From daily wage earner to head radiographer

Amazing Feats, Business & Economy, Records, All, Science & Technology

If you meet the general manager of the radiology department at Columbia Asia Hospital, it’s hard to imagine that Anto Ramesh Selvi D started out as a daily wage labourer.

Anto Ramesh Selvi D completed the radiography course in 1994
Anto Ramesh Selvi D completed the radiography course in 1994

Bengaluru  :

If you meet the general manager of the radiology department at Columbia Asia Hospital, it’s hard to imagine that Anto Ramesh Selvi D started out as a daily wage labourer. Hailing from Ranipet, Tamil Nadu, he lost his father to a heart attack when he was 10 years old. “My mother was a nursing assistant at a hospital. She raised my younger sister and me with great difficulty. I wasn’t a great student. I dropped out of my college when I was in the third year of my BSc,” recalls the 50-year-old.

He couldn’t find a clerical job due to his low academic score and started working as a daily wage worker at an electronics repair shops and at construction sites. This went on from  1989 to  1992. Later, with help from his uncle, he came to Bengaluru with his friend to write an examination at the CSI Hospital, for an admission in a radiography course.

He says, “I didn’t get through. Since it was a mission hospital, my uncle requested people to give me the job since my mother was the sole earner in the family.” His uncle’s request bore fruit and Selvi joined the 1992 batch. This period was full of doubts as he wasn’t sure if he could survive staying in a hostel and manage expenses. Luck, however, was on his side and he passed out as ‘the best outgoing student’.

Despite completing the course in  1994, he wasn’t able to find a job. He took up a part-time job at Jain Hospital for a salary of `300 a month. During his time there, he continued to apply for different jobs until he finally got the job of a technician at Jindal Charitable Hospital. He worked there with an earning of `1,000 a month, before he resigned to pursue further studies in CT/MRI, through a six-month course in Salem. “When I completed the course, Jindal Hospital called me back and increased my salary to `3,500. They had also provided a 2BHK flat in their quarters,” he says.

In  2000, Selvi married his childhood friend and moved to Bengaluru. During this time, he applied for a position at Columbia Asia Hospital. This was in 2005 but all the vacancies were filled. Selvi was told to try again the next year. The following year, he eventually got selected, and now earned a salary of `12,000 a month.

While he was confident about his technical knowledge, Selvi faltered in his computer and communication skills. Over time, he widened his computer, management and also communication skills. “The hospital helped a lot too. They would go through my draft e-mails before I sent them,” he says. Interestingly enough, though Selvi struggled with academics in school, he now holds degrees in BSc (Physics), DTT, MRIT and MBA.

He also ran a hospital in Doddaballapura, Bengaluru rural, from 2011 to 2013 where he was in charge of all aspects of operations and management. However, Columbia Asia asked Selvi to return as the general manager of the radiology department. It has now been five years since he took over as the general manager of the department for all branches of the hospital in India. “My biggest takeaways are to keep trying and the importance of giving people a chance,” he says.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Akhila Damodaran / Express News Service / January 07th, 2019

‘Tailor on Wheels’ weaves through traffic to make a living

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy

The man who knew nothing but tailoring was clueless about how to make a living.

Sridhar Jayaram’s mobile tailoring facility now serves up to 400 commuters, helping him earn `1,000 a day  Pushkar V
Sridhar Jayaram’s mobile tailoring facility now serves up to 400 commuters, helping him earn `1,000 a day  Pushkar V

Bengaluru  :

While many would shut shop when all the money poured into running a business fails, this 46-year-old determined tailor in namma ooru refused to give up and found a unique way to continue his business. He mounted his 30-year-old tailoring machine onto a two-wheeler and started his ‘tailor on wheel’ services.

Sridhar Jayaram, the ‘mobile tailor’, is a resident of Kammanahalli and has customers ranging from senior corporator Padmnabhareddy of Kachakarahalli to actor Manju Bharghavi and hundreds of IT professionals. “I set up a tailoring unit in Kammanahalli area in 1993. I did well till 2003, but then I found that customers would give their dresses for stitching but never come back to collect it. I faced severe losses and had to shut shop 15 years before,” he said.

The man who knew nothing but tailoring was clueless about how to make a living. His elder brother, Srinivas, who is a driver now, told him that he should “go mobile.” Jayaram then purchased a tricycle and set up all the tailoring equipment on it. He would pedal through the roads in East Bengaluru seeking customers. “Slowly, my business grew. I started gaining customers’ confidence,” he explained.

However, Jayaram realised that it was not enough to make ends meet, and also sensed that ‘mobile tailoring’ had a market which could be tapped. He then decided to buy a two-wheeler and with the help of some of his friends who worked in welding shops, mounted the machine onto a moped. Now, with a workstation on his moped and two mobile handsets, a big display board with his number Jayaram treads the entire city.

“My customer list now has gone upto 400. I commute all the way to Marathahalli and I have customers in Yamalur too,” Jayaram said.Richmond Circle, Hebbal, Shivajinagar, Davis Road, Coxtown, Hutchins Road, Cox Town, HRBR Layout, Koramangala are his favourite areas as he has regular customers there. He gets minimum of 15 to 20 calls every day from some of his regular customers, however, he is able to attend to only five of them. He earns about `1,000 per day.

The tailor is also much in demand by a famous set up, ‘Repair Cafe’, works with them every alternate month. He wants to set up a small tailoring unit for his son but doesn’t want to give up the ‘tailoring on wheels’ service. “I need about `35,000 to set up the same on to a new vehicle. Although I have seen the vehicle and planned the set up, I need money to make the switch. I am hoping that I manage to get some money from anyone who could help,” said Sridhar, who has two girls studying in high school and a son who works as an office boy in a company.

services at a glance

● Charges `60 to alter jeans, trousers, etc
● Full length alteration is `120
● His visiting card says:
ALTERATION TAILOR @ DOOR 2DOOR SERVICE 9980228270
● He does stitch new clothes, takes one week to deliver the outfit
● Alteration time taken is 30  minutes to one hour
● Doesn’t stop his business even during rains, has a sheet ready to set up a tent-like structure

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Chetana Belagere / Express News Service / January 07th, 2019

Cabs for women, by women at KIA

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Records, All
The new cabs, with women drivers in pink uniforms, are aimed at strengthening the safety of women passengers.
The new cabs, with women drivers in pink uniforms, are aimed at strengthening the safety of women passengers.

Women stepping out of Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) can now rely on cabs meant exclusively for them.

Launched here on Monday by Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC) and Bangalore International Airport Ltd. (BIAL), the new cabs — with women drivers in pink uniforms — are aimed at strengthening the safety and security of women passengers.

A release said the drivers will be fluent in multiple languages, well-versed with local areas, and trained in self-defence. The cabs will be equipped with safety features such as GPRS tracking and an SOS switch.

The initiative has been launched on an experimental basis, the release said.

“This concept has been implemented with the objective of providing a safe and secure mode of transport for women travellers from the airport, while simultaneously creating opportunities for women drivers to be self-employed and empowered,” said Kumar Pushkar, managing director, KSTDC.

Hari Marar, managing director and CEO, BIAL, said: “At the airport, safety and security of women passengers is of prime concern. This is another step in our endeavour towards ensuring 100% safety.”

The service will be operational round the clock and has been priced at ₹21.50/km during the day (6 a.m. to 11.59 p.m.) and ₹23.50/km at night (midnight to 6 a.m.).

Fog causes delay

Meanwhile, fog continued to wreak havoc on flight schedules at the KIA, with departure delays for 41 flights and arrival delay for one flight. One Indigo flight from New Delhi was diverted to Hyderabad.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Staff Reporter / Bengaluru – January 08th, 2019

CAD initiative donates 100 ECG machines in remote areas

Records, All, Science & Technology
An ECG machine being handed over to a remote Primary Health Centre in Kodagu district.
An ECG machine being handed over to a remote Primary Health Centre in Kodagu district.

The PHCs in Guthigar, Bellare and Aranthodu in Sullia taluk can now boast of well-equipped ECG machines thanks to the efforts of like-minded doctors led by Dr Padmanabh Kamath, HoD of Cardiology and professor at KMC, Mangaluru.

Dr Kamath, who started CAD (Cardiology at doorsteps), a crusade against coronary artery disease initiative— a WhatsApp network of over 450 like-minded doctors across eight doctors in Coastal Karnataka and Malnad region, is engaged in screening poor patients for cardiac problems in remote areas for free. The group was set up in February 2018 and has installed 100 ECG machines in the PHCs of interior villages with the help of donors. “When a patient visits with a symptom of a heart attack, an ECG is immediately carried out and the results are shared on WhatsApp. If it’s a heart attack, then the patient is referred to the nearest hospital for treatment,” Kamath told DH.

He said, “We want to instal 250 ECG machines by 2020 and cover three more districts including Hassan and Kasargod. The PHCs in Humcha, Koppa, Muniyala, Shikaripura, Sajipanadu will get ECG machines next week. In fact, one of the pilgrims who suffered a cardiac arrest, supported the CAD initiative to instal ECG machine at Humcha,” Kamath added.

ECG machines are already installed at PHCs in Gonikoppa, Suntikoppa and Siddapura in Kodagu. The CAD initiative wanted to instal it in 15 places in Kodagu. Owing to natural calamities that wreaked havoc in Kodagu district, the initiative saw a setback, he said.

So far, cardiac diagnosis was achieved in more than 1,000 patients and 985 cases of ischaemic heart disease and 345 of unstable angina have been detected. About 124 heart attack patients were picked up and 95 angioplasties have been conducted, said Dr Kamath.

Dr Kamath said 71-year-old Leelavathi, a resident of Sullia and a heart patient, responded to Kamath’s mission of installing ECG machines and donated money from her pension to instal the ECG machine at Guthigaru. Sri Veera Venkatesh Charitable Trust has paid for five ECGs to be installed in village PHCs recently.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> States> Mangaluru / by Naina J A / DH News Service / Mangaluru / June 05th, 2018

Karnataka’s Bapuji Vidyaniketan School charges Rs 7 per day as fee

Amazing Feats, Education

The school has 140 children, most of them coming from poor economical background.

Students attend a PT class in Bapuji Vidyaniketan school.
Students attend a PT class in Bapuji Vidyaniketan school.

Hubballi :

This school in Hubballi charges Rs 7 per day for  LKG and UKG students. The school does not take donation and is run by a retired art teacher. Bapuji Vidyaniketan School in Anand Nagar is successfully running in its third year and the school collects Rs 5 per day for pre-nursery students and Rs 7 per day for LKG and UKG students.

The school has 140 children, most of them coming from poor economical background. The school has all the basic facilities including toilets, play area and CCTVs.

This is the dreamchild of Wallimahammad Dharwad, a retired art teacher from Hubballi who decided to establish a school that does not take donation and whose fee structure is affordable.

“There are nine teachers in the school and the fee collected is used to pay salaries to the teachers. We teach both Kannada and English. The school also gets donations from the local businessmen in Hubballi and Dharwad and many young teachers who come here to teach students for free,” he said.

“When I was studying, my family had difficult times. I wanted to leave studies due to financial issues. Hence, I decided to do something for society and came up with the fee structure. For instance, when I say for UKG the parents have to pay Rs 210 per month, they are exhilarated and ensure that their wards do not leave school,” he said.

He said, “I have seen many families stopping their children from going to school due to high fees. We take Rs 500 at the time of admission and the money is used for the children stationery and other purposes. We also provide free uniform.”

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Kiran Balannanavar / Express News Service / January 03rd, 2019

Deepika Padukone is now a dosa and a parantha thali!

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All, World Opinion

Deepika posted a photo of the menu at an eatery in Texas which sells dosas named after her and captioned it ‘hungry anyone?’

Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone (File | PTI)
Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone (File | PTI)

Newly-weds Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh briefly interrupted their honeymoon to enjoy a laugh about a Texan restaurant that sells dosas named after the actress.

A fan shared a picture of the menu of Dosa Labs, an eatery from Texas. Deepika later posted a photo of the menu, which says the dosa is “topped with fiery hot ghost chilli and stuffed with our potato mix.” She captioned the post “hungry anyone?”

DeepikaMenuBF02jan2019

Ranveer posted it too, saying “I’d eat that!”

Another fan tweeted out to the actress, saying that there is a parantha thali named after her in a restaurant in Pune.

Deepika Padukone

✔@deepikapadukone

💪🏽🤣🤣🤣

Rohit Bhasy@RohitBhasy
Replying to @deepikapadukone

@deepikapadukone you are also a Parantha Thali in Pune

 

DeepikaMenu02BF02jan2019

It is not known when the lovebirds will return from their honeymoon, but Deepika would soon start work with Meghna Gulzar’s ‘Chapak’, where she will play the role of acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Entertainment> Hindi / by Online Desk / January 02nd, 2019

Iceberg lettuce in drylands of Kalaburagi?

Agriculture, Green Initiatives / Environment
Raju Teggalli (extreme left), head of Kalaburagi’s Krishi Vigyan Kendra, along with scientists and students inside the shade-net where exotic vegetables are being grown .
Raju Teggalli (extreme left), head of Kalaburagi’s Krishi Vigyan Kendra, along with scientists and students inside the shade-net where exotic vegetables are being grown .

Scientists are experimenting to see if foreign crops can thrive in this environment

If agricultural scientists in Kalaburagi succeed in an experiment they are carrying out, farmers of this dry northern district could soon be growing exotic vegetables such as iceberg lettuce and broccoli in their farms.

To help farmers of the backward district get better income, scientists of Kalaburagi’s Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) are experimenting if high-income yielding foreign crop varities can thrive in this environment. In the first phase, they have imported five exotic vegetable seeds — iceberg lettuce, straight lettuce, cherokee lettuce, broccoli and red cabbage — from the Netherlands and planted them on the campus.

“These vegetable seeds can be produced only in cold environments, in areas with less than 20 degrees Celsius temperature. But, they can be grown in Indian conditions during winter. We have planted half of these seeds inside the shade-net and remaining outside. We are giving organic fertilizer and water to both. If there is not much difference between those grown inside and outside, we will recommend the farmers to grow them outside the net so that the shade-net costs too can be saved,” Vasudev Naik, a horticulture scientist, told The Hindu.

The scientists have formed a couple of teams for a survey to assess the marketing potential of the new vegetables.

“Domestically grown cabbages and cauliflowers are sold at around ₹25 a kg or less as compared to ₹80 a kg that red cabbage and broccoli are sold at. Iceberg lettuce is sold at over ₹200 a kg. These are supplied from faraway places to Kalaburagi market in limited quantity,” Akshata Biradar, a student who participated in the market survey, said.

Scientists feel that the experiment could pave way for better utilisation of shade-net and polyhouse farming in the region. “The government is offering subsidies for shade-net, polyhouse and drip-irrigation equipment. But farmers are failing to use them,” Raju Teggalli, a senior scientist and the head of Kalaburagi KVK, said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Kumar Buradikattikalaburagi / December 31st, 2018

Now, Harpanahalli officially part of Ballari district

Records, All

People rejoice by bursting crackers and exchanging sweets

After almost two-decades Harpanahalli taluk, which was in Davangere district, has been merged with Ballari district.

The State government issued a notification on December 24 this year effecting the transfer of Harpanahalli taluk back to Ballari district.

People of Harpanahalli rejoiced by bursting crackers and exchanging sweets, as news about the government issuing the notification spread.

Meanwhile, as a follow-up to the government notification, Davangere Deputy Commissioner Bagadi Goutham on Wednesday wrote letters to the Chief Executive Officer of Davangere Zilla Panchayat, the Superintendent of Police and other district-level officers to initiate immediate steps to transfer all files in their respective departments pertaining to Harpahanalli taluk to Ballari district.

Harpahanalli was de-linked from Ballari district in 1997 and merged with the newly carved out Davangere district during the J.H. Patel regime.

After that, people of Harpanahalli, who were eager to be part of their earlier district (Ballari), began mounting pressure on the successive governments to consider their demand. However, it was during the end of the Siddaramaiah government, that too, owing to the relentless efforts and pressures mounted by late M.P. Ravindra, who was the Harpanahalli MLA, that an order merging Harpanahalli with Ballari district was issued.

As a result, Harpanahalli taluk will now be eligible to avail of all the benefits of the Special Status granted under Article 371 (J) to Hyderabad-Karnatak region and also get a share in the allocation of funds under the Hyderabad-Karnatak Region Development Board.

With the inclusion of Harpanahalli in Ballari district on the one hand and the creation of three new taluks on the other, the number of taluks in Ballari district has gone up to 11 from seven.

Another development has been that the State government has proposed to create another Revenue sub-division (third in the district) with Harpanahalli as its headquarters and having jurisdiction over Hadagali and Kottur taluks.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States / by M. Ahiraj / Ballari – December 29th, 2018

Veteran journalist, writer A. Ishwarayya passes away

Arts, Culture & Entertainment
A. Ishwarayya | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
A. Ishwarayya | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The 78-year-old journalist A. Ishwarayya passed away in Udupi on Sunday.

A multifaceted personality, Mr. Ishwarayya entered the journalism field by being part of the editorial team of Udayavani. His columns “Lalitaranga” and “Kalavihara” that appeared in the newspaper’s magazine were popular. It was through these columns that he gave special importance to Yakshagana.

Mr. Ishwarayya was the editor of Tushara magazine. He was a good writer and one among his notable works was his Kannada translation of the 16th volume of encyclopedia on plays that was edited by writer Niranjan. This book came out during the 50th anniversary of Nava karnataka publications.

A music lover, Mr. Ishwarayya started “Ragadhwani” organisation in Udupi that held music concerts in houses every month. More than 60 of his short stories have been publised in Sudha, Kasturi and other Kannada magazines.

Few days ago, a biography on Mr. Ishwarayya’s life “Kalalookada Chintaka – A Ishwarayya” was released in Udupi.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Special Correspondent / December 30th, 2018

American Tulu researcher Peter Claus no more

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Records, All, World Opinion
Peter J Claus interacting with Siri Paddana artiste Kargi Pujarthi. Photo credit: S A Krishnaiah, senior folklorist, Udupi.
Peter J Claus interacting with Siri Paddana artiste Kargi Pujarthi. Photo credit: S A Krishnaiah, senior folklorist, Udupi.

American researcher Dr Peter J Claus, who extensively studied Tulu culture and folklore, passed away on Sunday. He was 87.

Dr Claus headed the Department of Anthropology at the California State University.

He had carried out research on Tulunadu from 1967. He had followed the participation method and was well-versed in the use of Tulu and Sanskrit.

Before coming to Dakshina Kannada for research, Dr Claus learnt Kannada through interaction with Prof M B Krishnamurthy and Dr A K Ramanujan. He was also honoured with the Gaurava Prashasti by the Tulu Sahitya Academy in 2004.

He studied the kinship system in the Bunt community and was also attracted to folk art like Paddana and Siri cult.

According to researcher Prof A V Navada, after Dr Claus’ study on kinship among Bunts, he visited the coastal district four to five times and expanded his knowledge of Tulu culture.

Prof Navada and Subhashchandra have translated eight research articles of Dr Claus and published as ‘Tuluva Darshana’. Up to 15 articles of Dr Claus, related to Tulu will be published by Prasaranga of Mangaluru University next month.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State> Mangaluru / by Naina J A / DH News Service / Mangaluru – December 30th, 2018