Nephroplus strengthens presence in Karnataka with second centre at VIMS Hospital

Science & Technology

NephroPlus has opened its second unit in Bengaluru at the VIMS Hospital in Marathahalli. The facility currently has six beds which will be increased to 12 beds.

As part of the new centre launch, NephroPlus has also announced a week long free kidney care camp with check-ups for patients from July 4 to 11, 2012 at the VIMS unit. It is aimed at educating the people about the importance of renal care, causes of kidney ailments along with tips to maintain the health of the kidney.

The kidney care major is working to increase its presence in Karnataka. Its first centre was set in March this year at the Koshy’s Hospital in Ramamurthy Nagar, Bengaluru. It plans to launch another five clinics with similar capacity in the next six months in the state. These could be either  standalone clinics or those set-up in partnership with leading hospitals and medical colleges. Several patients from Karnataka who have experienced NephroPlus care at its facilities in Andhra Pradesh at Banjara Hills,  Marredpally and Santoshnagar in Hyderabad and one at Mahabubnagar, expressed interest in NephroPlus setting up similar units in Karnataka, according to VikramVuppala, CEO and founder, NephroPlus.

NephroPlus also has a facility in north India at Kanpur. Its objective is to prevent cross infection at all centres including the one at Kanpur. To this end all the units are monitored by a first-of-its-kind remote monitoring system to monitor machines and RO(reverse osmosis) plants, to proactively manage outcomes thereby ensuring zero cross infection.

India accounts for 20 lakh ESRD (End Stage Renal Disease) patients with one lakh new cases annually driven by diabetes and hypertension. ESRD cannot be treated with drugs and dialysis is the only option. There are some improvements in the dialysis process itself that are constantly being tried and adopted. However, the state of kidney care in India currently is in a shambles as more than one-third dialysis patients get infected by life threatening HIV, Hepatitis C and Hepatitis B infections during dialysis.

source: http://www.pharmabiz.com / Home> News> Hospitals & Clinics / by Our Bureau Bengaluru / Wednesday, Jyly 04th, 2012

Dr. Vasundhara awarded Hon. Citizenship of Louisville, USA

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

Mysore, July 3

Renowned danseuse Dr. Vasundhara Doraswamy of city-based Vasundhara Performing Arts was recently presented with the GeeVA Lifetime Service Award at the GeeVA Heritage Festival, a fest committed to promoting Indian classical arts, held on June 29 and 30 at the auditorium of the Ursuline Arts Centre in Louisville, Kentucky, USA.

Dr. Vasundhara Doraswamy has been a frequent visitor to Louisville for the last ten years and has conducted various workshops and training in yoga, Kalaripayattu and Bharatanatyam. Several of her students have performed Rangapravesha under her tutelage.

For her dedication towards Louisville, the City of Louisville, Mayor’s Office, presented her with an Honorary Citizen of Louisville Award in the presence of the Mayor of Kentucky, USA.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / General News / July 03rd, 2012

Thippavva’s reign continues

Sports

Dharwad’s Shivanur takes home men’s top honours

Thippavva Sannakki continued her winning run, clinching the second straight women’s title in the KA Nettakallappa memorial road races, organised by Deccan Athletic Club and sponsored by Deccan Herald and Prajavani, here on Sunday.

The Mysore-based South-Western Railway employee, who had emerged victor in Ramanagar in the first leg, completed the 6km race in 21 minutes and 0.5 seconds to relegate DYSS’ Shraddharani Desai to the second place. Smitha C of Alvas, Moodabidri, finished second.
Siddhappa Shivanur of Dharwad won the 12km race for men without much trouble.
Shivanur, who lives in Mumbai, stopped the clock at 39:07.69 to take the top slot while runner-up Krishnappa Santhi, also from Dharwad, was two minutes behind the winner. Basavaraj MT of Hubli took the third place.

In the boys’ category (2.5 kms), Alvas’ Shivaling NS claimed the first place while clocking 7:16.94. Local lad Nagesh BK bagged the second spot while Devaraj BN of Alvas had to be content with the third-place.

Poornima C of DYSS, Mysore took 8:44.63 minutes to win the girls’ title. Malleshwari Rathod of Bijapur and Rajeshwari Dulli of Bagalkot came second and third respectively.

Results: Men (12kms): Siddhappa Shivanur (Dharwad), 1; Krishnappa Santhi (Dharwad), 2; Basavaraj MT (Hubli), 3; T: 39:07.69 minutes.
Women (6kms): Thippavva Sannakki (Mysore), 1; Shraddharani Desai (DYSS, Mysore), 2; Smitha C (Alvas, Moodabidri), 3. T: 21.05M.

Boys (2.5kms): Shivaling NS (Alvas, Moodabidri), 1; Nagesh BK (Bagalkot), 2; Devaraj BN (Alvas, Moodabidri), 3. T: 7:16.94M.
Girls (2.5kms): Poornima C (DYSS, Mysore), 1; Malleshwari Rathod (Bijapur), 2; Rajeshwari Dulli (Bagalkot), 3. T: 8:44.63M.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com /  Home> Sports> Bagalkot / DH News Service / July 02nd, 2012

Karnataka hockey players in national squad leave for Olympics

Sports

Bangalore:

Five Karnataka hockey players in the national squad for the London Olympics, left for their European sojourn ahead of the Games rather disappointed after the state government decided not to reward them for their ‘appearance’ at the quadrennial event.

In an unexpected turn of events last week, the players, who had initially been asked whether they would be able to reach Bangalore for a cash awards function, were told that the government had already paid them Rs 5 lakh for qualifying for the Olympics, one of the players said that it was sad that they had been denied. “It is after a long time that five from Karnataka are in the Olympic squad. It is a matter of pride.

“Many other states have announced hefty rewards to their players for having made the Olympic squad. The Maharashtra government said they would pay Rs 15 lakh to Shivendra Singh and Tushar Khandker. Punjab and Haryana too have similar plans in line,” he said.

Quoting chief minister Sadananda Gowda, who had said that his government may give Rs 5-10 lakh to the Olympic-bound athletes, the player said, “We haven’t got similar encouragement from the government.”

The player agreed that athletes from other sports too would have to be paid for having made it to the Olympics. “It would have been better if each one of us was paid additional amount as a goodwill gesture. It would have encouraged us,” he said.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> Olympics 2012 / by Shrivathsa Sridhar, TNN / June 26th, 2012

Fire from the soul

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

WESTERN MUSIC WITH AN INDIAN SOUL.  A wicked mix of pop, classical tabla and flute / The Hindu

Alliance Francaise Bangalore celebrated World Music Day and celebrating with them were musicians Suchitra Lata, Trilochan Kampli and Sameer Rao who came together to perform as Soular Flare. The band has adopted a fusion style and conjures a wicked mix of pop, classical tabla and flute – they call it western music with an Indian soul.

Suchitra Lata is a singer/songwriter and musician; she was initially known for her skills playing the veena, but now she sings in English and Kannada and has gained immense popularity as a performer and spends time with Soular Flare, alongside her studio album, playback singing and other international collaborations.

The band also belongs to Trilochan Kampli and Paulson Joseph, both prodigious musicians who have dedicated their lives to the cause. Trilochan’s debut concert was at the age of 12 and Paulson is known for his unique style on the electric sitar and a precise sense of shruti.

For the show Paulson was unavailable but filling his space was flautist Sameer Rao, a student of Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia.

The half hour performance given to the musicians to showcase their music is a tight window and there isn’t too much conversation or pauses as they dive straight into the music.

The band started off with a track Suchitra composed called “Siren”; the song introduced the audience to the essence of Soular Flare, a rich tapestry of classical music woven with electronic sounds. And while the flute and tabla were strong pillars that brought this performance together, the vocals were a weak link that threatened to overpower any of the other elements. It was too loud, which made it difficult to hear the mellow, classical notes.

“Picture Is Perfect” followed next, again written and composed by Suchitra and already been released in her album “Love Kite”. They also performed “Wings Of Being” and “Thin Blue Line” which came and went without creating a scene.

There was an instrumental performance, where Trilochan and Sameer took centre-stage and put out some excellent jugalbandi. In a classical format there is usually an alap or a khayaal, so they started with authentic elements of classical music and then progressed into a western song – it was an experiment to blend in authentic elements of Carnatic classical and western music, which worked beautifully. Known for his crisp technique and effortless skill, Trilochan makes playing the tabla look as simple as snapping your fingers.

The most interesting performance of the afternoon was the “Shakespeare Rap”, where Shakespeare’s 30th sonnet has been adapted and his 65th sonnet translated to be brought together in this one song that Suchitra belted out in rap.

What started out as interest in the idea, was quickly replaced with horror as the rapping continued. Soular Flare is a band that can be a fusion favourite — they have language, the right classical elements and some committed musicians — the question is to make them sound like they are one unit, to let one musician continue from where the other left off.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> Arts> Music / by Catherine Rhea Roy / June 28th, 2012

Udupi: Book on Paediatric Cancer Released

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Science & Technology
Udupi, Jun 29:

‘Childhood Cancer’, a book authored by Dr H S Ballal, pro-chancellor, Manipal University and Dr P D Gupta, adjunct professor, MCOPS, a Manipal University Press publication, was released by Dr Boralingaiah MB, Superintendent of Police, Udupi District, at a function recently held Manipal University.

Dr Boralingaiah congratulated the authors for bringing out the informative book.

M V Kamath, honorary director, Manipal Institute of Communication said, “It is essential to create awareness among pregnant women and parents about the symptoms of cancer in children so that in the initial stage itself cancer can be detected. We know that cancers if detected early can be cured completely”. He appreciated the simple language used in the book hence making it easy for everyone to follow and also suggested translating it to other Indian languages so that it can have a long reach.

Dr H S Ballal and Dr P D Gupta also spoke on the occasion.

Dr K Ramnarayan, vice chancellor, Dr H Vinod Bhat, pro-vice-chancellor, Dr G K Prabhu, registrar were also present.

source: http://www.daijiworld.com / Home> Karnataka / Media Release / Friday, June 29th, 2012

Puttur boys make state proud

Education, Records, All, Science & Technology

Mangalore:

Two class X students of Sri Ramakrishna High School in Puttur have made the state proud by winning bronze medals in the International Sustainable World Energy Engineering Enviornment Project Olympiad (ISWEEP) held as part of the International Science Fair in Houston, Texas, USA in May.

The duo – Karthik Bhat A, 14, and Ramnath Rao , 15, – won the prize for their innovation of a bio-pesticide that can be used for preventing damages caused by termites to buildings. They developed the bio-pesticide using the leaves of Schleichera Oleosa tree that grows in the Western Ghats. “Chemical pesticides will create several health issues and many farmers suffer from life-threatening diseases like cancer because of over exposure to them. The bio-pesticide will help prevent such diseases,” they said.

The Science Society of India (SSI) sponsored the students to participate in the science fair.

“I consider traveling to USA with kids from different countries to participate in the event an achievement in life. If not for the event, I would never have visited a foreign country as my parents cannot afford it,” said Karthik, son of Gopal Krishna Bhat, a farmer of Bettamapady near Puttur.

Ramnath son of Satheesh Rao Bekal, an employee in a grocery shop, said that the victory in an international-level science competition had motivated him to take up more research works in the field of bio-pesticide. Vasanthi Kedila, the science teacher of Karthik and Satheesha said that they had become role models for students in the school.

“They have made us proud. They were selected by SSI a few months back,” she added.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Mangalore / TNN / June 30th, 2012

Laurels for Manipal Institute of Jewellery Management student in national level contest

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Education, Records, All

Manipal:

Dinu D, a second year student of Manipal Institute of Jewellery Management (MIJM), Manipal University won the best design/idea award in MIA ‘My Expression’, a national-level design contest conducted by Tanishq.

The contest started in January 2012 and continued for five months till May. Of the 3,000-odd designs submitted online by professionals and students from well-known design institutes of India, Dinu’s design ‘Honey Comb’ was awarded the best design/idea in the final round.

His achievement entitled him to Tanishq Certificate and cash prize of Rs 1-lakh presented at a function in the Titan corporate office in Bangalore. He also has the opportunity to co-create designs for MIA collections with Tanishq design team. Since MIA is a recent collection introduced by Tanishq , this contest was held for the first time.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Mangalore / by Jaideep Shenoy, TNN / June 29th, 2012

Mangalore youth gets huge scholarship for mathematics

Education

Sudhanva S. Kamath. / Photo: By Arrangement / The Hindu

Mr. Sudhanva was also qualified to participate in Karnataka Regional Mathematics Olympiad in 2010. He has won national fellowship from the Govt. of India.

Sudhanva S. Kamath comes across as an ambitious youth of Mangalore. Ever since he scored full marks in Mathematics in Class 10, he has been keenly interested in the field of science. Post PUC, he is pursuing a four-year undergraduate B.S. Honours programme at Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.

He aims to carry out research in Mathematics, particularly in Graph Theory, like his father Shyam Kamath, a faculty in NIT-K Surathkal.

A lover of mathematics, he wants to major in the same subject.

When asked what drew him to it, “Perhaps the intricate beauty in it,” he replies. “Not limited by nature, it is a world where you can take your imagination to highest levels. One cannot live without Maths,” he says.

Mr. Sudhanva was also qualified to participate in Karnataka Regional Mathematics Olympiad in 2010. He has won national fellowship from the Govt. of India. This 18-year-old qualified for ‘Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana’ (KVPY) fellowship program under which he is provided up to Rs 80,000 each year for the duration of his course.

The eligibility was determined by KVPY aptitude exam, which he sat in 2010 after his Class XII.

Out of 75,000 students who appeared for the exam, Sudhanva was one among those who were selected for the fellowship.

He said that the aptitude exam gave him a chance to see how science was interpreted in the real world. “This was different from usual competitive exams. They test your skill in solving problems, and how you approach or attack them. They check whether you have the aptitude for research,” he told The Hinduduring his recent visit to Mangalore.

This youth enjoyed solving math problems. He is working on a project on graph theory under his father, whom he sees as a role model. “I have seen him in research mode and am inspired by his work. There were very few teachers in school who have also inspired me,” he said. Once he completes his honours degree, he will be eligible to pursue a Ph. D. programme. The website dedicated to KYPY (kypy.org.in) informs that generous scholarships (Rs. 4000 to Rs. 7,000 per month) are provided (up to the pre-Ph.D. level) to the selected students.

Like any normal teen, he too often gets stressed out. “When problems seem impossible to solve, I take a break, and then try to look at them in a different light. This often helps.

“Other times, problems become more interesting when you aren’t able to solve them,” he said. Did he consider himself lucky? Well, one couldn’t attain everything with pure hard work, the whiz-kid believes. “Luck may often play a role in getting you somewhere,” he said.

Apart from mathematics, he is into music, which soothes him. He also plays the harmonium and piano. He is an avid supporter of Liverpool Football Club of the English Premier League.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Mangalore / by Safoora Ali / June 29th, 2012