Board at Rajendra Auditorium in JSS Hospital premises here recently. Others seen are State Board Chairperson Vinoda Nataraj and Karnataka State Women’s Development Corporation Chairperson Sarojini Bhardwaj.

Mysore, Mar. 28

“Members of the Indian society need to shed the ancient notion that only male issues can support us in our old age and that one attains ‘sadgati’ after death only if one is the a parent of a male child,” said Prema Cariappa, Chairperson, Central Social Welfare Advisory Board, New Delhi.

Speaking after inaugurating International Women’s Day celebration held under the aegis of Karnataka State Social Welfare Board at Rajendra Bhavan in city on Monday, she said that women are playing a pivotal role in the development of the nation and the country; but in spite of this, they are being discriminated.

She further said that even today, the birth of a female child is considered shameful. Even though girls excel in education they are being discriminated in the fields of higher education, professional courses and employment.

“The need of the hour is to educate girls. She said that the social evils like dowry etc. have ruined the society. Women are being burnt alive if dowry is not given. Police and judiciary seem to be helpless in stopping these crimes. Govt. is taking appropriate steps for the development of women but it is the duty of the voluntary organizations to come forward to work in the field of social work,” she said and opined that local elected representatives need to work towards eradicating this discrimination.

Board’s chairperson Vinoda Nataraj, State Women’s Development Corporation Chairperson Sarojini Bhardwaj and Women and Child Welfare Department Deputy Director N.R. Vijay were the chief guests.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / General News / March 28th, 2012

Tale of two cities

About Bangalore(Bengaluru) / Karnataka, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, Uncategorized

MULTIPLE CITY

Inscribed on the grains of sand, somewhere in the hour-glass of time, is the story of Bangalore, a story that has intrigued many. There are stories within stories of the multiple city that Bangalore is.

SIGHTS OF BANGALORE in the 1900’s. Clockwise from top left: A typical street with turbaned men and women ( Photo courtesy: Jane Smith, England , Missionary Fred Goodwill’s, grand daughter and Jones Ebinesan,  Western Australia).

A common thread that runs through the City’s centuries-old history is that of the constant pete-Cantonment parallel, and the story of the City’s municipal governance occupies a special place in the existence of two separate geographical entities within the map of Bangalore.

Even 150 years after the first municipal board came into existence on March 27, 1862, one can still tell the difference between the old City area and the Cantonment. Today, the cosmopolitan nature of the City, punctuated by people of many communities, occupations and ethnic origins might have masked the difference between the two areas, but not obliterated it. The dichotomy seems to be a constant through Bangalore’s history.

Although the first municipal board was already established in 1862 for old Bangalore, drawing a line of distinction, another board was formed on August 1 of the same year, to govern the Cantonment area.

State within a state

The Cantonment was a state within the state. Its demography was largely decided by the British. Historians point out that the British had, in order to cater to their various needs, brought ‘rich’ communities like the Mudaliars and Naidoos and some Muslims. They had also brought the ‘Harijan’ community to perform menial jobs.

With higher expendable income, larger budgets, special provisions, the Cantonment was elite. But the old City area could not be left out, not even if it were not the bosom of the City in the eyes of historians. Their charms were different. The Cantonment was English; the City area, notwithstanding some resembling architecture, was local.

But they were both vibrant by virtue of enjoying separate business districts, a provision the City planners post-Independence have given little importance to.

According to H S Doreswamy, the oldest (living) freedom fighter of Bangalore, the City’s business district housed all kinds of businesses, from oil producers to potters and silk weavers to bangle makers.

The Cantonment was different. It had bazaars that sold finished products, grocery and was home to a spectrum of entertainment avenues.

In 1871, a new municipal regulation saw the appointment of J H Orr as the fulltime president for the control and direction of the affairs of both the municipal. This was the first attempt at unified governance.

But the differences were not to be wiped out. The total revenue generation of the Bangalore City Municipality was Rs 43,010 while the revenue of the Bangalore Civil and Military Station Municipality (Cantonment) was Rs 92,617.

After the conclusion of the Commissioner’s administration and the beginning of the Mysore rulers’ administration, the Cantonment area was called British Cantonment.
By 1881, the differences in the administration became very apparent and caused discomfort among the locals in the City area. The administration continued, brushing aside these differences that did not last, for Bangaloreans then, like now, 150 years later, didn’t get ruffled too much by these differences.

Home to the British automatically meant more access to many provisions that the City area did not have. The ever-benevolent (British) government’s hand meant funds for development projects.

One such key priority that came the Cantonment’s way was drinking water supply. As early as 1881, Sampangi and three Millers tanks were the chief sources of water for the Civil and Military Stations. The Millers tank, constructed in 1854, was the first step taken to meet the demand for water. For the City, before the commencement of the scheme of protected (filtered) water supply to the City initiated in 1896 by Dewan K Sheshadri Iyer, unfiltered raw water was supplied from a number of tanks like the Dharmambudhi tank, Sampangi, Ulsoor and the Sankey tank.

The British officers deputed in Bangalore during the 1890s were looking for a new source of water supply. Major Grant worked at four sources––Maligal valley, Hebbal, Rachenahalli and Hessaraghatta––and M C Hutchins, the chief engineer of Mysore preferred Hessaraghatta.

More equal than others?

While people residing in the limits of the Bangalore City Municipality were levied three per cent-four per cent water tax, buildings and land used for military purpose were exempted from tax.

In 1892, for the first time, elections were conducted for these boards.
Voting rights were restricted only to male property owners and even among them, only those who have paid property tax, according to provisions of the Central rule of 1883. Both civil and military areas saw 18 members in all.

The differences between the two though, had to continue. Unlike in the City area, only in the Cantonment, women were allowed to vote. It was not until 1923, when the City board submitted a memorandum that women in the City area were allowed to cast their vote.

The differences continued even after Independence, as historians have described.
On December 8, 1949, post-Independence, both the boards were legally merged as one. But the most immediate challenge for the new administrators was to find the much needed co-operation for common administration. For the lines had to be “undrawn.”
The path taken after that needs little recalling. Bangalore has grown, it has a fresh identity. But the two separate identities that the Cantonment and City areas have given to Bangalore will continue to add to the charm of this City in its own way.

source: http://www.DeccanHerald.com / Home> Supplements> Spectrum / by Chethan Kumar / Tuesday, March 27th, 2012

Geek fest: Indian tech innovations on display in Bangalore

Science & Technology

Bangalore:

About 20 Indian whiz kids will showcase their innovations in diverse fields, including a special shoe for the visually impaired, at the fourth Emerging Technologies (EmTech) India event on Tuesday.

“The innovations to be demonstrated by geeks below 35 years at the event are in the areas of web, computers, biomedicine, energy, materials and transportation,” CyberMedia publisher Pradeep Gupta, who is hosting the two-day conference, said in a statement.

Reuters

Among the innovators, 24-year-old Bangalorean Anirudh Sharma will demo his Haptic shoe for the visually impaired, while 28-year-old Chennai-based social activist Venkatesan Oosur Vinayagam will unleash his mobile ‘antakshari’ (singing competition) and 35-year-old Delhi-based Somnath Ray will display a recreated para-transit mode of mobility for the physically challenged.

 

he festival is also focused on generating technology relevant to demands and specific situations.

In recognition of the craze for cricket in the Indian sub-continent, for instance, the organizers have dedicated a session to ‘Technology in Cricket’.

“Siddharth Khullar, a doctoral candidate in imaging science from Rochester Institute of Technology, MIT Media Lab, and Chinmaya Joshi from Pune College of Engineering will flag advances in cricketing technology that will hopefully reduce appeals and controversies in the sport,” Gupta said.

And in view of the rising crude oil prices, special sessions will also be held on biofuels, clean-tech, renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Sessions on sustainable development, innovations in engineering, design and technology ventures will explore solutions to spread the culture of innovation in India.

Six top scientists and research scholars from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) will also share their insights into the work in digital transformation; network designs of the future and the innovation ecosystem at the conference.

The noted scientists, including two Indian Americans — Shiladitya Sengupta and Rahul Sarpeshkar — will speak on concepts and interplay between medical imaging, manufacturing inspection and video analytics, energy efficient systems in biology and the emerging nervous system of ubiquitous sensing.

The other four scientists are George Westerman of the MIT centre for digital business, Marie-Jose Montpetit of the MIT research lab of electronics, Brian Anthony of MIT’s engineering in manufacturing programme and Joseph Paradiso of the MIT media laboratory.

Sengupta works at the Harvard-MIT division of health sciences and technology and Sarpeshkar at the MIT department of electrical engineering and computer science.

Global head of General Electric (GE) research and development Mark M. Little will deliver a keynote address on emerging technologies in computing to communication, clean-tech and materials to biomedicine.

Eminent scientist Y.S. Rajan will share details of India’s technology mission and spin-offs from space and nuclear programmes with about 500 innovators at the event.

IANS

source: http://www.FirstPost.com / Technology / March 26th, 2012

 

The success story of an Achiever: A Soldier then, Now a KAS Officer

Inspiration/ Positive News and Features

Mysore:

When Anand came to our institution, I sent him to Mangalore for SSLC. He since became a Soldier, but I never imagined that he would achieve so much. At every stage, he used to take my suggestion regarding the subject and preparation and implemented my suggestions in total. I am proud of his achievements.

— M.N.Subramani, President, VCARE Ex-Servicemen Trust.

By Kiran Kumar

This is the story of an achiever who pursued his quest for knowledge in the toughest of conditions while serving as a soldier in the border area to achieve a distinguished career, emerging as a KAS officer from an ordinary Soldier. Thus, he set a classic example of how dedicated efforts contribute to achieving what a person desires.

This is the story of C.L. Anand (born on July 5, 1974), a native of Netkal village in Malavalli taluk of Mandya district, who continued his relentless quest for knowledge after joining the Indian Army as a Soldier after completing his SSLC examinations in the year 1994.

Having started his career in the Army as an assistant in an ambulance at Kargil, he worked for 15 years in various places like Meerut, Lucknow, Delhi and Tinsukia of Assam among other places.

All through his service, Anand continued to pursue his studies, braving all the challenges faced as a Soldier.

After completing PUC at Headquarters Education Centre in New Delhi, he secured a degree from Chatrapathi Shivaji Maharaj University, before acquiring a B.Ed degree from Army Education Centre in Madhya Pradesh. His urge for achievement forced him to undergo computer training at RAC Computers Pvt Ltd in Uttar Pradesh and take up a Post Graduate Diploma course in Hospital Management from Indian Institute of Modern Management, Pune.

After a 15 year stint in the Army as a Soldier from 1994 to 2008, Anand turned his eyes towards taking up competitive exams.

The first job he got after bidding adieu to Army was that of a Manager at Dr. P.R. Desai Hospital in Bangalore. From there he became a First Division Assistant (FDA) at Agricultural Produces Marketing Corporation (APMC). After completing another examination, Anand became a Panchayat Development Officer (PDO). But he continued his studies. He took up a Police entrance examination and became Sub-Inspector of Police at BEML Nagar in Kolar.

Even while serving in the Police Department, Anand appeared for Karnataka Administrative Service (KAS) examination for the 2010 batch in which he secured 29th rank and was selected as an Assistant Commissioner, for which he is undergoing training at the Administrative Training Institute in city.

His subsequent posting should serve as a classic example for the reward one can get for hard, sincere and dedicated work. His faith in himself and strong will-power that “I must achieve” has indeed paid off rich dividends, thus, making him “a real hero in letter and spirit.”

Model officer

Speaking to Star of Mysore recently, Anand said that only proper application of the acquired knowledge helps a man to succeed in life. The farmers of Karkala still remember his services as FDA at APMC. His services as PDO at Jottanahalli in Mandya district will serve as a model for PDOs who work under immense pressure.

Anand recalls how he had taken elected representatives into confidence and through them, had got 90 houses allotted to the physically challenged, widows and destitute, after a prolonged meeting. If not the elected representatives would have allotted these houses at their will.

He believes that all Gram Sabha meetings should be held transparently to ensure proper identification of deserving beneficiaries. He maintains that if PDOs apply their knowledge properly, there would be no need for them to commit suicide or quit jobs.

Anand can be contacted on Mob: 9141923428.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / Feature Articles / March 25th, 2012

 

VONTIKOPPAL PANCHANGA: Five Generations of expertise in Almanac

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

Caption: Siddanthi Tammaiah Shastry, Siddanthi T.V. Krishna Shastry, Siddanthi V. Ramakrishna Shastry, Siddanthi R. Kumar, Siddanthi K. Mohan

By M.S. Apuurva

Most of us will have memories of our childhood with our grandfathers reading from a book full of tables and text in small font, which we could never understand. The ease with which they would decipher the information in the book remained a mystery to us. The book — Panchanga — has been a part of Hindu household since ages and no ritual is held without referring to it.

During Ugadi (tomorrow), which marks the start of a new Hindu year, it is a tradition to read Panchanga (Panchanga Shravanam). The Panchanga reveals the forces that will rule various aspects of life in the coming year. This forecast deals with the transition and effect of constellations on the social life of people. It is a belief that those who read the Panchanga as well as those who listen will be rid of their sins and blessed with a long, prosperous and happy life.

Panchanga’s importance

Dharma plays a very vital role in Indian culture. Sages have allotted a specific time for every work (rituals) and this is defined in Dharma Shastra. Unlike in western traditions wherein for example, Dec. 25 every year is celebrated as Christmas, in Hindu customs, every festival has a fixed start time. Every ritual, be it naming or house-warming ceremony, must compulsorily be carried out within the designated span of time. This calculation of time is done using Panchanga. In simple words, the five attributes of Panchanga (Pancha-Anga) are: Vara – Time from one sunrise to the next sunrise; Tithi – It is the distance between the sun and moon; Nakshatra – It is the movement of the moon; Yoga – It involves the movement of both sun and moon; Karna – It is half of Tithi. The Pancha-nga has two systems — Chandramana and Souramana. The former is calculated based on the moon and the 12 months span from Chaitra to Phalguni, the latter is based on sun with the 12 months where sun travels from Mesha rashi to Kumbha.

Consisting of complex calculations mainly based on spherical trigonometry, Panchanga is propounded with the theories in Surya Siddantha. It is said that demon Maya meditated and Surya appeared before him to grant him a wish. Maya asked Surya to explain all the effects of the movement of Sun. Surya explained them through Sanskrit Shlokas. This was followed by Vakya, Aryabhatiya Siddantha and Dru Ganita (western). Vakya is followed by Tamilians and those who follow Souramana system; Aryabhatiya is used by Vaishnavas; Dru Ganita is mainly followed by people of South Kanara and Surya Siddantha by the remainder of Karnataka.

Vontikoppal Panchanga

One family from city has the pride of writing and printing Pan-changa continuously for the past 126 years. The Vontikoppal Panchanga, as it came to be known, was started by Siddanthi Tammaiah Shastry in 1887-88. Presently, the fifth generation of the family is carrying on the work.

Over the years, Vontikoppal Panchanga has been widely used across Karnataka and even abroad. When asked the reason for this popularity, Siddanthi R. Kumar says, “Ours is the only Panchanga in the world to print information in detail. We print according to all four categories — Surya Siddantha, Aryabhatiya Siddantha, Vakya and Dru Ganita — along with Chandramana and Souramana systems. Presently my son K. Manohar and I are its authors and my father is the verifier. Its printing has not stopped since it was first started by my great great grandfather.”

The Vontikoppal Panchanga has been accepted as the official Panchanga by the Government of Karnataka. The dates for all utsavs under Muzrai Department and govt. holidays are given by the family during June-July and the gazette notification is given during October.

Five generations of expertise

Siddanthi Tammaiah Shastry: This panchanga was started by him. He was born in 1862 at Agara of Yalandur and started learning astrology, literature, philosophy and dharma shastra from the age of eight years. He became the President of Sri Chamarajeshwara Sanskrit Pathashala, Chamarajanagar, in 1914. During 1887-88, he started writing the panchanga and printing it in Madras. In 1925, he was named as the Asthana Vidwan by Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar. In 1942, Jayachamaraja Wadiyar honoured him with the title Jyotishya Ratna and presented a golden bracelet. For 38 years he published the Panchanga before he passed away in 1944.

Siddanthi T.V. Krishna Shastry: Born in 1892, he learnt medicine, astrology, literature and Veda from his father. In 1932, Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar appointed him as the Head Master of Vontikoppal Middle School and requested him to compile Vakya Panchanga for the Palace. Since he resided in Vontikoppal, the Panchanga got its name. He passed away in 1946.

Siddanthi V. Ramakrishna Shastry: Born in 1918, he continued the publication for 80 years after the death of his father. He set up a press in city for printing the Panchanga. He was also the Hon. Member of American Astronomical Society. He retired after his son took over the responsibility.

Siddanthi R. Kumar: Born in 1950 at Kanuru, Hassan, he practiced law for a few years. He started learning from his father since the age of 14 years and lent a hand with the Panchanga since 1965. In 1980, he set up Bhagirathi Printers in memory of his mother. He started printing using offset method and recently shifted to web offset.

Siddanthi K. Mohan: Has been learning Sanskrit, astrology and panchanga calculation from his father since childhood and is presently helping his father with the preparation and printing.

When asked why no daughter of the family had continued the tradition, Kumar said, “It is not the question of son or daughter. Learning this knowledge should come in one’s horoscope. I have two brothers and four sisters but only I could continue this.”

American Panchanga

Vontikoppal Panchanga is the first in the world to bring out a Panchanga exclusively for America. “Many Mysoreans living in America would take this Panchanga. But this cannot be used to prepare horoscope there. Hence I started preparing one according to America latitude and longitude in 2001. Since America has 10 zones along with daylight saving, I have prepared this for New York City and have given conversions for other places,” says Kumar.

Publications: Apart from Panchanga, they also print pocket calendars, wall calendars, Ready Reckoner and Muhurtha Manjari. The Ready Reckoner Nitya Kundali Mattu Grahasputa is for professionals who write horoscope, etc. Muhurtha Manjari is an advanced Panchanga. It helps in fixing dates one year in advance. The work usually begins during June-July. Their press is presently located in Hebbal Industrial Area. The printing and sales is completed one month prior to Ugadi. “We need 6 to 7 months to prepare the Panchanga. We don’t use any software or computer and rely only on hand calculation,” says Kumar.

Panchanga can never be repeated

“Some allege that the same Panchanga published some 100 years back is repeated. But this is impossible because the position, speed and distance of stars will keep vary hence changing our calculations. We can never use the same Panchanga and write for another year,” says Kumar.

“If you want to check its accuracy, then the position of the moon or the occurrence of eclipse can be tallied with that mentioned in the Panchanga,” he adds.

Today, Vontikoppal Panchanga has become a household name in Mysore and across the State. Let us hope that the tradition is carried forward by the family for generations to come. [Kumar and Manohar can be contacted on e-mail: manohar13@gmail.com]

SOM was printed here

Remembering the time when Star of Mysore office was in Saraswathipuram, Kumar says, “On two or three occasions, when there was power failure at SOM office just before the paper was printed, it was brought to us for printing. Both had the same Mercedes printing press and it was a time when SOM sister publication Mysooru Mithra was yet to be started.”

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / Feature Articles / by M. S. Appurva / March 22nd, 2012

Visually challenged but mind of a Computer !

Inspiration/ Positive News and Features

Mysore, Mar. 22

“Distress and dejection in life are man-made and not god-sent, which can be countered by sheer determination and hard work,” opined Siddu S. Lavate, a visually handicapped youth.


He was addressing press persons at Pathrakarthara Bhavan here this morning after releasing an audio and video CD on personality development, techniques to counter depression and confidence-building tips.

The 27-year-old Lavate, hailing from Kakkamali village of Athani taluk in Belgaum district, is now a student of pre-final LLB course at M.S. Ramaiah Law College in Bangalore and is also preparing for IAS examination.

Revealing the trials and tribulations in his life, Lavate said: “I was visually challenged by birth and was neglected by my parents. I studied upto 10th standard in a Kannada school thanks to the courtesy of some relatives and well-wishers. When I came to Bangalore to continue my education, I was cornered due to my lack of English knowledge. I took it as a challenge and learnt English in 15 days. I am a living testimony of raising from rubbles not excluding the onslaught of depression, a sure pointer to youngsters of similar situation today.”

Lavate is learnt to be a living computer, adept in astrology and numerology. He is said to remember about 46,000 cell-phone numbers and multiply or divide numbers extending to 8 digits or more.

The reporters present at the press meet were stunned when they asked Lavate to multiply a 5-digit number by another and got the answer in a jiffy. Lavate is available on his Mobile 99800-68440.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / General News / March 22nd, 2012

 

Presentation of Science Awards on Mar. 28th

Records, All, Science & Technology

Mysore, Mar. 24

The Prof. Y.T. Thathachari Science Award function will be held on Mar. 28 at 5.30 pm at Dr. Shivarathri Rajendra Auditorium, JSS Medical College, Shivarathrishwara Nagar here.

Suttur Seer Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Swamiji will light the lamp and deliver the benediction. Prof. K. Vijayaraghavan, Director of National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore, will preside.

Prof. K.S. Rangappa, Vice-Chancellor, Karnataka State Open University, Mysore will be the chief guest. Dr. B. Suresh, Vice-Chancellor, JSS University and Dr. H. Basavana Gowdappa, Principal, JSS Medical College, will be the guests of honour.

Prof. Tej Pal Singh, Distinguished Biotechnology Research Professor, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi will receive Bhramara’s Lifetime Achievement Award while Dr. Debashis Mitra, National Centre for Cell Science, Pune, will receive the Prof. Y.T. Thathachari Prestigious Research Award.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / General News / March 24th, 2012