‘Sensational’ Bengaluru teen sets karting race afire

Education, Sports, World Opinion

14-year-old Mihir S Avalakki, a Class IX student at National Public School, Rajajinagar, Bengaluru, driving for birelArt India, won the Round 2 of FMSCI Rotax Max National Karting Championship 2018 (Junior Category), at ChicaneCircuit, Hyderabad recently.

Being the fastest, he earned P1 position in the qualifying round. After finishing P2 in Heat 1 and P4 in Heat 2, he stared at P2 in the pre-finals and moved to P1 in the very first corner itself and held on to the same till the end of pre-finals.

The final was a closely fought battle where Mihir started at P1 and held on to the position, for a nail-biting finish.

Mihir started his professional racing a year ago where he finished the 2017 FMSCI Rotax Max Championship at a promising sixth place, being a rookie.

Mihir also got a great International exposure where he represented birelArt India at the EasyKart Championship in Europe.

He raced in six different International Racing Circuits in Italy and is currently placed at seventh in the championship among 32 total drivers. This international exposure has helped him raise his level of racing in India, which was evident in his win in the Round 2 of the Indian FMSCI Rotax Max Championship.

Earlier, Mihir was the National Champion at FMSCI National 4 Stroke Karting Championship 2017, which earned him a free ticket to the FMSCI Rotax Max Championship for 2017.

Marco Bartoli, Owner of birelArt India and Former Formula 3 Racer said, “He drove like an experienced driver and he handled the pressure really well. He is shown to have great mix of technical skills, speed, consistency and maturity which are very rare for a driver of his limited experience. He is definitely proving to be a bright star of the future”.

Preetham Muniyappa, co-owner of birelArt India and former Asia Karting Champion, said, “I have been monitoring him from the time he has been driving with our team and he has proved that he is a champion in the making, which was evident in the round 2 of the National Level Championship at Hyderabad. This is the beginning for his long career.”

He is the son of Sushmitha Narayana and Suman Avalakki . His father said: “Mihir is so dedicated, which gives my wife and I, the confidence that he is going to be a great Racer for India even in international circuits.”

source: http://www.bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com / Bangalore Mirror / Home> Bangalore> Others / by Bangalore Mirror Bureau / October 06th, 2018

A successful experiment in organic farming

Agriculture, Green Initiatives / Environment
Y. Eshwar Rao has taken up natural farming on his entire 25 acres of land.
Y. Eshwar Rao has taken up natural farming on his entire 25 acres of land.

Ballari farmer opts for Palekar model of agriculture

Y. Eshwar Rao, a progressive farmer in Vijayapura camp of Ballari taluk, has opted for natural farming on a sprawling 25-acre land.

He has been following the Palekar model of agriculture, including integrated farming, in his experiment since two years.

Mr. Rao says the yield, as of now, is not important. But what matters is that the soil health has been considerably improving and this has a lot of value.

“For 25 years, I adopted the conventional method of cultivation. I have used chemical fertilizers and pesticides and got good yield too. But after getting to know about organic/natural farming and the Palekar model of agriculture with thrust on zero budget farming, I decided to give it a try and adopted it on my entire piece of land,” he told The Hindu.

Mr. Rao said that he has never met Mr. Palekar, but acquired knowledge by reading his books and watching videos on the subject.

Sharing his experience, he said under natural farming, the input cost was less compared to farming using fertilizers and pesticides.

Presently, Mr. Rao has cultivated sugarcane on about 10 acres, fig on 8 acres, banana on about 2 acres, guava in 3 acres, and paddy on 2.5 acres. In addition, he has also taken up inter-cropping raising beans, cowpea, and drumsticks, which will not only supplement his income but also help increase nitrogen fixation. He has made use of drip irrigation, a facility that he had already had. The drip facility is also used to supply organic fertilizer. He uses manual labour for spraying organic pesticides.

According to him, the labour cost was on the higher side in the initial stage but dependence on it was coming down gradually.

“I will be happy to share my experience with other farmers and also guide them properly if they are willing to adopt natural farming,” he says.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by M. Ahiraj / Ballari – October 03rd, 2018

‘Holy compost’ is the buzz word in Bengaluru

Agriculture, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy
The leaf composter at the Venugopalaswamy temple in Malleswaram. | Photo Credit: By Special Arrangement
The leaf composter at the Venugopalaswamy temple in Malleswaram. | Photo Credit: By Special Arrangement

An increasing number of temples are adopting eco-friendly measures

The idea of ‘holy compost’ is fast gaining ground after one temple in Bengaluru made compost out of its waste, branded it and sold it at a premium. Now, nearly 40 temples have installed leaf composters to process flower waste. They are yet to market the compost, but the trend shows that an increasing number of temples are adopting eco-friendly measures.

A leaf composter was installed at the Venugopalaswamy temple in Malleswaram on Tuesday while two will be installed in the Kadu Malleswara temple complex next week.

According to Vasuki Iyengar, who helped install these composters, most temples use flowers, such as marigolds, chrysanthemum and tulsi. “Some temples are also keen on composting vegetable peels, coffee and tea grounds, apart from the leaf bowls (donne in Kannada) that are used to distribute prasad,” he said. “A lot more temple managements are now open to discussing in situ processing solutions, as there is better awareness. That apart, such solutions require little investment and are not dependent on heavy machinery.”

At the Venugopalaswamy temple, Mr. Iyengar has trained three people to manage the leaf composter. “The temple has two desi cows. Their dung will be used as slurry, along with coco peat to aid composting,” he said.

One of the first temples to compost flower and kitchen waste was the Shakthi Mahaganapathy temple in Kalyan Nagar. The ‘zero waste’ temple has also invested in drum digesters for kitchen waste, said Ashok Betraj, temple trustee.

After installing these in June 2016, the temple management harvested over three tonnes of ‘holy compost’ in October last year and sold it at a premium. The temple’s success story seems to have captured the attention of the managements of many other temples in the city.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Special Correspondent / October 04th, 2018

88 million-year-old isle and crater to be geoparks

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
St. Mary's Island in Udupi, with hexagonal basaltic rocks, is to get Global Geopark status. | Photo Credit: K. Murali Kumar
St. Mary’s Island in Udupi, with hexagonal basaltic rocks, is to get Global Geopark status. | Photo Credit: K. Murali Kumar

Geological Survey chooses heritage locations in Maharashtra and Karnataka for UNESCO site status

In a first, an ancient circular lake created by a meteorite strike in Maharashtra and a hexagonal mosaic of basaltic rocks in an island off Udupi are poised to become global geoparks, under a Geological Survey of India (GSI) plan.

Lonar Lake in Maharashtra and St. Mary’s Island and Malpe beach in coastal Karnataka are the GSI’s candidates for UNESCO Global Geopark Network status.

The road to recognition, however, is long. An aspiring Global Geopark must have a dedicated website, a corporate identity, comprehensive management plan, protection plans, finance, and partnerships for it to be accepted. In mid-August, GSI moved ahead with the plan, setting a follow-up time frame of 100 days.

The Geopark tag is akin to that of a ‘World Heritage Site’ for historical monuments that can bring India’s famed geological features to the global stage.

“These are spectacular to look at even for the general public who may not understand that they are also geologically important. Lonar lake is the only known meteorite crater in basaltic rock and is world famous, while St. Mary’s island is a unique phenomenon that has been preserved well,” says Asit Saha, Director, Geodata, at the GSI Headquarters in Kolkata.

St. Mary’s Island, declared a national geo-heritage site in 1975, is estimated to be an 88-million-year-old formation that goes back to a time when Greater India broke away from Madagascar.

Relatively young

Lonar crater became a geo-heritage site in 1979. It is relatively young geologically, at just 50,000 years old. A meteorite estimated to weigh two-million-tonnes slammed into the Earth, creating a 1.83-km diameter crater where the lake formed. It is distinguished by a near-perfect, circular ejecta blanket, which refers to earth thrown up during the collision, around it.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National / by Mohit M. Rao / Bengaluru – October 02nd, 2018

Lifetime achievement award for Lakshmi

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
BANGALORE, 04/03/2009: Actor Lakshmi at the 75th year celebrations of Kannada cinema held at Palace Grounds in Bangalore recently. Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash | Photo Credit: Bhagya Prakash K
BANGALORE, 04/03/2009: Actor Lakshmi at the 75th year celebrations of Kannada cinema held at Palace Grounds in Bangalore recently. Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash | Photo Credit: Bhagya Prakash K

Multi-lingual senior actor Lakshmi has won the Dr. Rajkumar award for lifetime achievement for 2017.

The award is given by the Department of Information and Public Relations, Government of Karnataka . Lakshmi has won several awards, including national award for best actress in 1977.

Kannada film-maker S. Narayan has bagged the Puttanna Kanagal award given to film directors for lifetime achievement. Senior Kannada film producer G.N. Lakshmipathy has been chosen for the Dr. Vishnuvardhan award for lifetime achievement for 2017.

This year the award selection committee was headed by senior actor and producer J.K. Srinivasamurthy. All the three awards carry a purse of ₹2 lakh, with a gold medal. The committee met Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Monday and submitted their report.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Staff Reporter / Bengaluru – October 02nd, 2018

In Bengaluru, it’s a buy one, get one restored citizens’ initiative

About Bangalore(Bengaluru) / Karnataka, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
A metal replica of the Begur stone dating back to 890 AD. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
A metal replica of the Begur stone dating back to 890 AD. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The aim is to make metal replicas of stone inscriptions to fund restoration of the original

A 1,100-year-old ‘veeragallu’ (hero stone) dating back to 890 AD, which lay neglected inside the Naganatheshwara temple in Begur, was recently restored thanks to the INTACH. But, not all surviving stones that have Bengaluru’s history etched on them are this lucky. Now, a group of citizens interested in the city’s history are attempting to change this by creating miniature metal replicas of inscription stones as souvenirs and use the proceeds from their sales to preserve and restore inscription stones around the city

“The primary intent of the initiative is to raise funds for safeguarding the inscription stones. To begin with, we will use the funds to build a protective structure for the 750 AD Hebbal inscription stone, which is the oldest known written record of any language found in Bengaluru till date. Depending on the success of this initiative, we will replicate the same for other stones,” said Vinay Kumar, co-founder of Inscription Stones of Bangalore, a citizens group which has been trying to locate, preserve and create awareness about inscriptions stones around the city.

The team has roped in architect Yashaswini Sharma, who has designed a mantapa in keeping with the architecture during the Ganga dynasty.

Palm-sized replicas

Along with the Revival Heritage Hub, the team will be using 3D scanners to scan the inscription, which enhances the readability of the stone. The scan will then be converted into 3D prints, which will be used to create the palm-sized metal replicas.

As a pilot, the team has created a metal replica of the Begur stone.

Mr. Kumar also feels that the initiative will help create a connect between people and the city’s history. “When we started the group, we found that there was lack of awareness and participation among people, leading to neglect of these stones. Through the project, we wish to make heritage conservation inclusive and get a large number of people to take ownership in protecting our heritage,” he said.

We were initially reluctant to go commercial, but felt that these souvenirs can ensure that more people get involved in the preservation of the stones, he said.

“The proceeds from the sales will help make the whole initiative a self-sustainable one.”

However, no decision on pricing has been taken yet. “But, we will try to keep it as affordable as possible,” Mr. Kumar said. The group can be contacted on Facebook (Inscription Stones of Bangalore) or Twitter (@inscriptionblr).

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Sarumathi K / Bengaluru – September 29th, 2018

Tracing the oral history of erstwhile Mysuru State

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
The cover of the book Marethuhoda Mysurina Putagalu. | Photo Credit: By Special Arrangement
The cover of the book Marethuhoda Mysurina Putagalu. | Photo Credit: By Special Arrangement

Krishnaraja Wadiyar, king of erstwhile Mysuru, had held a meeting in Bengaluru in 1912 to exclusively discuss the impact of fast growing population and the ways and means to check it?

In the meeting held with technocrat Sir M. Visvesvaraya and administrator Mirza Ismail, the king decided to promote family planning in his State besides underlining the need to increase cultivation of crops to feed the growing population.

Such information related to history have been recorded in the Kannada book Marethuhoda Mysurina Putagalu (The forgotten pages of Mysuru) being released in Bengaluru on Sunday.

Authored by Dharmendra Kumar Arenahalli, the book is a collection of 52 stories or instances related to the history of the then Mysuru State including Bengaluru and its kings. “It is oral history or the instances referred to in folklore. I have spent five years and spoken to about 100 persons to collect the stories,” says the author.

Mr. Kumar, 50, is a civil engineer, who worked abroad for 18 years. “I have been fascinated by the history of Mysuru right from my childhood. My grandfather bought the house in which we live in Mysuru from Krishnaraja Wadiyar for ₹two. Since the house had such a history, it also has some of the articles depicting Mysuru heritage. This started drawing my interest towards Mysuru history right from childhood,” he says.

Next thing on Mr. Kumar’s mind is to write on a comprehensive history of Mysuru State and kings right from 1399 to 1947.

Marethuhoda Mysurina Putagalu is being released at JSS College in Jayanagar 7th Block at 10 a.m. in the presence of cricketer Javagal Srinath on Sunday.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Special Correspondent / September 29th, 2018

Kalaburagi’s SBR School gears up for a alumni utsav, golden jubilee celebration

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Records, All
A view of Sharnbasveshwar Residential Public School (SBR School) in Kalaburagi. | Photo Credit: Arun Kulkarni
A view of Sharnbasveshwar Residential Public School (SBR School) in Kalaburagi. | Photo Credit: Arun Kulkarni

Sharanbasveshwar Residential Public School, popularly known as SBR School, is gearing up for its alumni utsav and golden jubilee celebration.Activities are in full swing on the campus of Sharnbasveshwar Vidya Vardhak Sangh (SVVS), the parental body that runs the school, for making the five-day celebration a success. The event is scheduled to begin on November 9. A huge pandal that could accommodate around 5,000 people is being built for the purpose.

The SBR Alumni Association is playing a key role in organising the event. Attempts are on for inviting Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu for inaugurating the event.

Congress Leader in Lok Sabha M. Mallikarjun Kharge and former Supreme Court judge Shivaraj Patil have consented to be part of the inaugural session. Justice Patil would deliver a special lecture.

Swamy Nirbhayananda Saraswathi from Vijayapura would be the chief guest on the second day. Prominent alumni of SBR who have attained great heights in their careers would share the dais to share their experiences with the audience. Mohan Palesha, Past District Governor of Rotary International from Pune, would address the evening session which would be followed by cultural programmes.

Shivarathri Deshikendra Swamy of Suttur Mutt will be the chief guest on the third day. The heads of major educational institutions in the State, including Prabhakar Kore from Belagavi, Veeranna Charantimath from Bagalakot, M.B. Patil from Vijayapur, Syed Shah Khusro Hussaini from Kalaburagi and Shamanur Shivashankarappa from Davanagere would participate in the morning session. Lavanya Patel, motivational speaker, would address the gathering in the evening.

Siddeshwar Swamy of Vijayapura would be the chief guest on the fourth day.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Staff Reporter / Kalaburagi – September 29th, 2018

Bengaluru doctors perform rare heart surgery

Amazing Feats, Science & Technology, World Opinion

US citizen diagnosed with aortic valve disease, saved by intervention

Jim (58), from California, was on a business trip to India. On reaching Bengaluru, the fever that had subsided before his travel flared up again and he was brought to a private hospital in Sarjapura road. He was diagnosed with aortic valve disease.

Jim had been aware of his condition but never affected by it. In fact, he had participated in a marathon just a month ago.

Dr Joseph Xavier, the chief cardiac surgeon, Columbia Asia Hospital, Sarjapura Road performed the complicated surgery. “Due to significant aortic valve incompetence, blood that was being pumped out of the heart was flowing back into it, putting it under severe strain. Blood culture reports indicated that bacteria had already started developing in the blood. There was a fluid collection in his lungs and the other organs weren’t receiving getting enough blood, resulting in gradual failure of the kidneys and liver,” explained Dr Xavier.

The doctors found that the infection was destroying the valve and the heart muscles and the antibiotics would not clear the infection unless the source within the heart was removed.

Dr Xavier said, “This meant an open heart surgery to replace the infected and destroyed valve and its surrounding tissue. This was a tough call for the cardiac surgical team. If they waited to see whether the antibiotics worked, the kidney and liver failure would worsen making the post-surgery recovery difficult. But there was a good chance that after the operation, the replaced valve could get infected.”

However, the chief cardiac surgeon felt it’s better to ward of the post-operative organ failure and take a chance with a recurrence of infection. The decision paid off, Jim had a successful operation.

Dr Xavier added, “It was a difficult decision to operate on active infection of the heart valve as the tissue inside was in a state like butter, and it is very difficult to fix the valve in such cases. Also, the possibility of the implanted valve getting infected is very high in such a situation. The failing organs like kidney and liver because of the bloodstream infection were an added risk. Fortunately, after the operation, the patient recovered quickly and went home on the 12th day.”

source:http://www.bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com / Bangalore Mirror / Home> Bangalore> Others / by Kumaran P., Bangalore Mirror Bureau / September 29th, 2018

Gangambike is city Mayor, Ramila her deputy

Records, All
Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun and her deputy Ramila Umashankar accept a silver key and an idol of Kempegowda from outgoing Mayor Sampath Raj after the elections on Friday. | Photo Credit: V Sreenivasa Murthy
Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun and her deputy Ramila Umashankar accept a silver key and an idol of Kempegowda from outgoing Mayor Sampath Raj after the elections on Friday. | Photo Credit: V Sreenivasa Murthy

The elections were streamed live on television

The race for power that had gripped the State after the ssembly elections echoed in the halls of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) during the mayoral elections on Friday.

After a tussle and much drama, Jayanagar councillor Gangambike Mallikarjun, from the Congress, was elected as Mayor and Kaveripura councillor R. Ramila Umashankar from JD(S) was elected as Deputy Mayor. Ms. Mallikarjun secured 130 votes and Ms. Umashankar bagged 129 votes.

As the elections were being streamed live, citizens were privy to the mayhem that marked the proceedings, which saw members of the BJP and Congress climbing over tables and fighting over independents. The BJP later staged a walkout thus ensuring an unopposed election.

For the first time in 22 years, two women hold the post of mayor and deputy mayor of Bengaluru for the same term. Gangambike Mallikarjun secured 130 votes to be elected as the city’s 52nd Mayor while R. Ramila Umashankar became the 53rd Deputy Mayor with 129 votes.

Before the polls were held, the BJP had claimed stake for the top posts and attempted to swing the votes of five independent councillors, which would have tilted the balance towards its nominees. Sensing this, the Congress had shifted six independent councillors to a private resort on the outskirts of the city on Thursday night. They were escorted by Congress councillors to the BBMP council on Friday where a tussle over them became apparent.

Tug-of-war for independents

Independent Anand Kumar, who had reportedly joined the BJP camp, was escorted into the BBMP by BJP MLAs R. Ashok and Satish Reddy. However, Congress councillors managed to grab Mr. Kumar and drag him to where they were sitting.

As BJP members tried to ‘rescue’ him, Congress members formed a defensive shield around him. Undeterred, a few BJP members tried to get to him by standing on tables in the council hall.

Members of the Congress and BJP almost came to blows. This prompted the Regional Commissioner to repeatedly remind them that the proceedings were being watched live by citizens.

Among the absentees were Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.N. Ananthkumar.

BJP stages a walkout

The BJP had fielded Shobha Anjanappa from Padmanabhanagar ward and Pratibha Dhanraj from Dharmarayaswamy Temple ward for the posts of Mayor and Deputy Mayor.

Opposition Leader Padmanabha Reddy once again sought the removal of four voters — MP Jairam Ramesh, and MLCs V.S. Ugrappa, Ragu Achar and C.R. Manohar — as they had been elected from other districts.

However, when the Regional Commissioner did not disqualify their votes, the disgruntled BJP members, led by MP P.C. Mohan and Union Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, staged a walkout.

This ensured an unopposed election.

Women hold both posts

The last time two women held the posts of mayor and deputy mayor was in 1996. At the time, Padmavathy Gangadhar Gowda was elected as Mayor and Venkatalakshmi as the Deputy Mayor.

Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun is a two-time councillor from Jayanagar ward (Chikpete Assembly constituency). She is the first member of the Lingayat community to hold the post in over 30 years. The last time a councillor belonging to the Lingayat community was elected mayor was in 1985-86.

Sources in the BBMP council said this was one of the considerations before Gangambike’s name was finalised for the top post.

Deputy mayor R. Ramila Umashankar from the JD(S) is a councillor from Kaveripura ward (Govindarajanagar Assembly constituency).

Disrespect to national anthem

Both the BJP and Congress accused each other of hijacking an independent councillor from their camp. The war of words continued even when the national anthem was being played.

It was only when television channels trained their cameras on the warring members did they realise that the national anthem was being played and stood at attention.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Special Correspondent / September 28th, 2018