Chief Commissioner of Income Tax feted

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Leaders

DrSatyaNarayanaBF06may2014

Mysore:

Dr. K. Satyanarayana, IRS, Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (Cadre Controlling Authority), Bangalore-1, who is retiring today, was felicitated by the Officers and Staff of Income Tax, Mysore, recently.

Under Dr. Satyanarayana, Karnataka and Goa region of Income Tax performed exceedingly well and surpassed the targets fixed for collection of taxes besides receiving praises from the Union Finance Minister.

Dr. Satyanarayana is also a well-known Kannada writer having many publications to his credit and recipient of several prestigious awards including the Karnataka Sahitya Academy Award and Masti Venkatesh Iyengar Award. The University of Bangalore, considering his achievements recently conferred Hon. Doctorate on him.

S.K. Sahai, Chief Commissioner of IT, Bangalore-II, Nutan Wadiyar, Chief Commissioner of IT, Bangalore- III, M. Tirumala Kumar, Commissioner of IT, Mysore and G.R. Reddy, Commissioner of IT (Appeals), Mysore, were present.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General New / April 30th, 2014

Prof. Indira felicitated on retirement

Education, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, World Opinion

ProfIndiraBF06may2014

Mysore :

“The Post Graduate Department in Sociology at Manasagangotri has a long history extending over 6 decades and it is left to the students and the teaching faculty to carry forward the legacy of the department,” opined Prof. R. Indira, who is retiring from service today.

She was speaking at the function organised by the Sociology Department to felicitate her on attaining superannuation, at the department premises in Mansagangotri yesterday.

Citing the example of Dr. T. Scarlett Epstein, a women social anthropologist from England who had conducted studies in Mandya District in the 1950’s on ‘Rural Transformation in South India,’ Prof. Indira called upon the sociology students to read Scarlett’s works such as ‘Economic development and social change in South India,’ ‘Capitalism, Primitive and Modern’ and ‘Village Voices.’

Scarlett Epstein, popularly known as Mangala Kempamma, left an indelible footprint on Mangala and its surrounding village in Mandya, Prof. Indira said and added that Epstein’s books have been included in the curriculum of many Indian Universities.

Recalling her association with the University in various capacities which extended over four decades, Prof. Indira said she was delighted with the warmth in the University campus.

She also expressed thanks to everyone for extending their co-operation during her long association with the University.

Associate Professor Dr. S. Yashoda, Sociology Department students and others were present on the occasion.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General New / April 30th, 2014

Mangalore Darshana to hit book shelves in a year

About Bangalore(Bengaluru) / Karnataka, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All

Mangalore :

An initiative by the Mangalore City Corporation and Mangalore Urban Development Authority will see people of this coastal city flip through pages an encyclopaedia of sorts on the city. The book planned in two volumes intends to provide insight into historical, cultural, social life and growth of Kudla and is expected to be ready in a year. The project is expected to be completed at a cost of Rs 50 lakh, according to deputy commissioner A B Ibrahim.

Titled Mangalore Darshana volume 1 and 2, the book, Ibrahim, who is also the chairman of Muda, said will chronicle the past and growth of the city limited to the present boundaries of the Corporation. Plans are afoot to print 1,000 copies each of the two volumes, with each volume containing 752 pages. A reader can go through 65 articles with each article running in to 10 pages. Scholar B A Viveka Rai will be the chief editor of the book.

Rai, also former vice-chancellors of Karnataka State Open University, Mysore and Kannada University, Hampi, said Mangalore Darshana volumes will record development based on evidence as well as oral narrative from memory relating personal experiences. The socio-economic, cultural, trade, commerce, education, lifestyle and other aspects of people in the coastal city from pre-history to 21st Century will go on record in this official effort.

Old photographs including those from archives of Bassel Mission will go into embellishing the visual appeal of this book. While oral narratives of leading citizens such as VIPs may not form part of the book, Rai said, experiences of aam aadmi including an old time bus conductor, fish or vegetable sellers, a farm worker or those involved in such routine and sundry chores will form part of this effort at chronicling the city’s history.

Trivia such as Karnataka’s first printing press being set up in this city and the first Kannada newspaper too getting published here will add value. Mangalore Darshana will focus on aspects such as city administration, sports, industry, and politics. Vamana Nandavara, former president, Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy and Muddu Moodubelle, writer will be assistant editors and a 14-member honorary advisory committee will assist them.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Mangalore / TNN / April 24th, 2014

Mangalore: City witnesses first ever literary conference on environment

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Green Initiatives / Environment, Nature

Mangalore :

With an aim to create awareness on the necessity to protect the environment, a maiden ‘Parisara Sahitya Sammelana’ (literary conference on environment) was held on Thursday April 24 in a makeshift setup that resembled a forest near Shediguri at Ashok Nagar here.

The conference was organized by National Environment Protection Union with an aim to garner support to work towards the protection of environment.

The conference expressed stiff opposition to the proposed Yettinahole project, displaying leaflets sent through posts to the organizers by many school children across the district. The display was inaugurated by artist Dinesh Holla in a unique way by painting and writing a poem.

Addressing the gathering after inaugurating the environment conference, environment journalist Nagesh Hegde expressed his discontent over human greed that has been turning out as a tragic curse to mother earth. “Human ever since his advent on the earth has indulged in destroying the environment around him for his own benefits, neglecting the importance of the earth,” he said.

Adding a touch of imagination to the scientific definition of the evolution of the earth, he said, “Imagine that the earth is now 46 years old, which means the earth was born 46 years back. When the earth was one year old 45 years ago, it started to cool itself to make the conditions suitable for living. The process went on till it reached 40 years. At the age of 42, rain lashed the earth further cooling the heat and enabling the earth to support life on its surface. As a result, at 43, the first flower blossomed beautifying the mother. At the age of 45, dinosaurs made their way to earth and vanished in a year.

“Currently the earth is aged 46. Nine months back mammals came into existence, one week back apes started to roam around the earth and 4 hours back humans started walking on the earth. An hour back, the human started to till the arable land learning agriculture. A minute back he studied to drill the land for petrol and coal ransacking the earth, leaving its womb damaged. His greed minute by minute is growing on a distructive mode further drying up the ground water,” he said.

“The population of the world has reached 750 crore milling on the earth, with man encroaching the maximum land, doubling his vicious aspirations and killing nature. At least now we have to understand the importance of protection of nature for a sustainable living,” said, appreciating the initiative of the organizers to spread awareness on the necessity of preserving the environment.

Prior to the formal programme, book stalls and herbal products stalls were inaugurated by the guests.

On the occasion litterateur Dr Na D’Souza, bureau chief of Prajavani Balakrishna Puttige, president of Ramakrishna Math Sri Jitakamananda Swamiji, environment columnist Dr Narendra Rai Derla, professor of Milagres College A A Richard Rebello and others were present.

source: http://www.daijiworld.com / DaijiWorld.com / Home> Top Stories / by Daijiworld Media Network (SHS) / Mangalore – April 24th, 2014

Bangalore teen wins Brain Bee, to compete in international finale

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

Bangalore :

Gayathri Muthukumar (17) stood in front of five doctors who were enacting a disease each. She looked at them carefully, listened to their complaints and diagnosed their conditions – Parkinsons, Spinocerebellar ataxia, Huntington’s disease (HD), major depression and amnesia. The Bangalore girl emerged the winner at the 7th Indian National Brain Bee (INBB) finale held on Sunday at SevenHills Hospital in Mumbai.

Brain Bee is a quiz competition on neurosciences for students who have exceptional credentials in Biology and are keen on pursuing careers in healthcare. Apart from testing students’ knowledge on the human brain, the competition engages them in learning about neuroscience. Students have to answer a quiz, write a test and identify specimens shown to them. The doctor-patient stimulation, where doctors enact a disease and the student has to make a diagnosis, makes for the most interesting bit. Participants are handed out preparation material before the quiz.

Gayathri, a Class 11 student at National Public School, Indiranagar, is eager to take up a career in Biology. “I have a strong foundation in Science. I visited a few museums during my childhood, which kindled my curiosity in the subject. Since then, there has been no looking back,” beamed the teenager. The daughter of an engineer and a homemaker, Gayathri had been preparing for the quiz for a month. “The practical sessions were very interesting. They actually tested our application skills,” she said.

A learner of Carnatic music and Bharatnatyam, Gayathri says she takes out time for all the activities she loves. Gayathri will participate in the 16th International Brain Bee finals, scheduled from August 7 to 10, 2014, along with the 122nd American Psychology Association Convention, in Washington DC.

Dr Harleen Luther, senior consultant, brain, spine and peripheral nerve surgery, dept. of neurosurgery, SevenHills Hospital, said, “The purpose of INBB is to motivate young students to learn about the brain and inspire them to opt for careers in basic and clinical neurosciences. Witnessing this talent at such a young age in India is a satisfying experience.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Bangalore / TNN / April 24th, 2014

Shine Spa for Sheraton named Best Luxury Hotel Spa at World Luxury Spa Awards

Business & Economy, Records, All, Travel, World Opinion

Shine Spa for Sheraton at the Sheraton Bangalore Hotel at Brigade Gateway has been awarded with the Best Luxury Hotel Spa award in India at the recently concluded World Luxury Spa Awards. The World Luxury Spa Awards is an annual search for the best spas across the globe based on votes by their guests. This annual voting process pans over thousands of spa guests from 144 countries, who are given the opportunity to vote online. Apart from Shine Spa for Sheraton, other competing spas in 2014 included small sized privately owned spas to globally renowned spa groups.

“We are incredibly excited to receive this recognition,” said Saurabh Bakshi, General Manager, Sheraton Bangalore Hotel at Brigade Gateway. “This award is truly the icing on the cake to an incredible year. The very heart of the hotel and all its success to date is our staff; an extraordinary team in every way, consistently placing the guest experience above everything else,” he added.

source: http://www.travelbizmonitor.com / TravelBizMonitor.com / Home / by TBM Staff – Mumbai / Thursday, April 24th, 2014

Vasisht , Prajwal Dev duo triumphs

Sports

ITF Junior Tennis

City’s Vasisht (left) and Prajwal Dev who emerged winners in the Junior Boys Doubles event in the ITF Juniors Tennis Tournament held at Indore recently, are seen with the trophy.
City’s Vasisht (left) and Prajwal Dev who emerged winners in the Junior Boys Doubles event in the ITF Juniors Tennis Tournament held at Indore recently, are seen with the trophy.

 Mysore :

City’s tennis players C. Vasisht and S.D. Prajwal Dev, on Friday, won Junior Boys Doubles title at the ITF Junior Tennis Tourney held at Indore from Apr. 21 to 26.

In the final, fourth seeded Vasisht and Prajwal Dev combined well to score a upset win over topseeds Kennosuke Nouchi of Japan and Deepak Vishvakarma of India 7-6 (5), 6-1.

In the semi-finals, the two players played well to register a 6-3, 1-6 (10-4) win over Aryan Goves & P.V. Gnana Bhaskar of India.

In the quarter-finals, the duo had beat Shrey Gupta and Yash Yadav 6-1, 4-6 (10-4) and in the pre-quarters they had beat Sai Nikhil and R. Mayukh 6-3, 6-2.’

In the Junior Boys Singles, Vasisht lost to Shrey Gupta of India in the pre-quarterfinals 6-7 (3), 7-5, 2-6.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home>  Sports News / April 29th, 2014

Alsbridge opens global-in-house captive centre in Bangalore

Business & Economy, World Opinion

 

Alsbridge Inc, a leading outsourcing consultancy organisation, has announced the setting up of its first global in-house ‘captive’ centre in Bangalore India.
The key value-add of the centre includes knowledge process outsourcing (KPO) for its various business services as well as software development & support.Alsbridge was ranked no.1 outsourcing consulting firm in the world by the IAOP in 2012 based on the value delivered to their clients. Alsbridge’s outsourcing consulting practice advised on over $5bn in outsourcing contract value. Alsbridge has consistently ranked in the top five over the last six years.

“Setting up our entity in Bangalore, India, is a strategic decision for Alsbridge. We are confident that we can leverage the immense talent that India offers to make our global service more competitive in the years to come,” said Chip Wagner, CEO, Alsbridge Inc.

The US-headquartered firm has already received approvals for its Indian subsidiary and is in the process of setting up the organisation with the help of its local partner – CaptiveAide – a firm that specialises in helping multinational corporations set up and build their India entities.

“We are delighted at this news and we welcome Alsbridge to India. We commend their decision to set up a global in-house centre (GIC) and we are confident that they will benefit immensely from this decision,” said K S Vishvanathan, head GIC Initiatives of NASSCOM.

Alsbridge’s GIC (captive) entry adds to a long list of multinational companies that have set up their own entities in India. These entities benefit in many ways including de-risking of outsourcing, low cost innovation, direct control over results, developing global leadership talent and access to local markets.

source: http://www.consultant-news.com / Consultant-News.com / Home> Latest Consulting News / April 23rd, 2014

Amazon takes kirana route to deliver goods

Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Bangalore :

E-commerce giant Amazon, whose founder and CEO Jeff Bezos recently spoke of the possibility of drones dropping goods to US homes in the near future, is embracing the neighbourhood kirana  store to push the delivery advantage in India.

This week in Bangalore, Amazon, in what’s a first in India, started piloting the concept of enlisting kiranas as delivery points. The move can help it overcome the problem of failed deliveries, a pain point for most e-tailers globally, making the last-mile logistics less complicated.

“We are continually innovating to find solutions that enhance convenience and experience for our customers. We are running a pilot for in-store pick-up service in Bangalore. We have identified and trained staff at small kiosks and stores, run by individual entrepreneurs, to be our shipment pick-up points,” Amazon India country head Amit Agarwal told TOI last week.

What is significant is how — unlike Indian organized retailers like Big Bazaar who have traditionally been pitted against mom-and-pop stores — this move from Amazon will help create a hybrid model where online players leverage corner shops to boost customer convenience.

“Depending on the results, we will take a call on how and what we want to roll out nationally at an appropriate time,” Agarwal said. Amazon will pay a fee to these smaller brick-and-mortar retailers, but the world’s largest online retailer did not give details of its financial arrangement with the offline stores.

The project is an indigenous improvisation on Amazon Lockers, which the company operates in the US and some other markets. Amazon Lockers act as self-delivery locations to pick up parcels from. “We want to be inventive in executing our global strategy locally. We have a team of passionate builders in India,” said Agarwal, who has had a 15-year career with the Seattle-based Amazon, including a stint as executive assistant to the much storied Bezos.

The India head of the $75-billion internet giant, which started off by selling books two decades ago, said the domestic e-commerce market “is still in its early days” and possibly some of the present bigger names wouldn’t exist in the future. Amazon is turning the heat on incumbent market leaders like Flipkart and Snapdeal with its trademark aggression focused on customer convenience, lower prices and a gargantuan collection. Both Flipkart and Snapdeal, which operate on the same marketplace model like Amazon, are well-funded by VCs and strategic players like eBay. The Indian e-commerce market, estimated at $2 billion at present, is expected to grow to $8.5 billion by 2016, according to projections by venture fund Accel Partners.

“The India operation is one of the fastest build-outs for Amazon globally—in terms of selection, sellers, traffic and even mass media advertising,” Agarwal said. Amazon has been particularly sharp-focused on its one-day delivery in top 20 cities and recently introduced a ‘scheduled delivery’ programme for high-value products like televisions.

It entered India ten months ago with a marketplace model since Indian laws place restrictions on foreign investments in multi-brand retail. It had earlier tied up with India Post Services to leverage the government postal system’s extensive reach. “We use IPS for over 19,000 pin codes through 1,40,000 post offices across all 35 states and Union Territories in India. The number of deliveries through India Post has increased from 800 last June to over 10,000 by March this year,” Agarwal said.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Business> India Business / by Samidha Sharma & Boby Kurian, TNN / April 24th, 2014

MPCA All India Chess Championship concludes

Records, All, Sports

 

Winners of various category of Ist Mysore Professional Chess Academy’s All India FIDE Rated below 1800 Rating Tournament 2014 held in city are seen with the prizes and the guests.
Winners of various category of Ist Mysore Professional Chess Academy’s All India FIDE Rated below 1800 Rating Tournament 2014 held in city are seen with the prizes and the guests.

Mysore :

L. Vivekananda, a student of Vidya Vardhaka FGC, drew his final and tenth round match against Dhanush Bharadwaj of Karnataka and clinched the title in the open category with 9 points from ten rounds on the final day of the 1st MPCA All India Rating below 1800 Chess Championship which concluded at Chamundi Vihar Stadium here on Friday.

The winner took home a cash prize of Rs. 20,000 and a trophy. Dhanush Bhjaradwaj with 8.5 points secured the second place and won a cash prize of Rs.12,000 and a trophy.

K. Ravi Kumar (Kar), R. Parthasarathy (Kar), T.G. Rohit Ramanan (TN) and P. Venkataramana (AP) tied with 8 points each and secured placings from third to sixth in the rankings.

The third, fourth and fifth place winners secured Rs. 8,000, Rs. 6,000 and Rs.5,000 with a trophy. Cash prizes were given to the players upto the 25th place in the rankings. The first five placed winners were given watches sponsored by M/s. Srinivas, Director, V2 Soft, Bangalore. The winners of category prizes were given special prizes sponsored by M/s. Cycle Pure Agarbathis, Mysore. The trophies were sponsored by M/s. Urs Kars, Mysore.

The prizes to the winners were given away by Mysore University DPE Director Dr. C. Krishna. MDCA President Prof. S.K. Ananda Thirtha, MPCA Jt. Secretary K.R. Shivarame Gowda, MPCA Director A. Sudharshana, MDCA Secretary M. Nagendra, Bangalore’s V2Soft Director Srinivas, National-level Chess player, MPCA Treasurer M.P. Ajith and Secretary C.K. Muralidharan were present on the occasion.

Results

Dhanysh Bharadwaj (8.5) drew L. Vivekananda; R. Parthasarathy drew T.G. Rohit Ramanan (8); S. Ramkumar drew Sonkalan Bharati (7.5); Vivekraj drew S. Subba Raju (7.5); Yashaskara Jois drew Kadav Omkar (7.5); R. Muralidharan (7) lost to P. Venkataramana (8); K. Ravi Kumar (8) bt Potluri Supreetha (7).

Special Prizes

Best below 1600: Prasanta Mondal (WB-7pts); Below 1400: Suhas P. Nidoni (Kar-7pts); Below 1200: Prajwal M. Joshi (Kar-6pts); Unrated: Krishna Kumar (Kar-6 pts); Best Veteran (55 Plus): K. Prabhakaran (Kar-6.5pts); Best Female Player: Potluri Supreetha (AP-7 pts); Best Karnataka Player: Sharan Rao (Kar-7.5 pts); Best Mysore player; V.P.S. Darshan (Mys-7.5); Best Physically Challenged: Samarth J. Rao (5 pts); Best U-16 Boys: C. Vignesh (TN-6.5 pts); Best U-16 girls: Siri Sharma (Kar); Best U-14 Boys: V.G. Nishanth (TN); Best U-14 girls: J. Dhivyashree (TN); Best U-12 Boys: P. Vibhu Reddy (Kar); Best U-12 Girls: Priyanka Narayan (Kar); Best U-10 boys: Sriram Udhaykumar (Kar); Best U-10 Girls: Khushi M. Hombal (Kar); Best U-18 Boys: Karthikay C (Kar); Best U-8 girls; Bhagyashree G. Patil (Kar).

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Sports News  / April 27th, 2014