CHD Group, a public health organisation based in Mangaluru, has won the ASSOCHAM NGO Award 2020 for its work carried out as part of COVID-19 emergency relief activities.
CHD Group won the award under the category of “Excellence in demonstrating speed in decision making and supporting time critical needs of the community”, said a statement from the group.
It worked remotely during the lockdown in Karnataka, Odisha, Chhatisgarh and Telangana to provide relief and rehabilitation to distressed people and support farmers as well as farm workers during harvest season.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Mangaluru – October 15th, 2020
Garden City, tech hub, pub city… And now most preferred city for business headquarters for young wealth creators.
Nikhil Kamath, co-founder and CIO, Zerodha and True Beacon
Bengaluru :
The recently-released IIFL Wealth Hurun India 40 & Under Self-Made Rich List 2020 has a ranking of the self-made Indian-origin entrepreneurs with a wealth of Rs 1,000 crore, aged 40 years and under. Bengaluru figures as the city with the highest number of persons on the list. As many as nine entrepreneurs from the list of 17 are city-based, with Nithin Kamath and Nikhil Kamath from Zerodha, ranking first with a wealth of Rs 24,000 crore.
Sharing his thoughts on the findings, Anas Rahman Junaid, MD and chief researcher, Hurun India, said some of the names on the list have fully or partly exited their core businesses and are setting up investment funds and backing other young entrepreneurs. “This will have a compounding effect on the growth of disruptive entrepreneurship in India,” he said in a statement.
The 17 Indian-origin entrepreneurs have together added wealth close to Rs 45,000 crore. The list also includes Media.net’s Divyank Turakhia in second place, Bengaluru-based Udaan’s Amod Malviya and Sujeet Kumar in third position, Flipkart’s Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal in seventh rank and Zomato Media’s Deepinder Goyal in the 13th position.
The only woman on the list is 39-year-old Devita Saraf, who ranks 16th with a wealth of Rs 1,200 crore. Saraf derives her wealth from Vu Technologies, a television manufacturing company, which she founded in 2006.
Richie Rich in Namma Ooru
Nithin Kamath and Nikhil Kamath (rank 1; Rs 24,000 cr)Co-founders of online trading platform Zerodha, which grew to become India’s largest stockbroker by the number of clients.
Amod Malviya and Sujeet Kumar (rank 3; Rs 13,100 cr) Co-founders of B2B commerce company Udaan.
Riju Ravindran (rank 6; Rs 7,800 cr) Brother of Byju Raveendran, who co-founded Byju’s in 2011 with his wife Divya Gokulnath. All three have stakes in the online edtech company.
Binny Bansal and Sachin Bansal (rank 7; Rs 7,500 cr) Co-founders of Flipkart. Since their exit from Flipkart, Binny Bansal has been investing in several start-ups as an angel investor and Sachin Bansal has co-founded and is the CEO of Navi, a neo-bank start-up headquartered in Bengaluru.
Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati (rank 10; Rs 3,500 cr and rank 14; Rs 1,600 cr) Co-founders of Ola. In July 2020, Ola incentivised Aggarwal and Bhati by way of issuing equity shares at a nominal price of Rs 10 per share – resulting in a 13% increase in their wealth compared to last year.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Express News Service / October 14th, 2020
Some of the best-remembered Kannada film songs of the 60s, 70s, and 80s were composed by Rajan (left) and his brother Nagendra.
The score of Rajan-Nagendra in the film music world is noteworthy; the brothers gave hits after hits for close to three decades
Acclaimed music composer Rajan, of Rajan-Nagendra fame, passed away at his residence in Bengaluru on Sunday night. Some of the best-remembered Kannada film songs of the 60s, 70s, and 80s were composed by the brothers.
“My father was healthy and took music classes online even the day before his death,” said the 85-year-old composer’s son R. Ananth Kumar. Rajan’s brother Nagendra had passed away in 2000, ending possibly one of the longest music collaborations in the film industry.
How it began
Hailing from Mysuru, the brothers were surrounded by music, as their father Rajappa worked as a musician for silent era films. The duo went to Chennai (then Madras), to learn music. While Rajan trained as a violinist, Nagendra learnt the harmonium. They were barely out of their teens when they debuted as music directors for the film Soubhagya Lakshmi in 1952.
“The then reigning singer Ghantasala reportedly refused to sing as the music was composed by children. But he eventually sang the songs and was all praise for the brothers after he listened to the compositions,” recalled senior film journalist N.S. Sridhar Murthy. The duo never looked back and went on to score music for 380 films – 212 Kannada, 45 Telugu, and the rest in Tamil, Malayalam, Tulu, and one Sinhala film.
70s and 80s
Rajan-Nagendra peaked in their popularity during the 1970s and 1980s. They composed music for most of Dr. Rajkumar, Vishnuvardhan, Anant Nag’s films and those of other stars of that era, including Eradu Kanasu, Bayalu Daari, Gandhada Gudi, Sri Srinivasa Kalyana, Avala Hejje, and Gaali Maatu. Endendu Ninnanu Maretu, Aakashave Beelali Mele, Hosa Baalige Nee Jotheyade, Mamaravello…Kogileyallo, Naliva Gulabi Hoove, are some of the superhits of Rajan-Nagendra. They are also credited with bringing Kishore Kumar to sing a Kannada song Adu adu aata Adu for Kulla Agent 000, produced by Dwarakish. They were particularly known for their duets, many rendered by S.P. Balasubrahmanyam and S. Janaki.
S.K. Bhagavan, veteran filmmaker, said that works of Rajan-Nagendra were marked by melody and elaborate string sections. He recalled how they divided tasks between each other and worked together excellently. “They quarrelled over tunes and background scores, but never allowed it to affect their relationship,” Mr. Bhagavan said.
“They used to ask for the film’s story, discuss song situations and compose music with the larger picture in mind. They used to give three tunes for every situation. Rarely did we have to ask for another,” he recalled.
‘Man of few words’
Mr. Bhagavan remembers Rajan as a man of few words with an almost inaudible voice. Rajan was very particular about the tune, and would not allow lyricists to write out of tune and he never changed his tune,” Mr. Bhagavan recalled. Known for their lilting duets, they were adamant that only S.P. Balasubrahmanyam and S. Janaki sing them, he said.
The brothers had slowly started retreating from the field as Hamsalekha and other new-age music composers entered the scene in the 90s. Nagendra’s death in 2000 ended their run decisively. In later years, Rajan composed music for devotional songs with his son R. Ananth Kumar, as Rajan-Ananth.
Music school
Rajan started a music school Sapta Swaranjali in the city and continued to teach till the last few days of his life.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Aditya Bharadwaj / Bengaluru – October 13th, 2020
Footballer Carlton Chapman | Photo Credit: K. Murali Kumar
A creative midfielder, Chapman played for India between 1995 and 2001 and the country won the 1997 SAFF Cup under his captaincy.
Former India football captain Carlton Chapman, who had formed a deadly trio in club football with Bhaichung Bhutia and IM Vijayan in the 1990s, died on Monday following a heart attack in Bengaluru. He was 49.
Chapman was hospitalised on Sunday night at a hospital in Bengaluru and passed away early this morning.
“I got a call from Bengaluru from one of his friends that Chapman is no more. He passed away early this morning. He was a happy-go-lucky man, always smiling and ready to help others,” Chapman’s one-time India team-mate Bruno Coutinho told PTI from Goa.
A creative midfielder, Chapman played for India between 1995 and 2001 and the country won the 1997 SAFF Cup under his captaincy. At the club level, he had two successful spells with East Bengal and one with now-defunct JCT Mills.
A product of the Tata Football Academy in early 1990s, Chapman joined East Bengal in 1993 and scored a hat-trick in his team’s 6-2 win against Iraq club Al Zawra in a first round match at the Asian Cup Winners Cup that year.
But his best came after moving to JCT in 1995. Chapman won 14 trophies with the Punjab-based club, including the inaugural National Football League in 1996-97, and formed a formidable combination with Vijayan and Bhutia.
Chapman later joined now-defunct FC Kochin. But after one season, he returned to East Bengal in 1998 and the club won the NFL under his captaincy in 2001. He announced his retirement from professional football in 2001.
As coach, Chapman had stints with I-League 2nd Division club Tata Football Academy, Royal Wahingdoh FC of Shillong and Sudeva Moonlight FC of Delhi before becoming the Technical Director of the Kozhikode-based Quartz International Football Academy in 2017.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sport>Football / by PTI / New Delhi – October 12th, 2020
Railway activists celebrate green-lighting of project after campaigning for five years
Bengaluru :
The excitement of the Chuku Buku brigade was palpable, as members tweeted their joy and shared their hopes on WhatsApp groups. Ever since news broke that the Suburban Rail project had been cleared, railway activists who played a crucial role in the campaign, have been celebrating.
Sanjeev Dyammanavar, urban transportation expert and founder of Praja.in, told TNIE, “It is a long-pending project. The dream of all Bengalureans has become a reality today. It was pursed by various departments and K-RIDE showed its keenness in executing it by beginning preliminary work in this connection.”
The ‘Chuku Buku Beku’ campaign, which began in Bengaluru in 2015, an initiative on social media and offline, fetched a great deal of publicity for the project nationwide. Srinivas Alavilli, who coordinated the campaign involving citizens and NGOs, said, “I am cautiously optimistic.
After it was announced in the Union Budget a year ago, it has taken so long for the cabinet nod. We are keen on seeing the actual running of trains and physical infrastructure like stations. Priority needs to be given to Whitefield and Outer Ring Road where traffic congestion is the maximum.”
Rajkumar Dugar, convener, Citizens for Citizens, said, “I am extremely delighted. But I wish an official announcement too had been made. On highest priority is the KSR-Devanahalli line as connectivity to the airport is very important.” Zibi Jamal of Whitefield Rising said, “It has been a long, hard campaign with so many people contributing, including Praja and Citizens for Bengaluru. Politicians across parties supported us.”
Proposed fare structure
Minimum: Rs 13 (for less than 3 km) to a maximum of Rs 100 at 2025 price levels. Price level to be escalated by 10% every two years.
Airport connectivity
Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna-Yesvantpur-Yelahanka-Devanahalli-Kempe Gowda International Airport: 41.4 km
Land required 15.96 acres.
Cost Rs 251.9 cr
Length: 5.5 km
Train operation plan Six-car trains 19 hours a day operation from 5 am till midnight with 30-second stop at each station
Average speed 33 kmph with a maximum speed of 90 kmph
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Express News Service / October 08th, 2020
An octogenarian couple’s efforts to conduct online classes for poor students has caught the government’s attention. The education minister has promised to help the couple by bringing volunteers and mobilising technical infrastructure for the poor students.
Retired civil servant Badrinath Vitthal, 83, his wife Indira Vitthal, 78, a voluntary teacher, started teaching the two children of their maid at the start of the lockdown. The number of students rose to eight, and the couple switched to online teaching.
“Teaching was a passion I picked up from my wife,” Badrinath, an MTech graduate from IIT Bombay, told DH. “As a hydraulic engineer, I worked for the construction of big dams and I realised that building the academic foundation of children during Covid-19 was very important,” he said.
The couple’s confidence grew after Yashaswini P N, the maid’s daughter, registered progress in her studies. “We saw her test results improving gradually and decided to bring other children on board,” Indira said.
After Prajavani, the sister publication of DH, reported on their work on Wednesday, more than 400 students or their parents called from rural areas of the nearby Doddaballapur to Gangavathi in Koppal district, expressing interest in joining their online classes.
“We are worried about those who have neither the smartphones or laptops. Students should not be deprived of education because they can’t afford gadgets. We hope corporate companies and donors will come forward to help children in rural areas,” Badrinath said.
Minister for Primary and Secondary Education S Suresh Kumar, who spoke to the couple, told this newspaper that he had already initiated a discussion with the information technology department for providing internet connectivity in rural areas. “Many people buy gadgets every six months. Together with some friends, I am trying to start a movement to convince people to donate their old smartphones. We need reliable internet in rural areas and I have spoken to the IT department in this regard,” he said.
Kumar said he would visit the Vitthals within a week to understand their requirements, including volunteers, to expand the programme.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> City> Life in Bengaluru / by Chiranjeevi Kulkarni / DHNS, Bengaluru / October 02nd, 2020
Prashanth Achar and his brother Prakash met KSRTC MD Shivyogi C. Kalsad on Monday to present the models. | Photo Credit: Sudhakara Jain
KSRTC places order for models, which will be displayed or gifted as mementos
Instead of sitting idle during the lockdown, artist Prashanth Achar, 30, from Kundapur taluk in Udupi district, started building models of Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) buses. First, he built a model of an ‘Airavat’ bus.
Elated by the response from his friends and relatives, he built other models of buses, such as ‘Karnataka Sarige’. His effort has been recognised by the transport corporation.
After meeting him on Monday, KSRTC MD Shivyogi C. Kalsad has placed an order for 10 models of various brands of buses operated by the Corporation.
But that is not all. During his meeting with KSRTC officials, Mr. Achar sought help to improve the infrastructure of the government school in his village Bagwadi.
“There was one more reason for visiting Bengaluru, and that was to seek help to improve the infrastructure of the government school in my village where 85 students are enrolled. I am planning to meet the Transport Minister who is also the Deputy Chief Minister. Improving infrastructure at Bagwadi school will help children from rural areas.”
Mr. Kalsad decided to provide an old bus of the KSRTC that can be converted into a classroom for the benefit of school children.
“I am very happy with the MD’s offer of a bus. He has asked us to come up with innovative ideas to make use of the bus,” Mr. Achar said.
“During the lockdown, I had a lot of free time. I was always fascinated by KSRTC buses. I thought why I should not use the free time to build models of these buses. First, I made a model of an ‘Airavat’ bus and posted photos of the bus on social media. The work received very good response from the general public. Even higher ups in the KSRTC took note and contacted me,” he added.
He uses foam sheets to build the models and takes eight days to build a model.
An official of the KSRTC said, “The models of buses designed by Mr. Achar are really good. They are lightweight and easy to carry. We have placed orders for 10 models. We will display them. We are also planning to present them as gifts to dignitaries visiting our office.”
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Bengaluru – October 06th, 2020
The pandemic has not been easy for anyone, more so for the economically and socially disadvantaged. While there have been several instances of an outpouring of help, now, you can do your bit too. Soon, when you walk into a few restaurants in the city, after you order your meal, you can also buy a token which will be used to provide a meal for people who may not be able to afford it.
This is an initiative of Bruhat Bangalore Hotels Association and will begin on a pilot basis in around 30 restaurants in the city from October 2. The initiative is called Sanchigondu — one for the bag. The tag line of the project is ‘gift a meal, bring a smile’.
P.C. Rao, president of the association, said each hotel would fix a price of the token. “The customer can pay either for a meal or a beverage. We have told hotel owners to cap the token to a maximum of ₹100,” he said. He said they would conduct a sensitisation workshop for all the restaurant owners. “We want these tokens to help daily wage labourers, poor students, differently abled persons, and those who are unemployed,” he said.
Veerendra Kamat, treasurer of the association, said they started this project as they wanted people who were unable to afford food to get access to quality food. “During the pandemic, many people do not have a steady source of income and our effort is to help such people,” he said. He said once they finish the pilot project and understand the challenges, they would think of scaling this to other hotels in the city.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Staff Reporter / Bengaluru – September 27th, 2020
He explained that the October 3 notification mentioned that the number of wards can be increased to anywhere between 225 and 250.
Bengaluru :
Three days after the government issued a gazette notification on the amendments to the Karnataka Municipalities Act, setting the stage for delimitation of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahangara Palike (BBMP) wards, it has been decided that the civic body will now have 243 wards based on the population, against the present 198.
The chairman of the joint legislature committee on restructuring of BBMP, MLA S Raghu, told The New Indian Express that the decision was taken at a meeting with the Chief Secretary, Urban Development Department Additional Chief Secretary and the BBMP Commissioner on Tuesday.
He explained that the October 3 notification mentioned that the number of wards can be increased to anywhere between 225 and 250. “With the population size of each ward at 35,000, we arrived at the number 241. But, since the size of families can vary, it was decided that there will be 243 wards,” he said.
Separate Act for Bengaluru in the works
The government will issue final orders soon and the first meeting on the delimitation exercise will be held immediately after, he said. “It will be held mostly by Friday, and after this, the delimitation will be done by the BBMP on the basis of the population. The older order of ward reservation will also cease to exist and a revised list will be announced,” Raghu added.
Amendments to the KMC Act, to create a separate Bengaluru Municipal Act, is also under progress, he explained. The committee members are keen on completing the delimitation exercise and preparation of voters’ list by November 30, the time set by the High Court and the Election Commission, he pointed out.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Bosky Khanna / Express News Service / October 07th, 2020
There’s a lot Anita Mithra is excited about these days. The 56-year-old city-based theatre practitioner, along with eight other actors from Theatre for Change, will be representing the country in the Kenyan International Theatre Festival. Festival director Kevin Kimani Kahuro, who invited the citybased theatre group last year as well, says, “They have an amazing way of telling their stories. And even though they share the stories of individuals, they share their culture along with it as well. And that’s what this festival is about – besides being a platform for Kenyan theatre artistes to showcase their work, it’s also a place where international acts and cultures can come together.”
For the fifth edition, the virtual festival will be held over a period of five days, beginning on Nov. 10. It will see representation from five continents, with participation from countries like the USA, Colombia, India, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Ghana, Egypt and Uganda. Like last year, this year too, Theatre for Change will perform a play that has been inspired by the African American playwright Ntozake Shange’s choreopoems.
“But we have adapted it to an Indian context and the performance consists of a set of multilingual monologues narrated by women across age,” explains Sujatha Balakrishnan, founder, Theatre for Change. These monologues deal with various issues like body shaming, child sexual abuse and challenges faced in relationships. “We were inspired by Shange because these are shared experiences faced by women across the world,” adds Balakrishnan, who is also considering collaborating with some theatre students of Kenyatta University in Nairobi for the performance.
Mithra, whose monologue is on reinvention and the curveballs life throws at one, is hoping her piece will touch some minds and hearts. “My piece is a narration on a singular event in my life that was challenging and yet life affirming. I am hoping it provides resonance with women my age and food for thought for the younger ones,” she says.
Besides Mithra, other actors who are participating from the group include: Parvati Ramchandran, Mimansa Ojha, Vandana Dugar, Vasanti Sundaram, Pooja Pandey Tripathi, Urvashi Goverdhan and Shatarupa Bhattacharyya. Besides the pre-recorded performance, there will also be a live Q&A session. This, Balakrishnan hopes, will spark a conversation around women’s issues that are both culturally specific as well as shared by women in India, Kenya and other African countries.
Though performed primarily in English, they will have some segments in regional Indian languages, which will also be conveyed through subtitles to the international audience. Adds Balakrishnan, “These are compelling personal stories shared with conviction, pride and honesty. They reinforce the importance of every story having a soul that needs to be told, heard and counted. Stories told from a specific perspective are dangerous as they become the dominant narrative.” For details about the festival, visit kitfest.co.ke
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Simran Ahuja / Express News Service / October 06th, 2020
