Marriages are made in… Rajajinagar

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Weddings are a vibrant industry in the area, where choultries have led to allied commerce such as catering and jewellery stores

When an industrial estate was set up in Rajajinagar, planners could not have foreseen that they would be inadvertently aiding the growth of an unintended industry — that of weddings.

Travelling along Chord Road here, what is most striking is the row of wedding halls or ‘choultries' lining the service lane. All the halls face east; the other side of the road, which faces the inauspicious west, has no such feature.

Perfect match

“All these plots, 75 ft x 120 ft each, used to house small-scale industries before. When many of those industries closed down in the early 90s, the plots began to be sold or rented out to other businesses,” explains T. Vasan, owner of Gowri Shankar Mahal, an ISO-certified choultry on Chord Road. “It is not clear who decided to set up a wedding hall first, but it was a clever move. These plots are of the perfect size for this — around 10,000 sq. ft each.”

There are smaller wedding halls on the second lane of the erstwhile industrial area, and in other parts of Rajajinagar too. For, the area enjoys a location advantage as well. “We knew nothing about Bangalore when we fixed a wedding hall in Rajajinagar for our daughter's wedding, and were a little worried about managing the whole affair,” says Lakshmi Suresh, who lives in Chennai. “That the area was only a 20-minute drive from the railway station and had many affordable hotels made things smoother for us.”

Vasan says, “With the Chord Road connecting to the Outer Ring Road, the choultries here have started attracting people from south and east Bangalore also.”

Bannerghatta Road used to be the other area where many weddings used to happen, but the choultries there sold out to shopping complexes or software parks. But according to Vasan, wedding halls are just as vibrant a business.

Business of getting married

“It is an industry that sprouts a host of allied businesses and employment such as catering, jewellery and textiles, beauty parlours, musicians and groceries,” he says. “In the past 10 years, three major jewellery stores and 10 hotels have come up on Chord Road alone.”

The Kalyana Directory published by Eshwar Bhonsle, lists all kinds of services in its 96 pages, starting from astrologers and beeda suppliers, through dandia dancers, generator lenders, turban shops and plastic bag stores, to tours and travels, and vessels lenders.

“During the wedding season, we are busy with events in the wedding and banquet halls of Rajajinagar,” says 25-year-old Rajkumar C., a wedding photographer.

Passing it on

The wedding industry also has its share of ‘social responsibility' activities. For instance, at Bhashyam Circle, which is home to a host of ‘grandige' shops that sell items required for religious rituals, is one such two-storeyed shop run by R.B. Shivakumar, son of R.V. Badraiah or ‘Bale Ele' Badraiah as he is popularly known. Badraiah, who was known for his social activities such as setting up free water fountains and benches at public places, used to sell plantain leaves on the roadside. Shivakumar continues his legacy by collecting leftover food from choultries and supplying them to the homeless of the city and orphanages.

The Rajajinagar Wedding Halls Trust, which has been running two halls on Dr. Rajkumar Road since 1963, uses the rent earned to fund college and school education of underprivileged children, according to its secretary Sai Prasad.

Astrological predictions

When wedding halls first came up on Chord Road, they charged about Rs. 25,000 a day as rent. Now, they charge up to Rs. 3 lakh for renting the premises from 9 a.m. on day one to 5 p.m. on day two.

“Adjusting for inflation, I would say the rents have not gone up at all,” Vasan says. “People used to conduct three-day weddings before, now, they have one day of rituals and go to hotels and banquet halls for the reception, also because 90 per cent of the halls here don't allow non-vegetarian food or alcohol.”

“We get to host weddings only 167 days a year, as only so many days are considered auspicious. Other days, our business suffers,” he says. “It is not that young couples do not want to get married on other days. If only astrologers wouldn't influence their parents. So, further expansion of our business is all in the hands of the astrologers.”

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3524562.ece

A lot can happen on a bench in the city

The Bangalore connection: The idea for WeMove theatre group’s play Namma Metro was born on a bench outside a snack shop in Malleswaram

Bangalore, for a casual observer, has become a city of milling crowds, congested traffic and multi-storeyed office buildings. There is more to the city than all that, say the cast of WeMove theatre group, who have conveyed this feeling through their recent production Namma Metro.

Written and directed by 28-year-old Abhishek Iyengar, founder of the group, this Kannada play takes a look at the city of yesteryears, where people would just sit on a bench and talk about all and sundry.

Sitting down to talk

In the play, there are four Bangaloreans — a software engineer, a senior citizen, a middle-aged bank employee and a peanut seller, who meet at a tea shop, and start talking about various topics, from politics and religion to their own lives. “We try to portray the city through them,” said Abhishek.

A year ago, after a show in Malleswaram, the WeMove members went into a shop for some snacks, and had to sit on a bench outside because of the crowd inside. There, the idea for a play depicting people just sitting on a stone slab and talking about various things was born.

Different skills

Each person in the group comes from a different background and they are connected only by their love for their city and for theatre.

Radhika Narayan is a Kathak dancer and loves art; she initially joined WeMove theatre to give dance performances, but soon began to act.

“I was hesitant about acting at first, but was infected by my colleagues' infectious spirit,” she said.

Abhishek has been involved in theatre for the past seven years, and has written many plays in Kannada and English. “My uncles were involved in theatre, and they were my inspiration,” he said.

Sohan Raghavendra's is a different story. He studied medicine but also discovered his passion for acting. So, he juggles time between hospitals and the stage now. “I thought anyone could be an actor. Joining this group was a reality check and a great learning experience,” he said. He has previously done small roles in plays, and Namma Metro was his first big break. He also leads the WeMove music team.

WeMove theatre was originally a part of WeMove Foundation for Performing Arts (WFPA), which was founded in September 2006. Later, they broke away from WFPA and created their own space to explore new forms of theatre.

The group, now, has two offshoots as well — WeMove Digital which makes short films and advertisements, and Webz which seeks to enhance business opportunities and marketing for the group.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3524566.ece

Clapton meets curry

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Old-Bangalore feel: 1522 in Rajajinagar offers food that’s a no-frills combination of Mangalorean, tandoori and Indian-Chinese

1522 offers everything a self-respecting neighbourhood pub should — food packed with flavour, reasonably priced drinks, good music and friendly faces.

Amid the more conservative family restaurants and bustling roadside eateries that populate Rajajinagar, not to forget the new, glitzy, 5-star options, this unpretentious establishment seems to have endeared itself to students, professionals as well as families in the area.

There's something typically old-Bangalore about this one-and-half-year-old joint: music icons Eric Clapton, Jethro Tull and Bob Marley look over you from bright, hand-painted posters as you tuck into food that's a no-frills combination of Mangalorean, tandoori and Indian-Chinese. Classic rock tunes provide a lively background score.

“We like rock,” says Shashank Hegde, co-owner of the place with his brother Chetan. “And we wanted to start something for people who like rock too.”

For the last 31 years, their family has been running a restaurant in the basement of the same building. And that experience seems to have come handy. “We wanted to open a pub that was cosy and had an English feel to it,” Shanshank adds, pointing to the intimate interiors.

Sports and snacks

Given that the place seems especially inviting to those who want to catch up with friends for a laidback drink or watch the weekend's sports action on flat-screen televisions, the menu has a liberal selection of snacks, spicy accompaniments and starters. The comfortingly familiar masala papad, sandwich and fries share space with manchurians, kababs and the popular ‘devil's chicken', unapologetically garnished with green chillies.

The ‘butter garlic prawn' is a star here, a crisp, golden-orange starter that was as buttery as promised and pleasantly more flavourful than expected. For the vegetarians, crispy fried corn, the ‘Mongolian paneer' — soft paneer in different crispy coating — and ‘mushroom o'Reilly' — cutlets of mushroom stuffed with cheese, making for a bite full of surprise — would be ideal.

On choice for the main course are a basic selection of Indian breads, curries, Chinese dishes, and a commendable biryani. But, the real treat is on weekends, when the coastal menu, featuring authentic Mangalorean staples kori rotti and a variety of fish, takes centre stage.

We polished off thin, soft and light ‘neer dosas' even as there lingered a temptation for just one last one. The watery chicken curry with large pieces or its flavourful tomato version complements the bland dosas.

The menu may not be fancy, but the tastes are more than satisfactory, all very reasonably priced. 1522 is on 17th Cross Malleshwaram, Rajajinagar 2nd Block. Phone 23574799.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3523757.ece

Mysore food scientist gets US honour

United States based Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) has awarded its fellowship toDr Gokare A . RavishankarChief Scientist at Central Food Technology and Research Institute of Mysore. He is the second Indian scientist to receive this honour.

Dr Ravishankar was involved in the field of bioactive molecules, plant tissue culture, plant biotechnology, algal biotechnology and food biotechnology.

He has authored over 210 research publications in peer reviewed journals worldwide and 40 authoritative reviews, and about 40 patents, with technology transfers to industries.

He has worked a guide to students pursuing Ph.D and masters degrees in the area of biotechnology and biochemistry.

Dr Ravishankar has managed over 25 externally funded R&D projects obtained as competitive grants from the central Department of Biotechnology, Department of Science and Technology.

source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_mysore-food-scientist-gets-us-honour_1698841

Privatisation of water to be opposed

The Peoples’ Campaign for Right to Water - Karnataka has decided to intensify its struggle against moves to privatise water in the state. At a state-level planning consultation in Bangalore on Monday, it reviewed the situation across the state and called for intensification of struggle against forces that were promoting privatisation of water in the state.

They planned to build on the successes achieved in cities like Mysore, by demanding a complete reversal of privatisation plans, and demanded an alternative water policy.

The organisation on June 28 will organise ‘Namma Neeru - a coordinated peoples’ march’ in districts that have sources of water such as rivers and lakes. The march is to sensitise people on claiming common ownership over water.

There will also be a coordinated protest and representations made to the governor in Bangalore and to deputy commissioners in districts with specific demands for rejection of the National Water Policy 2012, and immediately stop all water privatisation plans in the state.
source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_privatisation-of-water-to-be-opposed_1702147

Centre rejects BBMP’s request for more funds

The Centre has rejected a request from the BBMP for additional funds under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM) for remodelling storm water drains (SWD).



source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/256826/centre-rejects-bbmps-request-more.html

They haven't given the Drought Relief Fund , when 4500-5000cr loss was assessed by Central Govt Onlookers. Mere 289 Cr was released.

Mumbai was Given 5000 Cr for Urban development apart from regular funds from the centre. Bengal gets the required either by Hook or By Crook.

when will Karnataka learn to get what is required for development of ppl's aspirations.

Do we need to elect Congress in next State elections?

Yes that is what will happen here & Centre will have non-UPA anyways :-)

Maternity hospital which delivered 10,000 babies without a single case of infant mortality



source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Maternity-hospital-which-delivered-10000-babies-without-a-single-case-of-infant-mortality/articleshow/14100132.cms

I have heard these guys do only C-Section no idea if it has changed now after it was taken over

Yes that is what will happen here & Centre will have non-UPA anyways :-)

Having same party in state and center helps is a myth. It is about how you lobby, not about same party or opposition parties :cheers:

Having same party in state and center helps is a myth. It is about how you lobby, not about same party or opposition parties :cheers:

so true --we have seen so many things move these 5 years because they have put a united front- agree they could have done more

Use your Metro card and travel by taxi soon

BANGALORE: Bangalore Metro commuters may soon be able to use their travel card in taxis too. The initiative is to help them use a single card to travel in different modes of transport and making payments as well.

"I have met many operators, including Mega Cabs, and the system is expected to be in place soon," N Sivasailam, managing director, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRC), said on Thursday.

He was speaking on the occasion of the launch of Mega Cabs service in the city. The service will start its operation with 800 sedan cabs enabled with GPS and GPRS technology. The tariff will be Rs 70 for the first four kilometers and Rs 17.50 for every subsequent kilometre.

Mega Cabs can be booked by dialling 47474747 and online booking can be done on www.meagcabs.com.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Use-your-Metro-card-and-travel-by-taxi-soon/articleshow/14144315.cms

Karnataka cabinet approves conversion of farm land for industrial purpose

BANGALORE: More than 500 acres of farm land across Karnataka was approved for conversion for industrial purpose.The cabinet meeting on Thursday gave permission for five industries including that of industries minister Murugesh R Nirani's sugar company for conversion of agricultural land into industrial purpose.

Nirani's company has been approved 74.08 acres of agricultural land in Mudhol taluk, Bagalkot district; RBSSN Ferrous Pvt Ltd with 123.63 acres in Hagaribommanahalli, Bellary district; Xindia Steels Ltd with 18.22 acres in Hipparagi, Bijapur district; J K Cements Ltd with 34.14 acres in Mudapur, Bagalkot district and Radhakrishna Education Trust with 21.07 acres in Kanakapura, Ramanagara district - were the other companies that got the approval from the cabinet for conversion of agricultural land to industrial purpose.

Law and parliamentary affairs minister S Suresh Kumar told reporters that cabinet gave green signal for the proposals following clearance from high power committee headed by chief secretary. Section 109 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act-1961 permits conversion of agricultural land into industrial purpose. Nirani is said to have walked out of cabinet meeting when the subject pertaining to his company came up for the discussion.

The cabinet also approved to regularize unauthorized residential construction in non - BBMP, other city corporations and CMCs. Residential buildings constructed before January 1, 2012 will be regularized, if the construction is not on open drains, on roads, parks, play grounds and forest land. The Karnataka Land Revenue Act-1964 will be amended for this purpose.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Karnataka-cabinet-approves-conversion-of-farm-land-for-industrial-purpose/articleshow/14131514.cms

Work begins on Sarjapur Road

BANGALORE: First it was the axe, now it's the pickaxe which has made a quiet entry on Sarjapur Road, sending the residents into a fit of rage. A team of labourers set to work on Thursday evening, digging a portion of the road in front of St John's Hospital.......

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Work-begins-on-Sarjapur-Road/articleshow/14144302.cms

Karnataka to go for cloud seeding

Bangalore: Karnataka government has decided to go in for cloud seeding, if the state does not receive rains in the next fortnight.

Chief minister D V Sadananda Gowda after taking stock of rainfall in the state here on Thursday found that there was 65 per cent deficit of rain in May and 62 per cent from June 2 to 14 after the onset of monsoon. The CM instructed his officials to make necessary arrangements for cloud seeding, if the state does not get rains in the next two weeks.

In view of the rain failure, the CM has directed to continue the drought relief measures such as reopening goshalas (cattle camps) and resume supply of drinking water through tankers, wherever, required. Drinking water is being supplied through tankers in 881 villages in eight districts.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Karnataka-to-go-for-cloud-seeding/articleshow/14143022.cms

Bangalore office market sees healthy leasing transactions

BANGALORE: The Bangalore office market has witnessed healthy leasing activity from corporate clients in May. Some of the key transactions included Axis Aerospace & Technologies leasing space in Vaswani Centropolis on Longford Road, KPMG leasing space in Salarpuria Hallmark 1 and Ericsson leasing in Umiya Business Bay, said real estate consultancy Jones Lang LaSalle in its Monthly Real Estate Monitor report. Outer Ring Road and secondary business district locations such as Inner Ring Road, Old Airport Road and Koramangala saw marginal appreciation in rentals and capital values, the report said. Rentals in Outer Ring Road hovered between Rs 48-52 per sft, w hile Old Airport Road recorded rentals in the Rs 60-65 range. Vacancy rates declined due to stable dem and amidst limited fresh supply coming into the market, the report said.

Though office saw some leasing activity, the retail space didn't witness any major transaction during the period.

In the residential segment, many projects were launched on and along the Hosur and Bellary Road. The Hebbal-Devanahalli has witnessed many residential launches. RMZ has launched 122 high-end suites on Hebbal Road carrying a price tag of Rs 3.5-6.7 crore for suites measuring 3,900 to 6,500sft . Sobha Developers has launched a 156-unit luxury apartment near Hebbal Ring Road varying between 2,640-4,860 sft priced over Rs 1.1 crore.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Bangalore-office-market-sees-healthy-leasing-transactions/articleshow/14131378.cms

Gayana Samaja Hosts's 11th Youth Music Fest

BANGALORE: Reviving Gen Now's penchant for Carnatic music tradition, the Gayana Samaja, has organized its eleventh Youth Music Festival. This week-long festival which commenced on June 10, has brought a host of up and coming musicians into its fold, to perform and keep the great tradition of Carnatic ragas alive. Vocalists Bharat Sundar, Nagaranjani, Sai Tejus Chandrshekar, MR Manjula and S Ramani added flair to the festival with their well-rehearsed renditions. Taking stage tomorrow is vocalist Shilpa Shashidhar, accompanied by Sindhu Suchetan on violin, Sudarshan Chakravarthy on mridangam and Vinod A Sharma on kanjira. Vocalist Aishwarya Vidya Raghunath accompanied by Aditi Krishna Prakash on violin, A Radesh on mridangam and S Manjunath on mridangam will perform at the grand finale on June 16.

Gayana Samaja, has over the years, it has encouraged and hosted various genres of music including Hindustani, Carnatic, devotional, light music, Harikather, folk music and theatre. Dance forms like as Bharatnatyam, Kuchipidi, Kathakali, Kathak, Manipuri, Odissi and Chau, too, have been encouraged by the Samaja and various artists have performed at this stage. Gayana Samaja regularly confers the Sangeeta Kalaratna to renowned musicians.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Gayana-Samaja-Hostss-11th-Youth-Music-Fest/articleshow/14128359.cms

Bangalore traffic police go shopping for high quality cameras

BANGALORE: In light of the recent events, where the footage from traffic surveillance cameras proved vital for crime detection, traffic police are now purchasing 70 new CCTV cameras. However this time the city traffic police have placed very specific requirements, they calling tenders only for high quality CCTV cameras. It is said that this comes after the traffic police came under criticism as the poor quality of their cameras could not give any crucial information on the killers of government auditor SP Mahantesh who was attacked on May 15.

Investigating officers, who recently cracked the murder case said that they were able to see a car tailing Mahantesh, but because the footage was hazy and blurred, they could not get more clues. "We had to send the footage to a film studio in Chennai to get it cleaned. It would have been great if the cameras around the city were of better quality. With the increasing use of technology in investigation, these cameras will be crucial for crime detection," said a senior police officer in the city.

Additional commissioner of police, traffic, MA Saleem said that the CCTV cameras are for traffic management and crime detection is only an added advantage. "But it is true that we are looking for better quality cameras. Apart from that we are doing away with multiple service providers, we want the company providing us with cameras to take care of networking and storage as well," said Saleem.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Bangalore-traffic-police-go-shopping-for-high-quality-cameras/articleshow/14127344.cms

Future Group to set up Wholesale Mall in Bangalore

BANGALORE: Kishore Biyani-led Future Group along with Bangalore-based developer Sattva are together opening a first of its kind wholesale market in Bangalore at an investment of over Rs 100 crore.

World Market, which is being built on the lines of YIWU market in China and Dragon Mart in Dubai, is coming up on Old Madras Road spread across 10.72 acres with a total developable area of 10-lakh sqft.

The first phase of the project, which is scheduled to open by the end of this year, will have a built up area of 180,000 sqft and will house merchandise ranging from fashion accessories to crockery, interior and outdoor decors, hardware, toys, stationery, electronics, and leather products.

"We are launching the first wholesale market in the country that would be non-food and non-clothing, which would be launched in the next 8 to 6 months," said Kishore Biyani, chairman, Future Group.

In addition to housing traders' from all walks of the retail spectrum, the mall will also sport of warehousing and storage facilities, packaging and courier services, alignments with transporters for the movement and delivery of goods, loading and dispatch infrastructure, banks, food and beverage outlets as well as hotel accommodation.

Interestingly, the land parcel on which World Market is coming up was an iconic landmark that housed the BPL factory. Sattva as part of a distress sale deal bought the land at a price of around Rs 35 crore a couple of years ago.

Commenting on the business potential in Bangalore and the state of Karnataka, Biyani, said, "From a retailer's stand point Karnataka is the best retail destination for us. We operate around 200 stores in the Karnataka region, that's about 2.5 million sqft of retail space. We believe that despite the slowdown in the economy, the Karnataka market has been growing for us, and continues to surprise us with its growth."

Besides the World Market, Future Group is planning a mega food park that's being planned on a 110-acre land parcel, which will manufacture goods and products worth Rs 2,500 crore.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Future-Group-to-set-up-Wholesale-Mall-in-Bangalore/articleshow/14125775.cms

BIAL launches its own taxi service to airport


The Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) on Thursday became the first airport in the country to have its own taxi services for its passengers.

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The fleet has a total of 2,000 cars comprising brands such as Toyota Etios, Maruti Dzire and Mahindra Verito. While 1,400 cars were pressed into service on Thursday, the remaining 600 will come into the pool by the end of 2012.

This fleet will be in addition to the existing 550 KSTDC and 800 Meru taxies, BIAL president (operations) Hari Marar said.

The taxis are painted with a signature logo to help commuters identify them easily and will follow a uniform fare policy (Rs 17.50 per km) and will be tracked by Global Positioning Systems (GPS). These vehicles have been given by KSTDC, Meru and Mega cab companies and will operate 24/7.

BIAL also claimed that the fleet will operate with state-of-the-art vehicles, technology and trained chauffeurs. The brand new vehicles are fitted with GPS/GPRS, digital fare meters, printers and POS (point of selling) machines to collect payments. The cabs can be booked via phone, internet or mobile applications, an official said, describing the features of the service.

“We have always been trying to reduce the distance between BIA and the City, and with this, we become the first airport management in the country to have provided an exclusive airport taxi service, which is reliable and accountable,” Marar said.

The three companies will own 50 per cent share of the vehicles and 50 per cent will be owned by the driver himself. He also said that fares have been kept uniform and regularised by the airport authority in consultation with the companies.

The service has also given employment to over 2,000 drivers and 500 other people managing the call centres and control rooms. The drivers are trained by the respective companies to speak multiple languages, particularly English, Hindi and Kannada. BIA has also trained in defensive driving, Marar added.

The taxis can be booked through 080-44224422, 080-47474747 and 080-49007777.


source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257066/bial-launches-its-own-taxi.html

Revisiting the Mysore Baani

Symposium analyses Veene Seshanna's compositions on Sunday

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Veene Seshanna is synonymous with Mysore and is considered the chief architect of the Mysore Baani, having established a unique style and approach in his compositions that revolutionised the Carnatic genre nearly a century ago.

Swaramurthy V.N. Rao Memorial Trust is organising a symposium on the compositions of Seshanna with the Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi, sponsoring the educative session.

Vainikas Shobana Swaminathan and M.K. Saraswathi, and vocalist Sukanya Prabhakar will speak on the various facets of Seshanna's creativity.

Veene Seshanna (1852-1926), born in Mysore, was the son of the vainika Chikkaramappa, and displayed his precocious talent even as a boy of 10 at the Mysore Palace.

His 53 compositions show his affinity to rare ragas and talas, some set in sankirna matya and misra triputa tala. Abherini, Poorvi, Gumma Khambhoji and Chittamohini were unheard of scales in the 18th Century when he pushed them. Composed in Kannada and Telugu, his varna and tillanas were dedicated to his royal patrons, Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar and Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar.

Says Shobana Swaminathan, who holds a PhD in Seshanna's compositions: “I was wondering if his 50-plus compositions would be enough for an extended analysis, but then I realised the sea of significance attached to each work.”

Ms. Swaminathan, who is taking up his 11 swarajathis in the symposium, will cite examples from each to showcase their distinctness. “I would say his prayogas were directed towards the veena, especially his swara patterning where he envisions a masterly glide for the vainikas.”

THREE OCTAVES

Several books explain that Seshanna primarily wanted veena artistes to take up his varna and swarajathi for practice sessions as the swift flow ensured fingering that swept the three octaves in a single line.

Ms. Swaminathan will take up his masterly Khamas piece, bringing components of the Western chord-like feel, while his signature Mysore approach — stressing the right-hand strumming with a profuse of plain notes — would be mirrored in the Khamboji piece.

Sukanya Prabhakar will take up a few of Seshanna's kritis to demonstrate the ingenuity of his sangatis building up the raga.

“Seshanna has employed rare janaka ragas as Ganamurthe and Gamanashrama, rare janya ragas as Gowri, and familiar scales as Kambodhi and Vachaspati. That was his greatness,” she says.

M.K. Saraswathi's demonstration will include Seshanna's zigzag swara patterning (dattu) in his most popular Jhenjuti tillana, used on dance platforms too.

The vainika of Mysore Baani, D. Balakrishna, will preside and Suma Sudhindra will inaugurate the meet.

The symposium is on June 17 at the Sri Rama Lalitha Kala Mandira, 9th Main, 2nd Stage, Banashankari, 10 a.m.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3529185.ece

Land grab complaint against Roshan Baig

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A private complaint accusing Congress MLA from Shivajinagar R. Roshan Baig of land grab and fraud was filed before the Special Lokayukta Court here on Thursday.

The complainant, 78-year-old Abdul Haq Surathi, has alleged that Mr. Baig was allotted 1.103 acres of land in Begur hobli by Karnataka State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (KEONICS) on February 19, 2006 for Rs. 19.47 lakh.

SMALL-SCALE INDUSTRY

The land was granted after Mr. Baig applied under the pretext that he wanted to start a small-scale industry. But instead, he entered into a joint development agreement with the Prestige Group just on April 27, 2006 for the construction of a commercial complex.

Senior counsel T.V. Vijay Raghavan told the court that since there was a non-alienable clause preventing sale of the land, Mr. Baig adopted another route to secure the sale consideration from Prestige Group.

This he allegedly did by collecting Rs. 2.66 crore as non-interest bearing deposits from the Prestige Group.

He finally executed a sale deed in favour of the Prestige Group on December 14, 2010 when the commercial complex was completed.

In return, he also got 30,217 sq ft of built-up area in the complex.

The second complaint is that Mr. Baig and his family members indulged in fraud by propping up three firms. Judge N.K. Sudhindra Rao posted the case for June 19.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3528993.ece

700 attend job fair; three more HRD centres in PPP mode

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source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3528985.ece

Taking forward an ancient Indian art form

Kalakruthi Mural Creations is holding a workshop till the end of this month to bring the ancient art form of creating murals to the people of Bangalore.

Although the murals are inspired by the cave paintings of Ellora and Ajanta, they can be made using modern techniques such as cold glass fusion and ceramic sculpting. They can even be treated with chemicals to help preserve them.

Teaching all these techniques to create three-dimensional murals are Pune artists Datta Vaidya and B.N. Mutekar. “We want Indian heritage to be taken forward with this art,” said Kalajyothi from Kalakruthi. She said that the workshop has been designed to teach the participants various techniques to make 3D murals using ceramics, glass, stone carving and cold glass fusion.

Initially, the workshop was only supposed to be held for 10 days, but was extended after many people evinced interest. The workshop is at Kala Kuteera on Shivaram Karanth Road from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Call 9902920134.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3531359.ece

Viva! Bangalore lakes get some oxygen

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Viva-Bangalore-lakes-get-some-oxygen/articleshow/14163843.cms

Residential markets redefining luxury

BANGALORE: The luxury residential market in India is scaling new heights as developers redefine luxury. Concierge services that offer high-networth homebuyers a bespoke lifestyle experience is the latest trend in this market segment.

Quintessentially Lifestyle, a global concierge service company, which has tied up with developers such as Nitesh Estates, Embassy, DLF and Lodha, provides bespoke services that ensure 'your every wish is their command'.

A member of Quintessentially India wanted a specific cricket bat for his son's birthday from the United Kingdom. The concierge service delivered the bat within 40 hours. Another member from India wanted Japanese puppies of the breed `Shiba Inu', similar to the one in the Richard Gere film Hachiko. The puppies were bought in Japan and flown in to India.

A family in Delhi fancied Amritsari puri-aloo for brunch on a Sunday, for which the concierge service organized cooks from Amritsar to come to Delhi and cook up a brunch for four.

One member requested for a DVD of an international award-winning documentary that was not on sale in the market. The concierge service contacted the filmmaker, got the filmmaker to convert the film into DVD and delivered it to the member.

"From finding schools to seeking admissions, to shopping for you as well as arranging health checkups and doctor appointments, concierge services offer a host of benefits to homebuyers, which is why the concept has become an important element in the luxury real estate market," says Nitesh Shetty, CMD, Nitesh Estates. The Bangalore-based developer offers concierge services at four of its luxury residential properties coming up in Goa and Bangalore.

"In the highly competitive environment of luxury housing, developers have to employ all means available to them to differentiate their projects. Apart from superior project specifications they also have to offer lifestyle-enhancing amenities," says Om Ahuja, CEO of residential services in real estate consultancy Jones Lang LaSalle India.

The annual membership fee that concierge services charge in India varies from Rs 80,000 to Rs 20 lakh depending on the kind of lifestyle services individuals desire. Services rendered like the ones mentioned earlier attract additional charges that can run into lakhs of rupees. Membership is not restricted to corporate tie-ups like in the case with developers. Anyone who has the money and desires a bespoke lifestyle can become a member.

Mishti Bose, Group CEO, Quintessentially Lifestyle India, says developers buy the membership in bulk for a period of one year, but the renewal structure varies from developer to developer. While some developers renew the membership for a fixed period, in other cases homebuyers themselves have to do the renewal after a year. Launched in India in 2010, Quintessentially Lifestyle has a member base of 2,000.

Jitendra Virwani, CMD, Embassy Group, which has launched three luxury residential projects in Bangalore all of which have a concierge service facility, says they buy a one-year membership, which they offer complimentary to their homebuyers. "The renewal of the membership is left to the discretion of the homebuyer," he says. With the help of a concierge service, Virwani has managed to bag tickets to the finals of some of the events at the upcoming London Olympics.

Nitesh Estates is working out a model whereby homebuyers would be entitled to a free lifetime membership at a concierge service company. "We hope to launch it at one of our super premium luxury developments in Bangalore," says Shetty.

Concierge services have

-- Arranged for a private dinner for a member with the Dalai Lama.

-- Arranged for two people to climb the Sydney Opera House and watch the fireworks from the top of the sails at midnight on New Year's Eve.

-- Closed the Sydney Harbour Bridge for a private climb so a member could propose to his partner

-- Delivered a metal detector up the French Alps, for a member who had lost his house keys in the snow

-- Arranged a full mock Vogue shoot for a member's daughter's 15th birthday, which included a full professional team of make-up artists, hair-dressers and photographers and mock ups of the photos as if they were the cover of Vogue magazine

-- Arranged a party for 300 people at the Pyramids in Egypt

-- Sourced a pet jelly fish for a member's home

-- Organised an epic, action-packed Indiana Jones-style adventure in Jordan which involved training by ex-MI6 agents with missions including uncovering hidden treasures in the desert, rescuing hostages in densely populated market places, off-road desert driving, as well as private access to the ruins of Petra and camping in the Wadi Rum

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Residential-markets-redefining-luxury/articleshow/14151807.cms

Mantri Developers plans Rs 2,000 cr expansion, to foray into commercial real estate

BANGALORE: Sushil Mantri led Mantri Developers is putting in place an aggressive expansion plan over the next five years, which would see the company invest around Rs 2,000 crore.

At the recently concluded Global Investors Meet in the city, Mantri Developers committed for the investments of Rs 1,750 crore across sectors, which includes residential, hospitality, and retail. A part of this investment would be channelled in to commercial developments, mainly in IT spaces, marking the company's foray into the city's office space market. In an addition to it, the company also has plans of building a Theme Park.

"We had acquired an 80 acre land parcel in Outer Ring Road earlier and now have plans of doing a mixed use development on it. We expect to start work on the project in the next one year after getting all the approvals in place," said Sushil Mantri, Chairman, Mantri Developers.

As part of this mixed-use development a 200-key luxury hotel at an investment of Rs 250 crore has been earmarked. "The Theme Park will be part of this mixed use development," added Mantri, who didn't wish to divulge further details.

Bangalore's real estate market hasn't seen many big-ticket investments in the last two to three years as developers have been concentrating more on finishing projects rather than launching new ones.

"The real estate market is improving and it's the right time to invest in new projects. Though we have launched a couple of residential projects in the last two years, are focus has been on completing previously launched projects," said Mantri.

As of date the company has built over 6,000 homes and has over one crore square feet of development under various stages of construction.


source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Mantri-Developers-plans-Rs-2000-cr-expansion-to-foray-into-commercial-real-estate/articleshow/14148152.cms

Students develop device to book LPG cylinder automatically, stop leakage

Four students of Department of Telecommunication of P A College of Engineering have come out with a project ‘Automatic LPG cylinder booking and leakage management system,’ which uses GSM technology to book the LPG cylnder and to alert the consumers when the gas starts leaking by just sending SMSes.

The students who came out with the project are P K Aravinda, Shreeinivasa K, Shrikanth S Patil and Vivek Hegde under the guidance of Prof Divya P Shetty.

According to the students, the project “Automatic LPG cylinder Booking and Leakage Management system” will ensure a safe, secured, provisioned and comfort services for the consumers of LPG.

The project is designed based on modular approach which is easy to analyze as LPG cylinder booking unit and the gas leakage monitoring unit at the consumer end and server system unit at the distributor side.

They said “Once the LPG cylinder is empty, the consumers have the task of booking for replacement of the same with new filled LPG cylinder. Many a time, the users are unaware of the level of gas in the cylinder so they fail to book in time, resulting in inconvenience.

On the other hand, LPG is classified as hazardous material because of its flammable properties and explosive potential when stored under pressure. The project attempts to mitigate and minimize the consequence of gas leakage and facilitate with better services by automating the system.”

The LPG cylinder booking unit comprises mainly the weight sensor, which is coupled to the 8051 micro controller. When the weight of the cylinder reaches below the predetermined level/value, the GSM modem interfaced to microcontroller sends booking request to the distributor.

The distributor will verify for the validity of the customer in the data base and accordingly an acknowledgement message is sent through GSM modem to the user automatically, the students said.

In the LPG leak monitoring system, the MQ6 gas sensor is sensible to LPG, isobutene propane gas. This sensor sends a digital pulse to the microcontroller when gas is being leaked. Hence, an alerting message sent through the GSM to the user and a buzzer sound is activated in the room.

Simultaneously, LPG regulator fitted to the cylinder is automatically turned off using a relayed DC motor to avoid more leakage from the cylinder, they added.

The students said “the 8051 microcontroller is the heart of the client system. All other components are interfaced so that they are monitored accordingly. The embedded c (Keil vision assembler language) is used here to programme the 8051.”

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257273/students-develop-device-book-lpg.html

Bescom to insulate wires

Rs 350-cr project to ensure safety from cables dangling low in slums, narrow roads

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The Bescom will remove electric wires hanging near the balconies of houses on narrow roads and those posing a danger to people in slums.

The electricity company is embarking upon a Rs 350-crore project to insulate all high-tension and low-tension wires.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, Ramesh Kumar, General Manager (Procurement), Bescom said: “About five months ago, the KERC had issued a directive that we look into this matter.

“Following up on that, we have identified places that are facing this problem and will soon implement the insulation project.”

He admitted that increasing number of electrocutions, including of those from the department, is a growing concern.

Bescom has already called for a tender to replace HT and LT wires with aerially-bunched wires, which will be insulated, he said.

“The bidding process will close in the first week of July and we should be able to identify the right vendor by the end of July. From there on it will take us about a year-and-a-half to replace wires in all the identified areas,” he pointed out.

In 2012 alone (up to June 4), 17 persons have lost their lives and as many as 32 accidents have been reported.

On March 13, R Hanumaiah, a food inspector was electrocuted in Kamakshipalya while trying to remove a coconut frond fallen on the electric wire in front of his house.

Awareness programme

“We have several programmes to create awareness among people. They need to understand that it could be fatal even if they get anywhere in the three-five metre range from these wires. Hopefully, the insulation will help reduce such incidents,” a source said.

In the last ten years, out of the 1,822 persons electrocuted or injured, 963 are citizens and 80 Bescom employees with several more having been injured seriously.

Besides, 637 animals are reported to have been electrocuted or injured.

Bescom Managing Director Manivanan exuded confidence that the project would be completed in time.

Sources said: “This will not only benefit the citizens but also the company. By insulating these wires, we are also ruling out the possibility of people drawing power from these lines directly.”

In slums and economically weaker neighbourhoods, where cases of electricity theft are high, the insulation of the wires will allow Bescom to reduce such incidents.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257319/bescom-insulate-wires.html

Kannada schools in TN have no books

Teachers translate Tamil textbooks into Kannada; photocopies supplied to students

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Shortage of textbooks and teachers is causing great inconvenience to students of the Kannada medium schools and colleges in Talavadi firqa (revenue division) in Tamil Nadu, bordering Karnataka.

Talavadi firqa, with a majority of Kannada-speaking population, has 28 Kannada medium primary schools, nine middle schools, three high schools and two pre-university colleges.
Together, they account for over 1,700 students and the Tamil Nadu government is
responsible for supplying textbooks, both for Kannada and Tamil medium students.

However, only Tamil medium textbooks have been supplied till now.

The Kannada medium students of the colleges are compelled to study their lessons with photocopies of the textbooks.

The situation was no different last year. While the textbooks were not supplied in time for students of first to tenth standards, the pre-university books were not at all supplied.

The lecturers conducted the classes by translating the Tamil textbooks into Kannada. The photocopies of the translated textbooks were supplied to the students.

“The books have not been supplied this year too. Hence, we are giving used copies of the photocopied textbooks to students of Kannada medium,” said Channanjamurthy, the secretary of Talavadi unit of Tamil Nadu Primary Teachers’ Association.

Shortage of teachers

All the middle schools in Talavadi firqa are upgraded schools and according to the norms of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, graduate assistant teachers should be appointed to such schools.

However, the Tamil Nadu government has not taken any steps to fill up 17 teachers’ vacancies in these schools over the past nine years. Parents say that there were no teachers proportionate to the students’ strength and even the teachers serving now were deputed.

Vacant posts

Channanjamurthy said the post of a Kannada lecturer in the government pre-university college, Talavadi, had not been filled for the past seven years.

First grade colleges has not been established in this part of the State and hence the students of Kannada medium are forced to cut short their study at the pre-university level.

“Parents are therefore admitting their children to Tamil medium schools from the primary level. The Kannada medium schools may face closure if the situation continues,” he apprehended.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257306/kannada-schools-tn-have-no.html

Linganamakki can generate power for only 20 days

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The water level in Linganamakki reservoir of the Sharavathi Hydroelectric Power Project could sustain power generation only for the next 20 days.

The water level in Linganamakki dam has decreased drastically due to delay in the onset of monsoon. If the situation continues, power generation units may stop functioning shortly.

According to Karnataka Power Corporation (KPC) Chief Engineer (Civil) Rajamudi, Linganamakki dam has 15.22 tmc feet water, which is 10 per cent of the full reservoir level.

The water level in the dam stood at 1,746 ft on June 15, as against 1,759 ft on the same day last year. He said total 1,200 million units of power have been generated in the last two months.

This apart, KPC has created a record by generating 23.461 million units of power in a single day recently.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257304/linganamakki-can-generate-power-only.html

State likely to cut sales tax on petrol

The State government will take a decision on reducing the sales tax component on petrol next week. It is also waiting for oil marketing companies to decide whether to cut petrol prices following fall in international crude prices.

The steep hike in petrol prices in May fetched State government an additional revenue of Rs 20 crore per month. However, the government had abstained from taking any decision in slashing sales tax stating that the model code of conduct was in force due to the Council polls to teachers’ and graduates’ constituencies. With the results of the Council polls declared, the model code of conduct closed on Friday.

According to official sources, the Commercial Taxes department has been asked to work out details on the reduction in revenue if sales tax is reduced by a few percentage points.

The State has kept auto fuels out of the Value Added Tax (VAT) regime and charges 25 per cent sales tax on petrol. In addition, a five per cent entry tax that is levied on every litre of petrol or diesel coming into the State. The sales tax component is one of the highest among states in the
cou*ntr*y.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257290/state-likely-cut-sales-tax.html

Sandalwood fragrance to spread in State

The State Forest Department, in a bid to create assets and popularise the concept of sandalwood estates, will take up the exercise of planting around 10 lakh sandalwood saplings in around 10,000 acres of forest land across the State.

Addressing mediapersons here on Friday, Forest Minister C P Yogeeshwara said that 10 places - Kolar, Ramanagara, Bangalore, Mysore, Shimoga, Belgaum, Dharwad, Chikmagalur, Hassan, Tumkur and Bidar - had been identified for planting sandalwood saplings.

Yogeeshwara said the department had failed to capitalise on asset creation under the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) scheme which was coming to an end this year. At present, the price of a tonne of sandalwood is Rs 60 lakh, and a tree will fetch Rs one crore. In 20 years, the department would have created substantial assets, he claimed and added that the department had earmarked around Rs five crore for this project.

Yogeeshwara said his department was in the process of acquiring around 4,000 acres of rubber plantations in Kodagu from four private firms, which were granted 99-year maintenance lease during the British era. The minister said though the land was under litigation, the department will reclaim it eventually.

He said the department was also finding it difficult to reclaim around Rs 1,200 acres of coffee plantation from Tata Coffee Ltd in Palibetta in the district. Large tracts of ‘jamma malai’ land had been identified in Kodagu and that the Forest department will reclaim these too.

The identified land is around 10,000 acres, where the land use rights were given to the people. The ownership is with the department and the matter will be brought before the Cabinet, he added.

Yogeeshwara said the expert committee, constituted to look into the elephant menace at Alur in Hassan district, would submit its report this month, after which, the department will take suitable steps.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257292/sandalwood-fragrance-spread-state.html

Sandalwood estate in State

In a major drive towards asset creation, the state forest department has planned to develop the sandalwood estate— Sirichandana Vana in 10 to 12 districts, said Forest Minister C P Yogeshwar here on Friday. Speaking to reporters, he said that the sandalwood estate would be spread over 1,000 acres in Hassan, Ramanagaram, Mysore, Chamarajanagar, Shimoga, Kolar, Chikmagalur, Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Belgaum, Bidar and Belgaum.

According to him, the state, which was once known for its rich sources of sandalwood was facing severe shortage of this medicinal and fragrant wood. “The department has already developed sufficient sandalwood saplings for the purpose,” he said. The initial estimated cost for the proposed development of sandalwood plantations would be around `4 to 5 crore. The minister said that fully grown 20-year-old sandalwood trees would fetch a revenue of over `1 crore per tree.

“At present, one ton of sandalwood would fetch about Rs 60 lakh. Each tree would bear over two to three tons fragrant wood,” he said. According to him, the state government has put on hold the plans to transfer over 10 to 12 tamed elephants to Madhya Pradesh following Karnataka High Court’s intervention into the proposal.

“An individual has approached the High Court against the state government’s proposal on the issue citing reasons that Madhya Pradesh government lacks infrastructure and expertise to manage the tame d elephants,” he said.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/article543939.ece

Flower power

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source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article543964.ece

Care for heart attack victims: BIA instals 5 defibrillators

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Bengaluru International Airport (BIAL has installed five automated external defibrillators (AEDs) at strategic locations in the airport premises that will help in case a passenger suffers a cardiac arrest.

BIAL is installing the AED equipment in association with Opto Circuits’ subsidiary- Advanced Micronic Devices Limited (AMDL).

“The commissioning of AEDs is yet another milestone in our effort to keep the need of passengers at the forefront.

As of now, five AEDs have been placed in strategic locations and the number will further increase with the expansion of the terminal,” said Mr Bhaskar Bodapati, director, finance, BIAL.

BIAL is the fourth busiest airport in the country carrying passenger traffic of 12.71 million and the fifth busiest in terms of international passenger traffic.

AEDs are already operational at Mumbai, Delhi and Kochi airports. Explaining how it functions, Vinod Ramnani, CMD, Opto Circuits (India) Ltd and AMDL said: "AED is the most effective emergency treatment for sudden cardiac arrest, to resuscitate the patient’s heart until proper medical help arrives.

This device is user friendly, fully automated and designed to guide users through audio instructions, hence no prior training is needed for one to use it.

Innovative technology detects when a shock is required and administers it if necessary. In case of difficulty in operation one can contact the terminal manager: 9538885555."

Dr Devananda, consultant cardiothoracic surgeon at Manipal Hospital approves of the move to install AEDs at the airport.

“It helps get people back to normal immediately in case of sudden cardiac arrest, thereby preventing their sudden death.

The authority should ensure that awareness about its availability and maintenance is brought about among the public."

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/care-heart-attack-victims-bia-instals-5-defibrillators-081

New protocol to repair major roads in city

Forty-five roads in core area earmarked for makeover

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Are you stressed out by the poor condition of major roads in the core city area? Tired of the back-breaking commute? There's good news, at least on paper: the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has chosen 45 roads in the core city area, measuring a total of 73 km, to be developed jointly by it and the State government under Tender SURE (Specification for Urban Road Execution).

According to a Government Order (GO), the BBMP had initially identified 20 roads to be developed at a cost of Rs. 100 crore. After discussions, the number was increased to 45, at a total cost of Rs. 200 crore. This cost will be shared equally between the BBMP and the government. According to a senior BBMP official, the Bangalore City Connect Foundation (BCCF) is preparing the detailed project report (DPR) for 12 roads, while the civic body has entrusted six agencies to prepare the DPR for the remaining 33.

CO-ORDINATION

The GO mandates government approval for projects exceeding Rs. 5 crore. The BBMP has been told to follow all rules and regulations laid by the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement Act. All the government agencies, including BBMP, Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), Bangalore Traffic Police, Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation, and utilities such as Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (Bescom), Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Ltd. (KPTCL), Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB), Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL) have to comply with the requirements during the planning and implementation of the project.

WORKSHOPS PLANNED

The GO also states that these roads should have a new road-cutting protocol which will have to be framed by the BBMP in consultation with all the utility agencies. The BCCF will also plan workshops for engineers of the BBMP and the BDA on Tender SURE guidelines and practices. It will prepare detailed designs, drawings, execution plans and traffic management plans for the 45 roads.

In October 2011, the government and the BCCF, in a public-private initiative, brought out two volumes on Tender SURE as a single-point reference for design, procurement and execution of urban roads.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3535608.ece

Dinnur Main Road in deplorable state even before monsoon

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For the past few months, motorists and pedestrians on Dinnur Main Road, especially those using the stretch between Pushpanjali Theatre and R.T. Nagar Police Station, have been braving numerous potholes and uneven surface. With the monsoon round the corner, they fear that this road may become a death trap.

Murthy, an autorickshaw driver, said that this narrow road sees a lot of traffic. “Our problems are compounded by the poor condition of the road. To cover a 2-km distance (R.T. Nagar Police Station to Kaval Byrasandra), it takes nearly 45 minutes. With no other alternative road, we have to not only spend extra time on travel, but also burn excess fuel,” he said.

Residents and those who work here said they had complained about the road's abysmal condition to the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), but to no avail. “The road should be repaired before the rain and it has to be taken up quickly as commuting on the road during monsoon will be difficult. The rainwater filled potholes may even cause accidents,” said P.K. Sankar, a local resident.

Pedestrians here have to jostle for space on the cramped footpaths and are sometimes forced to walk on the road. Several petty shops line the footpaths, depriving pedestrians of their rightful space. Krishnamma Raju, a senior citizen, showed concern about what the state of the road would be when the monsoon is in full flow. “We have been suffering for the past six months. I am sure we cannot walk on this stretch when the monsoon sets in,” she added.

Ironically, when contacted, BBMP officials claimed that they were aware of the poor condition of the road. Krishna Swamy, Chief Engineer (East Zone), said, “Road improvement has been included in the programme of works of the local ward. We will take up the project soon after ascertaining the actual improvements that have to be taken up.” Until then, it appears the residents have to continue to put up with the hardship.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3535606.ece

ORI in Mysore to be ready by August

The fabled Oriental Research Institute Mysore, which is undergoing renovation with the help of US consulate, will be ready by August. The cost of repairing the heritage library is said to be about $50,000. This facility has the distinction of housing the original manuscript of Kautilya’s Arthashastra, in addition to 70,000 other palm leaf manuscripts.

The director of the institute, Vidwan Shivakumaraswamy, said the acting public affairs officer of the United State Consulate-General in Chennai, Coriana Ybarra Arnold, visited the facility on Wednesday and appreciated the quality of work. Since it was a heritage structure, which houses one of the oldest libraries in the country, ever care is taken to restore the original glory of the structure and the interior. Efforts were being made to even restore the glass portion of the building.

The institute was constructed in 1887 by the British as a part of the golden jubilee of Queen Victoria’s consecration, but later it was converted into a library in 1891, which is now a part of the Mysore University. It is the first time in its history when it got a big sum of money for renovation from the US government.

source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_ori-in-mysore-to-be-ready-by-august_1702896

It’s sweet sixty for Karnataka assembly

The excitement and nostalgia of reliving the historic first session of the state legislature has gripped the corridors of the state assembly, which is preparing for the historic special session on June 18 as part of the celebrations of the first session of the state legislative assembly.

The first assembly came into existence 60 years back as per the framework of the Constitution. The first legislative assembly of the then Mysore state was held at the assembly hall of the old public offices (present high court building) at 11 am on June 18, 1952. V Venkatappa was the pro-term speaker of the first assembly.

Proceedings of the session had started by welcoming the newly-elected 94 members; and the order appointing Venkatappa as the pro-term speaker was read out to the members. The order issued by then Maharaja of Mysore states: “I, Jaya Chamaraja Wadiyar, Rajpramukh of Mysore, do hereby appoint Sri V Venkatappa, temporary speaker of the Mysore legislative assembly, as the person before whom the members of the said assembly may make and subscribe the oath or affirmation in accordance with provisions of Article 188 of the Constitution.”

It had doyens like Kengal, Urs and Kadidal
On the first day of the assembly, 94 members participated in the proceedings, which included doyens like Kengal Hanumanthaiah, who was the chief minister and Kadidal Manjappa, D Devaraj Urs, who went on to become the chief ministers in later years. The house also had great socialist Shantaveri Gopala Gowda, the political guru of many leaders, including JH Patel and Ramakrishna Hegde.

H Siddaiya was the first speaker
Interestingly, the speaker for the first legislative assembly was not an unanimous choice. There were two contestants for the post of the speaker: S Gopala Gowda and H Siddaiya. In the election held for the speaker’s post H Siddaiya secured 79 votes and Gopala Gowda secured just 14 votes.

The chief minister K Hanumanthaiah congratulated the newly-appointed speaker, hailing his service to the Congress and as the revenue minister in the previous government. The speech of the CM was followed by S Gopala Gowda’s address, who was Siddaiya’s opponent in the speaker’s election.

Gopala Gowda said his decision to contest was just symbolical and ideological, as majority of the members were from the Congress party. Many of the members of the assembly, too, felicitated the newly-elected speaker. After thanking the members, the speaker adjourned the House.

After the state of Andhra Pradesh was formed based on linguistic re-organization of the states, the present Bellary district was added to the Mysore state in 1953 and more seats were added to the assembly. In 1956, four districts from the then Bombay state, three districts from the Hyderabad province and one district from the Old Madras state became part of the Mysore state. In 1957, the number of assembly members increased to 208. In 1967, it was 216. The present Karnataka legislative assembly has 225 members, including a nominated member.

Apart from the special session of the assembly, celebrations include felicitation of three living members of the historic session: Madappa UM (Chamarajanagar), Mulka Govinda Reddy (Chitradurga) and TG Thimmegowda (Tiptur). A souvenir would be released and a photo exhibition of the first session has also been organised.

source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_its-sweet-sixty-for-karnataka-assembly_1702895

Film city at Hesarghatta soon, assures CM

The much talked about film city at Hesarghatta would be a reality soon, chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda said on Friday.

Gowda, who inaugurated a new floor at the Kanteerava Studios, built at a cost of `2 crore, said the detailed project report for the film city, to be built on a 300-acre plot, would be ready within the next two months. Work will start immediately after that.

The international-level film city will be developed with private sector’s participation and it will give a big boost to Kannada cinema, art and culture.

“So far, no government had shown interest to come to the rescue of the ailing Kanteerava Studios. Our government has provided liberal aid and has succeeded in turning it into a profitable institution," the chief minister claimed. He assured that the state government would ensure speedy completion of memorials for Rajkumar and Vishnuvardhan.

In his address, home minister R Ashoka assured that the land belonging to Kanteerava Studios would be used only for Kannada cinema. “We have resolved most of the problems related to Kannada film industry. The subsidy for Kannada movies has been increased from the earlier 75 films in an year to 100 films,” he said. Film stars Shivaraj Kumar and Sudharani were present on the occasion.

CM on Nithya
On the occasion, the chief minister defended the state government’s action against Swami Nithyananda. Responding to a slew of cases filed by Nithyananda and his devotees against the state government, he said, “I am ready to face even 10 cases from Nithyananda. I am ready to even go to jail to protect the state’s interests.”

“Whatever action has been taken, it has been done within the framework of law. Legal action has been initiated not only against followers of Nithyananda, who attacked media representatives, but also against activists of various outfits, who indulged in vandalism.We are not trying to please anyone. We have taken action without any bias towards anybody,” Sadananda Gowda said, defending the government’s stance.

source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_film-city-at-hesarghatta-soon-assures-cm_1702901

NGOs, IT professionals demand Nithyanand be sent out of Karnataka (http://daily.bhaskar.com/article/BAN-ngos-it-professionals-demand-nithyanand-be-sent-out-of-karnataka-3423759.html)

Bangalore: Pro-Kannada outfits, NGOs besides a mutt seer and IT professionals on Saturday staged a protest demanding that controversial self-styled godman Nithyananda be sent out of Karnataka.

Shouting slogans against Nithyananda who was granted conditional bail in a criminal case against him, the protesters, including Kalika Mutt seer Rishi Kumar, demanded that the self-styled godman, embroiled in criminal cases including rape, be sent out of the state.

Nithyananda was released from Mysore Central Prison on Friday hours after he was granted bail by the District Executive Magistrate.

The self-styled godman, already facing criminal charges, including rape and out on bail after his arrest in 2010, courted fresh trouble when police on June 8 booked him and his followers for allegedly assaulting a mediaperson at a press conference at his ashram at nearby Bidadi.

The press meet was held against the backdrop of a US-based woman alleging that Nithyananda had sexually abused her for five years, a charge that triggered public outrage and protests by Kannada groups.

Bangalore all set for urban property owner cards (http://www.timesofindia.com/city/mangalore/Bangalore-all-set-for-urban-property-owner-cards/articleshow/14197396.cms)

MANGALORE: Bangalore's tryst with the Urban Property Ownership Records (UPOR) project that will see property record card issued to property owners instead of 'khata' is three months away.
The state cabinet has cleared theproject for the state capital. The department of the survey settlement and land records has already taken up the project on a pilot basis in Mangalore ,Bellary , Mysore , Hubli - Dharwad and Shimoga on PPP model.
While the survey process of 2.75 lakh properties in Mysore is over,it is progressing in Shimoga with nearly 70,000 properties surveyed. In Hubli-Dharwad, survey of 25% of urban properties has been completed. Karnataka has 2.75 crore properties, including 75 lakh in rural areas. Bangalore alone accounts for 18 lakh of these 2-crore odd properties spread over 198 city corporation wards.KV Rudresh, joint director of the department, told STOI that as perplans drawn up for the project in Bangalore, survey of 50 out of198 wards will be taken up in the first phase and the work has been entrusted to two agencies. The survey work for remaining wards will be taken up in the subsequent phase, Rudresh saidand added that the modalities ofappointing agencies under the PPP model would be decided at the highest level.
V Ponnuraj, commissioner of theland records department, said the decision of the state cabinet will come up before the empowered committee headed by the chief secretary.
"We will call tenders to decide onthe agency to take up the process for Bangalore," Ponnuraj said, adding that Karnataka could well become the first state in the country where property cards will replace khataas the legally recognized property document for urban areas.

TOI (http://www.timesofindia.com/city/mangalore/Bangalore-all-set-for-urban-property-owner-cards/articleshow/14197396.cms)

Film city at Hesarghatta soon, assures CM



source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_film-city-at-hesarghatta-soon-assures-cm_1702901

:banana: This should give ramoji film city in hyderabad run for its money..

:banana: This should give ramoji film city in hyderabad run for its money..

i have been hearing the same for 4-5 years even that guy Kheni keeps saying but they havent been able to make samadhi of Dr.Raj and Vishnu so what will they do

Folklore University opened in Haveri

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Inspired by folklore atmosphere in Karnataka State Folklore University (KSFU) campus here, Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda said that indigenous culture alone can save the nation.

The CM was welcomed with the folk song Tingalu Mulugidavo at the inauguration of KSFU. After seeing folk instruments in the campus, he said that native culture has saved India’s uniqueness at the global level. “Any country can even survive disasters but not the collapse of its culture,” the CM remarked.

Gowda requested the public to preserve the culture. “The government is committed to support the cause and it has approved the University, which is the first of its kind in the world,” he claimed. He assured that the government will sanction an additional Rs 18 crore for the construction of hostel and other buildings in KSFU campus. “Besides this, government is ready to fulfil all kinds of demands in the future,” he added.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/article544392.ece

Roller hockey tourney brings players to CB Pur

First in State
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The Skating Park near Prashanth Nagar in the City was all noise on Saturday- cheering, applause, shouts of encouragement, call for shots and even preventing scoring.

The first ever Roller Hockey Premier League Tournament in Karnataka was organised at the Park and the people gathered watched in awe as the young players on skates move around with ease and enthusiasm.

Roller hockey is a form of hockey played on a dry surface using skates with wheels. The term “Roller Hockey” is often used interchangeably to refer to two variant forms chiefly differentiated by the type of skates and sticks used.

There is traditional “Roller hockey”, played with quad roller skates, and “Inline Hockey”, played with inline skates. There are different rules and equipment for both the types. Combined, roller hockey is played in nearly 60 countries worldwide.

Roller hockey was a demonstration rollersport in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. The Indian Roller Hockey Championship is the biggest States Championship.

District teams

Teams arrived from districts including Belgaum, Tumkur, Bangalore and Kodagu to compete in the games on Saturday and Sunday. The tournament includes games for boys and girls at junior, sub-junior and senior levels.

A round of roller skating was organised for players who came for the first round. Harshit Chandra won the round for boys, followed by Madani and Om Deshmudre. In the girls’ round, A S Akshatha was first, M S Varshini second and Devija Chandra was third.

“Each team has five players, including the goalie. More than a 100 players have come to Chikkaballapur City to participate in the tournament. A rolling trophy will be awarded to the winning team,” said M D Jabiullah, secretary of the Chikkaballapur Roller Skating Association, in conversation with Deccan Herald.

“A new skating rink was provided for the City recently, but it needs to be developed further,” he added.

P K Bharat Kumar, secretary of the Karnataka State Roller Skating Association, A B Manjunath, City Municipal Council member, Mohammad Ibrahim, president of the District Roller Skating Association, and others were present on the occasion.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257514/roller-hockey-tourney-brings-players.html

i have been hearing the same for 4-5 years even that guy Kheni keeps saying but they havent been able to make samadhi of Dr.Raj and Vishnu so what will they do


As far as Ashok kheny ji is concerned,haven't you read the recent article on money infusion for phase 2? SC has given a tough ruling in favour of NICE.No businessman will let go this opportunity.That hessaragahatta project is obsolete,same is ramoji film city.

Year-long celebration of GV’s centenary



The State government has lined up year-long celebrations to mark the 100th birthday of lexicographer Professor G Venkatasubbaiah.

Kannada and Culture Department Joint Director (Administration) Mallikarjuna Swamy said the celebrations would be inaugurated at Ravindra Kalakshetra on August 23, the birthday of GV.

A book will be released on his life and achievements. Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda and Kannada and Culture Minister Govind Karjol will take part, he added.
Swamy said over 25 works of GV will be reprinted and his select writeups would be published in 10 volumes this year. Besides, screening of a documentary and a photo exhibition on the lexicographer will be organised.

GV has compiled over 10 dictionaries, edited over 25 books and published several papers. He is regarded as the father of the modern Kannada dictionary.

Swamy said seminars on the life and works of GV will be held in association with the universities in Mysore, Mangalore, Dharwad and Gulbarga.

The department will fund the seminars organised by various institutions and organisations, he added.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257523/year-long-celebration-gvs-centenary.html

Mega complaint startles Lokayukta court

A private complaint sent to the Special Lokayukta Court on Saturday by post startled everyone including the judge, by the sheer size of the document.

Running into more than 800 pages, the private complaint has been filed by a retired post master who has accused more than 180 persons including judges of fabricating documents and manipulating judgments in a land dispute.

Seventy-one-year-old Honnananjappa G appeared in the Court on Saturday afternoon and submitted a complaint stating that all the accused named in the complaint had manipulated documents and judgments with regard to 5 acres and 37 guntas of land in Bidadi and two acres near West of Chord Road in Bangalore.

In his complaint he has stated that he had purchase land at Bidadi from a mutt, but he was restrained from possessing the property due to the interference of politicians and judgements passed against him.

He also stated that he had approached the Lokayukta police several times but they had not taken any action and hence he had approached the Lokayukta Court. The matter has been adjourned to Monday.

The complaint names 117 public servants, of which 60 persons are police officers and 17 are revenue officers. Political leaders like former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, V Somanna, D K Shivakumar, C P Yogeeshwara and Jagadish Shettar have been named in the complaint.

Former High Court judge Arali Nagaraj along with some other sitting judges and advocates are also mentioned in the complaint as accused.


source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257520/mega-complaint-startles-lokayukta-court.html

Jayanagar cycle track to be ready by June-end

When the Jayanagar cycle track project was announced, it was purported to be a ‘model’ for others. In a city where walking itself was a problem, here was an initiative that would help you cycle through the traffic of Jayanagar.

But seven months after the project was announced and four months after it missed its deadline, not only is the project yet to be completed, most people are not even aware of it.

Envisaged as a segregated track, the project was supposed to benefit many school children who were forced to cycle to their schools through dangerous roads, and also make sure that residents did not use cars and bikes, at least to travel around Jayanagar.

It was supposed to be finished in three months, after its launch in November. But seven months have passed and schools have even reopened after vacations, but the streets of Jayanagar are yet to be cycle-friendly.

Officials in the BBMP, working on the project claim that only 30% of the work was remaining and the cycle track will be opened to public soon. “Pedestrian crossings are ready and we have begun painting roads. All that is remaining now is putting up signages and setting up docking stations for the cycles. It will be completed within this month itself,” he said.

Murali of Ride a Cycle Foundation (RACF), who has also been pushing for segregated tracks in the area, said that the next step in the work—putting up signage—was crucial. “If signages are not put up, saying these are tracks for cycles, people will simply park their vehicles there,” he said.

At least 100 signages will be put up for the benefit of the people and 20 docking stations will also be provided for cycles, Murali added.

The BBMP official added that cycle track maps will also be put up for residents of Jayanagar, so that they can refer to it to plan their routes.

source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_jayanagar-cycle-track-to-be-ready-by-june-end_1703155

Now branded sand to solve your quality concerns

For those buying sand, but worried about its quality, a company has now come up with branded filter sand, though with a higher price tag. For construction companies and individuals hoping to build their dream homes, the quality of sand is a major concern.

MA Rajarajan hopes to address these concerns by selling them filtered sand in packets with the brand name, RNA River sand.

Rajarajan, who has been selling sand for construction purposes since 2008, said the idea was to be a first mover in this segment.

“I have been selling sand for a long time. With the general public moving towards branded things, it was time before sand, like cement companies, were formed. I wanted to be the first,” he said.

Considering that most people are ignorant with regard to differentiating filter sand and river sand, Rajarajan hopes they will move on to use this kind of sand, as it comes with the surety that they are using filter sand.

“When a consumer comes to us to buy sand, he can verify from which river the sand has come from and the date it was transported,” he said.

The sand is purified before it is sold in the market. “After we purchase the sand from people near the rivers who have the licence to extract sand, it is purified. We remove particles in the sand that will affect its quality,” he said.

The bags are sold in packets of 50 kg costing `130 per sack. Rajarajan concedes that the sand bought from RNA will be at least 8-10% costlier than sand bought loose. “However, consumers can save up to 27% as there will be no wastage at all. Not only is the sand already purified, because they are sold in sacks, it will not be lost,” he said.

Rajarajan added that he got the sand from the rivers Sambhaveera, Nethravathy and Tungabhadra at a cost of about Rs900 to Rs1,200 per load, from locals, including transportation of the material.

The company is hoping to do business with cement dealers so that consumers can have a one stop shop to buy cement and sand. Another advantage, according to Rajarajan is that by selling sand in 50kg sacks, consumers can buy it of the required quantity even for minor repairs.

source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_now-branded-sand-to-solve-your-quality-concerns_1702906

BJP getting ready for December elections?

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01115/16BGPAGE4-3_1115657f.jpg

The party high command sees advantage in going to the polls along with Gujarat....

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/karnataka/article3535612.ece

Imagine a Watson in your pocket

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01115/17BGMAN_VS_MACHINE_1115996f.jpg

IBM predicts consumers will carry a Watson in the pocket within a decade...........

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/karnataka/article3536888.ece

New fish species discovered

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The fish Dario urops after the Greek words meaning “tail” and “eye” to denote a conspicuous spot near its tail.

Scientists have discovered a new species of freshwater fish in an unnamed stream in the Western Ghats in southern Karnataka and have described their finding as “unexpected” in the latest edition of international taxonomy journal Zootaxa.

The fish, coloured yellowish beige with blue-gray fins and measuring not more than 3 cm, was collected from among tree roots that grew into the edge of the stream flowing off the Barapole tributary of the Valapattanam river and from the thick layers of leaf litter collected in depressions in the river bed.

Researchers have named the fish Dario urops after the Greek words meaning “tail” and “eye” to denote a conspicuous spot near its tail. “This is a significant discovery from a bio-geographic perspective as Dario urops is the first member of the Badidae family that has been described from the Western Ghats,” say the authors. The remaining 19 species within the family are distributed in the rivers of Eastern Himalayas and Indo-Burma, they add.

The research team comprised Ralf Britz from the Natural History Museum, London; Anvar Ali from the Conservation Research Group at St. Albert's College, Kochi; and Siby Philip from the University of Porto, Portugal.

Interestingly, Dario urops was first collected 130 years ago from Wayanad in Kerala by the British Zoologist Francis Day, who, however, did not make a formal description of the species. Ichthyologists, therefore, overlooked the fact that such a species existed.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3533296.ece

Suvarna Soudha Belgaum Dome getting ready


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Copyright All about belgaum

Belgaum suvarna soudha


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http://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/575123_10150899884593553_1415191332_n.jpg

Belgaum suvarna soudha

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Government's work is god's work :cheers:

Diamond Jubliee celebrations Vidhan Soudha

Vidhana Soudha is all set to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of Karnataka Legislature. It will be celebrated on Monday.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7103/7385441182_e51d2f7ded_b.jpg

Copyright KPN. (http://karnatakanews.com/thisweek.php?dispdt=2012-06-16)

The statue of Kengal Hanumanthaiah who is best remembered for his vision and contribution to the construction of Vidhana Soudha. Diamond Jubilee celebrations of Karnataka Legislature will be celebrated on Monday. --KPN

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8167/7385440762_4eafb7def5_b.jpg

Copyright Karnataka news (http://karnatakanews.com/thisweek.php?dispdt=2012-06-16)

This device tracks road accidents

BANGALORE: He saw his sister suffering from pain after she met with an accident and couldn't access medical help on time. This prompted Bharath Venkatesh and his like-minded friend ER Sujay to come out with a software called the 'Accident Tracking System' (ATS).

A year ago, when Bharath's sister met with the accident in Mysore, it took close to three hours to track her and most hospitals rejected admission. Due to the delay, she slipped into coma for two months. She came out of that, but couldn't walk or move her hands properly. She was in hospital for nearly six months because of severe head injuries. The family has already spent Rs 15 lakh, and in a couple of weeks, she will be undergoing three more surgeries, which will cost them another Rs 8 lakh.

After attending to his sister for four months, Bharath realized she wasn't the only one suffering like this because hundreds of accidents go unreported and victims are not treated on time.

He and his friend Sujay, both techies in Bangalore, designed a software to help track road accidents, inform the victim's family and notify hospitals nearby. Quoting a recent article from a daily, Bharath said: "India spends about Rs 1 lakh crore every year on accidental treatments. This doesn't include unreported mishaps. If people invest in this software, we will be able to save many lives with minimal cost."


source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/This-device-tracks-road-accidents/articleshow/14224911.cms

Signal-free corridor may eat into Lalbagh

BANGALORE: The controversial signal-free corridor proposed from Sirsi Circle to Agara is likely to eat into Bangalore's landmark Lalbagh Botanical Gardens.
On Sunday, a meeting of Koramangala Infrastructure Task Force realized that the corridor is not only a threat to 88 trees on Sarjapur Road but will also result in acquisition of land at two gates of Lalbagh: the east gate opening into Kengal Hanumantaiah Road and the main gate opening into Lalbagh Main Road. "We have got a copy of the detailed project report, in accordance with HC directive to the BDA. The land acquisition map that is part of the report shows that at least two acres of land belonging to Lalbagh will have to be acquired for the project," a task force member told TOI.

The corridor, beginning at Sirsi Circle on Mysore Road, will be 100 feet or 33 metres wide. It will pass through Lalbagh Fort Road, Hosur Road and Sarjapur Road. BDA officials were unavailable for comment on land acquisition of Lalbagh .

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Signal-free-corridor-may-eat-into-Lalbagh/articleshow/14220193.cms

Arkavathy river to be rejuvenated

BANGALORE: The government's ambitious plan to revive Arkavathy river as a long-term choice to meet the city's drinking water needs is gradually turning into reality.

On Sunday, chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda laid the foundation for the project at Hesaraghatta. Undertaken by Cauvery Neeravari Nigam (CNN), it is expected to be completed in nine months.

The Rs 22.43-crore project looks at desilting and reviving three stretches of Arkavathy river. "The Arkavathy river rejuvenation project will increase drinking water to the city at Tippagondanahalli reservoir, and also replenish the groundwater table," said a CNN engineer.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Arkavathy-river-to-be-rejuvenated/articleshow/14220050.cms

BSR Congress takes off in Karnataka on lines of YSR congress

Bangalore: After undertaking a 921 km padayatra spanning over 54 days, former BJP leader B Sreeramulu, a close associate of jailed former minister and mining baron G Janardhana Reddy officially launched his new party - BSR -on the lines of YSR Congress in Andhra Pradesh, owned by YSR's son Jagan Mohan Reddy.

After launching the party at a mammoth rally at the Freedom Park in Bangalore on Monday, Sriramulu said with his new party he is dreaming of building a "nava Karnataka" by working towards poor, labourers and farmers.
Like the YSR Congress in AP, which swept the recent by-election to the State assembly, Sriramulu and his growing supporters are hoping the BSR Congress will be able to replicate its performance in Karnataka in the coming assembly polls.

Though Sriramulu originally christened the party after his name, as a political Strategy, he later renamed the party as Badavaru (poor), Shramikaru (working class) and Raitharu (BSR) to portray himself as the champion of Backward and suppressed Classes.

There is all the likelihood of YSR Congress and BSR Congress will eventually merge to fight for a common cause both in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, sources said.
Apparently, Sreeramulu is playing AP politics in Karnataka. Emulating Jagan, Sriramulu had undertaken padayatra from Bidar to Bangalore to drum up support for his new party. Jagan went on a tour cum padayatra in AP to express his gratitude to the love and affection shown by the people towards his father YSR.

But Can Sreeramulu do what Jagan did in AP? Political Experts are quite skeptical. Undoubtedly, Sreeramulu is coming out of Reddy brothers' shadow and has signaled the emergence of a leader after his massive victory in the Bellary by-poll.

But to emerge as champion of backward or suppress classes, they say Sreeramulu still has a long way to go. D. Devaraj Urs, who is known as the great champion of backward classes took years of hard work to earn that recognition. One Padayatra and mega rally definitely won't take Sreeramulu to that level. He just needs to be patient and really work hard to get there,'' said

Moreover, experts also argue that there is vast difference to politics of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Jagan enjoyed huge sympathy factor triggered by the untimely demise of YSR and his subsequent arrest. But for Sriramulu, it is not the same here. If BSR Congress is assuming that Janardahan Reddy's stint in Jail will work in their favour in the 2013 assembly election or even earlier, they are in for a big trouble.

Voters in Karnataka are well aware that Janardhan Reddy of their clout in Bellary and charges against them in illegal mining. So it's not easy task for them to influence the voters,''

But certainly, BSR Congress cannot be written off. In his brief politicking since 2008, Sreeramulu has managed to earn sizaebale support of backward class people besides his own Valmiki community, which is present in sizeable numbers in Bellary, Chitradurga, Mysore and Chamarajanagar districts.

If Sreeramulu can really mange to translate all this support into vote in the next assembly polls, he could play a decisive role especially in the event of a fractured verdict that several political pundits are already predicting.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/BSR-Congress-takes-off-in-Karnataka-on-lines-of-YSR-congress/articleshow/14206231.cms

CET document verification

The document verification of special category students for the Common Entrance Test online counselling will start on Monday.

Documents of physically disabled candidates will be verified at 11 am on the first day. NCC candidates will have to get their documents verified on June 19 and sports candidates (barring national participants) on June 20. The verification will be conducted only at the Bangalore centre of the Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA).

Students of other special categories viz Defence, Ex-Defence, Scouts and Guides, Anglo
Indians, Jammu and Kashmir migrants, CAPF, NCC ‘B’ certificate holders, national participants in sports who have already submitted their documents to KEA and received the acknowledgement, will have to get their documents verified again during the general verification on June 25.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257726/cet-document-verification.html

sakkath pics...best state legislature by far..

Early assembly polls will not worry BJP:Sadananda Gowda

Maintaining that early elections to the assembly would not "worry" the state BJP, Karnataka Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda today said it was left to the Election Commission to take a decision on the matter.

"Early election to the state assembly will not worry the state BJP if the Election Commission declares polls along with other states," he told reporters on the sidelines of a private function here.

It was left to the Election Commission to decide on declaring early polls, Gowda added. Replying to a query, Gowda said a final decision would be taken on cabinet expansion after consulting BJP's central leadership.

"It should have been done by now, but couldn't materialise in the event of new hurdles cropping up time and again. Final decision on the issue will be taken after deliberating with central leadership," he said.

Gowda also said he was visiting New Delhi to participate in deliberations on choosing NDA's Presidential candidate.

On delayed arrival of monsoon in the state, Gowda said he expected good rainfall that would make farmers happy.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257623/early-assembly-polls-not-worry.html

Officials, civil society join hands to restore wildlife corridor

Govt declares Kaniyanapura and nearby villages as reserve forest

This is one classic example of how concerted efforts by government officials and civil society can make a difference to conservation.

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Sustained pursuance of the case by a few bureaucrats and wildlife activists has ensured that revenue land, over 5,000 acres, falling in a critical wildlife corridor at Kaniyanapura is declared a reserve forest. The efforts bring to an end the two-decade old issue of protecting the Kaniyanapura elephant corridor - which links Bandipur Tiger Reserve and Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu.

Kaushik Mukherjee, former additional chief secretary, B J Hosmath, field director, Project Tiger, Sanjay Gubbi, member, State Board for Wildlife, Basavaraju, assistant commissioner, Kollegal and Manjunath, tahsildar, Gundlupet have together got thousands of acres of revenue land, which had features of forest, declared reserve forest.

“A notification under Section 4 of Karnataka Forest Act has been issued with an intention to provide legal status to this forest patch,” Kumar Pushkar, Chief Conservator of Forests, Bandipur Tiger Reserve, told Deccan Herald. The notification - dated February 2, 2012 - grants reserve forest status to more than 5,000 acres of revenue land to ensure their protection.

Pushkar said the corridor was very important as far as wildlife protection is concerned as almost all animals, including tiger and elephant, use this stretch for their movement. He said declaring such a huge stretch of land as reserve forest was not an easy task. Not doing so would have been a great loss to wildlife as the notified area binds north and south ears of the corridor, he said.

“This area had become a hub of numerous activities. We would have lost the habitat. By declaring it reserve forest, we have secured it for wildlife,” he said.
“This is the patch which connects Biligirirangana Hills Tiger Reserve and Satyamangala forest with Nagarhole and Bandipur,” he added.

The revenue land falling in the limits of Chikyelchetti, Bachalli, Kebbepura, Kaniyanpura, Mangala, Yeriyur, Heggavadi and Kundukere villages have forests that connected the two important protected areas within the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.

“Despite a Supreme Court order that land with characteristics of forests should not be diverted for non-forestry activities without proper permissions, several resorts and private farms had come up here. Many of them were illegal and had reduced the corridor to a chicken neck in some locations,” explained a wildlife expert who has conducted a study of this corridor.

Sanjay Gubbi conducted a quick survey of the area with the help of volunteers from Vanya and Aranya wildlife groups in 2011. An area of 9,662.3 acres was found to have forest cover and a report was submitted to the government recommending that these areas be declared reserved forest.

Finding that an area of 5,599.05 acres was not diverted to private use, the department officials made a proposal to the government to declare it reserved forest under the Karnataka Forest Act, 1963. This finally led to the notification declaring the area as reserve forest.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257712/officials-civil-society-join-hands.html

Steps initiated to revive Arkavathi

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01117/18BGARKAVATHY_RIVE_1117288f.jpg
Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda (third from left), Home Minister R. Ashok (left), Union Minister M. Veerappa Moily, Water Resources Minister Basavaraj Bommai, and the former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa inaugurating a project to rejuvenate Arkavathi river at Hesarghatta in Bangalore on Sunday

State's water requirement increasing, says Minister Bommai

“Karnataka is a water deficit State. If we do not take action now, the situation will aggravate further,” Minister for Water Resources Basavaraj Bommai said on Sunday.

Speaking at a function organised to lay the foundation stone for the rejuvenation of the Arkavathi at Hesarghatta near here, Mr. Bommai said that the water requirement of the State had been increasing.

If the initiative to rejuvenate the Arkavathi succeeds, it would not only help address the irrigation needs of farmers in the surrounding areas but also meet the water requirements of Bangalore, Tumkur, Chickballapur, Chitradurga and Kolar.

Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, Union Minister for Corporate Affairs M. Veerappa Moily, the former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa and Home and Transport Minister R. Ashok were present at the foundation stone-laying ceremony.

Mr. Sadananda Gowda hoped that the project would be completed in a year and sought the support of the people. He hoped that the project will bring to an end the water shortage in the area and promised full support of the Government for the early completion of the project.

According to M.A. Sadiq, managing director of Cauvery Neeravari Nigam, the Government sanctioned Rs. 22.43 crore for the project in October 2011. Mr. Sadiq said that the river, once the lifeline of this area, went dry as the groundwater table depleted on account of indiscriminate drilling of borewells.

The project seeks to essentially identify the feeder streams leading to the river and remove silt from the streams to ensure free flow of water to the river, besides removing all encroachments in the river course.

Highlighting the water problems in the State, Mr. Yeddurappa emphasised that water problems need immediate attention.

Mr. Moily also urged the State to set up a task force to monitor the process every fortnight. He said that he would ask the Union Government to support this project.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3541875.ece

You can shop for quality mangoes at Lalbagh

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01116/17BGMANGO-CITY_1116600f.jpg

Straight from the orchards across Karnataka and elsewhere, naturally ripened, quality mangoes have arrived at the Mango Mela, currently under way at the Lalbagh Botanical Gardens here.

Farmers participating in the mela have said that this was among the best lot of king of fruits, as most of the mangoes now available have been allowed to ripen on the tree. “These mangoes are the best since and fresh,” said Srinivas, a mango farmer from Chintamani in Kolar.

Apart from the delicious Langra and Dasheri, from as far as Madhya Pradesh, to organic varieties, the Mango Mela, organised by the Horticulture Department since June 1, also has the more familiar Raspuri, Mallika, Neelam, Sendura and Chakkaregutti among others.

According to Horticulture Department Additional Director (Fruits) S.V. Hittalmani, farmers have so far sold over 800 tonnes of mangoes at the mela, and it is expected to cross 1,000 tonnes in a day or two. “Farmers get to make a profit between 75 per cent and 80 per cent as against 20 per cent if they sell at the APMC yard,” he added.

FARMERS DISAPPOINTED

Despite quality mangoes being on offer, farmers have expressed disappointment over customer turnout. “I came in the hope of good sales, but the business has been slow compared to last year,” Veneet Potharaju told The Hindu. Farmers also say the number of sellers this year is also more than last year’s.

Mela to be extended

The Mango Mela, which was to end on June 24, is likely to be extended to June 27. According to Horticulture Department Additional Director (Fruits) S.V. Hittalmani, the mela will be extended to benefit farmers.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3539408.ece

KSCA launches new academy in Bangalore

The Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) has formally launched its academy in Bangalore, the first of a series of centres it plans to set up across the state. Its USP will rest on two principles: avoiding the traditional focus on age-group representation, and decentralising its coaching structure away from Bangalore and to other towns in Karnataka.

Javagal Srinath, the former India fast bowler and current KSCA secretary, said around 360 teenage cricketers from around Karnataka had been picked for the first batch of the Royal Challengers KSCA academy, which is sponsored by the UB group, owners of the Bangalore IPL franchise. The academy hub will be at a 33-acre property in Alur, on the outskirts of Bangalore, where the KSCA has developed three grounds.

One of the main aims of the academy was to enhance the talent pool available in the state, Srinath said. "We are trying to invest at least three years in each student we pick. What used to happen until now was that those who don't make it after the age-group selection vanish (they are no longer in the system). The dearth of prominent cricketers from Karnataka in the past 14-16 years, for me, is because of the overemphasis on representation."

A little over a decade ago, the Indian team regularly featured three or four Karnataka players, but since then cricketers from the state, such as Robin Uthappa and fast bowlers Vinay Kumar and Abhimanyu Mithun, have struggled to become permanent members of the national team.

Srinath said the academy, which will function throughout the year, will provide coaching and cricket facilities even to those who don't make the state teams at the age-group level. "The boy has to be patient - and so must the parents, who are the biggest stakeholders. All they should worry about is whether the players' skills are being developed."

Convincing students and their parents to stick with the game is one way to increase the available talent; providing top-quality infrastructure to the smaller cities in the state is another. Satellite academies are coming up in six other cities: Mysore, Shimoga, Mangalore, Tumkur, Hubli and Raichur. The Mysore branch will be inaugurated later this week.

"I come from Mysore and I always had this grouse that the infrastructure in Mysore is not as good as it is in Bangalore," Srinath said. "The lack of infrastructure gave me a false belief that my talent was not as good as those that are playing in Bangalore but now nobody in the smaller towns can complain about it."

The move to set up satellite academies is an addition to other attempts to spread the game in the state. The Karnataka Premier League, a Twenty20 league that featured teams from eight different zones in the state, has had two seasons in 2009 and 2010. Last year, a Ranji Trophy match was held in Shimoga for the first time in 32 years.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/story/568913.html

Good work Javagal Srinath,Instrumentation engineer SJCE Mysore :cheers:

http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/270804_250038445097591_707068911_n.jpg

^^ :lol: am about to post in wall painting thread..100 varsha ayassu

below is what written

ಮಯಿಷಾಸುರ(mayishaasura)
ಬಿ.ಬಿ.ಎಂ.ಪಿ (BBMP)
ಆಯುಕ್ತರು (commissioner)

guys is there any other city in India which derives its name from a demon's name?

Mysore is one!..Mahishashurana ooru....= Mahisuru

77% of IIT toppers go to Bombay, 19% pick Delhi (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/86-of-IIT-JEEs-top-100-opt-for-IIT-Bombay/articleshow/14253544.cms)
Yogita Rao TNN

Mumbai: IIT-Bombay retains its favourite position with top rankers while IITDelhi has further slipped in the preference list. This year, 77 aspirants from the top 100 IIT-JEE ranks were allotted seats in IIT-B, up from last year’s 70.

IIT-B was in fact the first choice of 86 of the top 100 candidates this year, though only 77 were given seats. In 2010, 67 of the first 100 had opted for IIT-Bombay. IITDelhi saw a dip in the numbers of top rankers opting for the institute this year, from last year’s 24 to 19. Just 12 of the top ranking candidates filled IIT-Delhi as their first choice. The three female candidates in the top 100 also opted for IIT-Bombay.

Among the top 1,000 candidates too, around 285 opted for IIT-B followed by 224 in IIT-D. “Several factors like the location and climate are also in favour of the institute at Mumbai. The choices of top 100 students do not mean anything. Many students qualifying from the south with see Mumbai as a closer option than travelling to the north. It does not reflect on the institute,” said an official at IIT-Delhi.

About a decade ago, IITKanpur was the preferred destination for most of the top 100 rankers in JEE. But since 2005, the trend has gradually changed in favour of IIT-B. This year only three candidates from the top 100 went to IIT-K. A total of 8,593 boys and 907 girls were allotted seats in the first round of admissions to IITs, which started Sunday after a threeday delay.

A whopping 1,476 candidates of the 17,465 shortlisted for counselling, opted out of it. Out of the top 100 too, rank 69, has opted out of IITs.

While Arpit Agrawal, the IIT-JEE-2012 topper opted for IIT-Delhi, the next eight ranks after him chose IITBombay. Nishit Agrawal, all-India rank 6 and Mumbai zone topper was the only student to opt for electrical engineering, rest of the top 10 chose Computer Science and Engineering (CSE).

CSE was among the most popular choices at IIT-B and IIT-D followed by electrical, mechanical and aerospace engineering at IIT-B.
If only bangalore had an IIT.. let us see how new iit hyderabad fares :ohno:

Breathe easy, valleys to be rid of sewage water

While the BBMP doesn't want its men to clean unhygienic storm water drains, BWSSB has chalked out a plan to ensure that crucial storm water valley systems are free of sewage water.

BWSSB wants to divert as much sewage water as possible from the major storm water drain valleys of Koramangala, Challaghatta , Hebbal and Vrishabhavati. While the work on cleaning up Challaghatta Valley is almost over, Koramangala valley will be ready by this month-end . The Hebbal Valley will be rid of sewage by September, while Vrishabhavati Valley will be completed by next year.

The projects to clean up storm water valleys had been taken up under Environment Action Plan (EAP) Part A in 2004, but it was taken up again in 2010 as there was no progress. BWSSB chairman Gaurav Gupta told TOI that works had been speeded up internally and the board has set an internal target to ensure zero sewage flow into storm water drains and lakes of these valleys before monsoon this year. The project had gone slow mainly because BWSSB was unable to locate trunk sewers, while the other utilities were not ready to disturb power transmission lines and allow digging roads.

The project entails replacing sewer lines spanning a length of 22.41 km. "We were hindered by a number of utilities and our own departmental flaws. But now we have been able to overcome all stumbling blocks and make sure that before this monsoon, the stench in these valleys will be minimized," Gupta told TOI.

He said the new trunk sewers and arterial sewers in the sewerage network are more than 2.4 metres in diameter and have a longer service life. The older sewers had either been corroded or are choking with silt, rendering them useless. Besides, sewage from Halasuru did not flow into the Challaghatta lake, throwing a pall of stench over Halasuru.

Gupta said, "We found that most lateral sewage lines were not connected to the trunk sewers and the main trunk sewers were corroded or choking. The whole work was tedious but I have made it a point to complete it this year. Otherwise another monsoon will make the situation worse."

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Breathe-easy-valleys-to-be-rid-of-sewage-water/articleshow/14257297.cms

Gulbarga airport to be ready by August 15

The greenfield Gulbarga Airport is likely to be operational by August 15 as the civil works have neared completion.

If all goes well, the Regional Airport Holding International (RAHI), which is entrusted with the project, will start operations of its mini aircraft in the second week of August, said Deputy Commissioner Dr R Vishal on Monday.

Umesh Baweja, chairperson of RAHI, said work on supply of power and water is in progress. He said a 1,200-metre stretch of the 1,900-metre runway is ready and work on the remaining 700 m will be completed in three weeks.

Baweja said the RAHI has submitted a proposal to the State government, seeking an ad hoc subsidy to run the small aircraft for about six months initially. To begin with, a 10-seater aircraft will operate from Gulbarga to Bangalore via Bellary, and later 42-seater aircraft will be commissioned.

“Regional airports do not seem viable in India. Out of the 81 regional airports, 71 have become defunct and hence, we have sought an ad hoc subsidy to keep the services intact for a few months till the traffic picks up,” Baweja said. However, he did not disclose the quantum of subsidy sought by RAHI.

He said the estimated fare between Gulbarga and Bangalore will be between Rs 10,000 and Rs 15,000 per passenger, initially.

Shimoga airport

To a question, Baweja said work on the airport in Shimoga is tardy due to several major problems. A 400 KV high tension power line passing through the airport site cannot be shifted.

Refusing to divulge other problems, he said that efforts were on to overcome the barriers and complete the work by March-end, 2013.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257978/gulbarga-airport-ready-august-15.html

Realty booms in north Bangalore

Nearly four years after the Bangalore International Airport started its operations, Bangalore’s northern corridor has now witnessed a boom in realty. The realty in the area, including residential, commercial and hospitality have all picked up dramatically.

“The northern corridor is becoming one of the fast emerging commercial and residential hubs. The Hebbal-Devanahalli stretch has attracted many projects due to the availability of land and improving infrastructure. The improved connectivity to the international airport has further triggered the rush to the northern corridor,” suggests Knight Frank India’s latest residential traction report.

As per the report, North Bangalore stands second after South, in the micro-market split of launched units in FY 2012. While West Bangalore scores the lowest on this scale, with 2 percent, East at 19 per cent, North at 33 per cent and South leads the pack with 46 per cent.

Also, the announcement of KIADB Park, Aerotropolis, ITIR Region, Devanahalli Business Park, proposed malls and hospitality projects have further added to the popularity. “The scope for capital value appreciation on this stretch is also attracting a lot of attention from buyers,” the report states.

Many realtors opined that the next growth direction for Bangalore would be the North East (NE) quadrant- Old Madras Road and Bangalore North (Hennur Road, Thanisandra Road and Bellary Road).

“The long term potential of this micro-market is very high. Interestingly, while earlier North Bangalore comprised 10 per cent market share, it now holds 30 per cent. The capital value also has increased from Rs 2,300-2,400 per sq ft to Rs 6,000 per sq ft,” explained Shrinivas Rao, CEO-Asia Pacific, Vestian Global. “In the commercial segment, although many projects have been announced, nothing has taken off. In terms of infrastructure development, North Bangalore scores high,” he added.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article545673.ece

Diamond jubilee celebrations

http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/1181/120617kpn62.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/215/120617kpn62.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

http://karnatakanews.com/thisweek.php?dispdt=2012-06-17

German companies eye Karnataka for more investments

Bangalore, June 19:

German companies are looking to increase their investments in Karnataka. According to Dr Ingo Karsten, Consul General of the Federal Republic of Germany, companies such as Siemens, Bosch, Bayer, Airbus, Metro and SAP are looking to invest in the State across sectors like IT, manufacturing, aerospace, automotive components and electrical engineering .

In 2011, Bangalore attracted investments to the tune of $8.6 million and a share of 4.3 per cent, as per Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Government of India.

Apart from these investments, German companies plan to invest in sectors like solar energy and urban city planning and development projects. “Since there is large migration into urban cities, German companies are looking to invest in new technologies like pollution control, energy management and related areas to make life in cities liveable,” said Dr Karsten.

The German companies will showcase their wares during the Indo-German Urban Mela, which will be held from June 22 to July 1 in Bangalore.

This, according to industry watchers also provides a boost to the bilateral trade targets set between India and Germany. Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Anand Sharma, during his visit to Germany last month, had expressed confidence that bilateral trade target between India and Germany would surpass the $26 billion target by the end of this year.

Bilateral trade between the countries has more than doubled over the last 5 years and has reached bout $23.64 billion at the end of 2011. There are 150 German companies active in India and employing 6,000 people in R&D.

Dr Karsten said, with these additional investments, more jobs will be created
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/economy/article3547352.ece?homepage=true&ref=wl_home

Jayanagar cycle track to be ready by June-end

When the Jayanagar cycle track project was announced, it was purported to be a ‘model’ for others. In a city where walking itself was a problem, here was an initiative that would help you cycle through the traffic of Jayanagar.

But seven months after the project was announced and four months after it missed its deadline, not only is the project yet to be completed, most people are not even aware of it.

Envisaged as a segregated track, the project was supposed to benefit many school children who were forced to cycle to their schools through dangerous roads, and also make sure that residents did not use cars and bikes, at least to travel around Jayanagar.

It was supposed to be finished in three months, after its launch in November. But seven months have passed and schools have even reopened after vacations, but the streets of Jayanagar are yet to be cycle-friendly.

Officials in the BBMP, working on the project claim that only 30% of the work was remaining and the cycle track will be opened to public soon. “Pedestrian crossings are ready and we have begun painting roads. All that is remaining now is putting up signages and setting up docking stations for the cycles. It will be completed within this month itself,” he said.

Murali of Ride a Cycle Foundation (RACF), who has also been pushing for segregated tracks in the area, said that the next step in the work—putting up signage—was crucial. “If signages are not put up, saying these are tracks for cycles, people will simply park their vehicles there,” he said.

At least 100 signages will be put up for the benefit of the people and 20 docking stations will also be provided for cycles, Murali added.

The BBMP official added that cycle track maps will also be put up for residents of Jayanagar, so that they can refer to it to plan their routes
http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_jayanagar-cycle-track-to-be-ready-by-june-end_1703155

CET document verification



source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/257726/cet-document-verification.html

Hundreds of fake OBC quota IIT aspirants back out of Joint Entrance Exams

NEW DELHI: Eight hundred IIT aspirants from the other backward classes (OBC), who made it past the Joint Entrance Exams, have stopped short of pressing their claim for the coveted admissions this year. This is a direct fallout of the JEE Committee slamming down on fake certificates. JEE is the body that administers joint entrance exams for all IITs and a few other institutes.

Of the total 4.8 lakh students who appeared for the JEE, 4,805 OBC candidates got through. After the withdrawals, only 4,000 remained in the fray for the 2,604 IIT seats available in this category. All these seats have just been filled this week in the first round of counselling.

"A majority (of those who withdrew) did fear their chances of getting into IITs might fall due to fake certificates," says GB Reddy, organising chairman of IIT-JEE 2012.

Effectively, one out of six OBC candidates who made it past the highly-competitive exams had pulled out or requested to be transferred to the general category, where they had to compete for an IIT seat on merit without the advantage of any reservation.

Life ban threat worked

Two hundred students asked to be considered under the general category, withdrawing their claim under the OBC quota for the first time ever. The remaining 600 students who had applied under the quota did not register for counselling. This figure is at least 500 more than the withdrawals seen last year.

This year, IIT-JEE had came down hard against fake certificates and warned that such candidates, if detected, would be barred from IITs for life. There was also another reason for the withdrawals. Even within the OBC category, those coming from families with household income of less than Rs 4.5 lakh (excluding salary from a government job and agriculture) are considered under the non-creamy layer category and are eligible for reservation for government-sponsored educational and professional benefit programmes.

There was a proposal to revise this to Rs 9 lakh and Rs 12 lakh for rural and urban centres. But this did not materialise. Candidates who had applied expecting this may also have pulled out later. "A warning was issued following some complaints from individuals, after the application process started, who called in to say many candidates who were claiming to be under the OBC category (non-creamy layer) did not belong to the category. The committee then cross-checked with the OBC Commission's website and found it was true. Hence, we issued a warning," says Prof RK Shevgaonkar, director, IIT-Delhi, which is the organising institute for this year's JEE.

Students who qualify under different reserved categories need to submit their category certificates by post at the time of counselling. Registration for counselling in all engineering colleges that accept JEE scores ended on June 10, and the first round of final seat allotment was announced on June 17. About 5.07 lakh students had applied for IITJEE this year. A total of 9,647 seats are available across 17 institutes, including the IITs, IT-BHU Varanasi and ISM Dhanbad.

Wish we implement this in Karnataka CET

Get medicines at half market price

BANGALORE: From common cold to HIV, buy medicines at half the price of the market value soon. Medical education minister SA Ramdas on Tuesday said the government will introduce generic drugs at Victoria Hospital from June 21.

"Chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda will inaugurate the first Janatha Bazaar generic drug store at the hospital on June 21. Subsequently, the facility will be made available in all hospitals coming under the medical education department. It will also be implemented in hospitals under the department of health and family welfare in due course," said the minister.

Novel initiative

The scheme has been initiated for the first time in the state in collaboration with Karnataka State Co-operative Consumer Federation Ltd, following the WHO guidelines to reach medicines to the most number of patients.

"Even branded, surgical and essential drugs and orthopaedic implants will be made available in Janatha Bazaar generic drug stores at 50% less price than the MRP," said Ramdas.

Defaulting doctors to face music

The government is all set to crack the whip on doctors who refuse to go to villages. An ordinance which will make it mandatory for government medical college doctors to work in rural areas will be brought out on June 21. Penalty for a postgraduate doctor will be Rs 25 lakh, for a PG diploma holder, it'll be Rs 15 lakh and for an MBBS doctor Rs 10 lakh, said Ramdas. There are 2,316 primary healthcare centres (PHCs) in rural Karnataka, which require 1,250 doctors.

Holistic healing in govt hospitals

Hospitals under the medical education department will soon have holistic medical centres. Ramdas said a four-member committee has been set up by the government, which will submit its report on July 15.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Get-medicines-at-half-market-price/articleshow/14282204.cms

Shake hands with Germany

BANGALORE: StadtRaume translates as CitySpaces and defines the theme of the Indo-German Urban Mela. This celebration comes to light as India and Germany mark 60 years of diplomatic relations. "The 10-day Urban Mela starting June 22 is an endeavour to strengthen the strategic partnership between India and Germany," said Ingo Karsten, consul general of the Federal Republic of Germany in India.

It emerged at the launch that Germans hold Indian culture in high esteem. "But younger people from India and Germany are not as well acquainted with each other as the older generation. Huge potential for cooperation can be tapped between the two countries in technology, science, culture and entertainment," said Karsten.

All this in a masterful installation conceptualized and created by German artist Markus Heindorff. "Before conceptualizing these movable pavilions, I went to Munich to the Indo-German library to study the nuances of Indian culture. I saw lots of pictures of elephants and gemstones. With this cultural understanding, I created two simulations - one for the day and the other for the night," he explained.

Slated to come alive at these dazzling pavilions are interesting collaborative perspectives on technology, science, culture and entertainment.

Addressing the importance of education through the Youth University pavilion, Anandi Iyer, representative, Germany-India, 2011-2012, said: "Bangalore is the capital for science, technology, IT and BT. In Germany, academic, industry and educational sections work as an eco-system in building the value chain. As part of our Youth University science lab, we want to examine how the city's future can be made sustainable. We also hope to attract interns and students to Germany through this partnership."

The 10-day mela managed by Max Mueller Bhavan will see several cultural events. Said Christoph Bertrams, director, Max Mueller Bhavan, Bangalore: "Dancer Samir Akika is collaborating with Attakalari to do the opening piece; heavy metal band Arkadius is working with Bangalore's Kryptos; Prakash Sontakke and his group will compose music for a German silent film. There's football fever, break dance, stilt walkers, clowns and flash dancers. And our mela jockeys will escort guests through the stalls."

All you need to do is walk in between 10am and 10pm - it's free, except for the beer and food at the Bavarian-styled Beer Garden!

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Shake-hands-with-Germany/articleshow/14281962.cms

Bangalore college shines at international competition

BANGALORE: A team from Jain University- School of Engineering and Technology won two places at the SAE Aero Design held at Atlanta, USA. SAE Aero Design is a highly coveted event endorsed by industry giants like NASA, Boeing and Lockheed Martin with participants from all around the world.
The team Drone from Jain won the prize in the Micro Class category. Here the teams were required to make a trade-off between two potentially conflicting requirements, carrying the highest payload possible while simultaneously pursuing the lowest empty weight. Additionally the system (aircraft model) should be capable of being assembled within minutes and of being packaged within a box of size 24 X 18 X 8 inches.

The aircraft would be launched either by hand, or by use of an engineered launching system with-out the use of a runway for take-off and land within 200 feet. The event included a design report submission, technical presentation, review and inspection of the system built alongside flying that was peer reviewed by experts.

The team used a mixture of traditional materials like Balsa wood and white glue with new age materials like carbon fibre to design and fabricate a crash worthy aircraft of over a meter in wing span in less than 350 grams. "The aircraft could carry a payload of 1.3kg that is almost 3.7 times its own weight over a marked path in the competition at least three times. With the best in the class of electronics, the aircraft could be flight ready from the box under a minute and could be recharged to full battery within 2 minutes," the team said.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Bangalore-college-shines-at-international-competition/articleshow/14270931.cms

Now, boulevard on Sankey Tank Road

Greens had opposed axing of trees to widen the stretch, but HC okayed it

The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which felled several trees to widen the Sankey Tank Bund Road, is likely to beautify the stretch by developing a boulevard.

http://www.deccanherald.com/images/editor_images1/2012/06/20/sanky-tank.jpg

The High Court of Karnataka, ruling in favour of the road widening project eight months ago, had cleared the decks for the controversial project, which was opposed vehemently by green activists and residents.

In order to compensate for the loss of green cover in the area, the BBMP has now decided to beautify the road using the five-metre space that will be available after widening the road.
According to a Palike official, the BBMP intends to widen the road by 15 metres. The additional five-metre space available will be utilised for landscaping and greenery.”

Spot survey

The Palike, earlier this month, had done a spot survey to ascertain the possibilities of strengthening the tank bund and for the beautification of the widened road.

“The inspection team had discussed the matter, keeping in mind the loss of the sole boulevard on MG Road, sacrificed for the construction of Namma Metro,” said the official.

Accordingly, the BBMP has embarked upon a proposal to restore the boulevard, with the help of B S Srinivasmurthy, a professor at Indian Institute of Science (IISc).

The proposal has also sought an ‘alternative’ plan for the strengthening of the bund, at a
lesser cost to the Palike.

“Our initial plan was to lay a concrete retaining wall with a six-foot foundation. This would mean that the retaining wall would go up to as high as 50 feet. The ripple effect of this plan would have been felt on the BBMP coffers.

“To reduce the cost, we have sought the intervention of the Indian Institute of Science for an alternative for strengthening the wall, before we commence the road widening work,” the official said. The Sankey Tank Bund Road widening project is expected to commence next month.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/258288/now-boulevard-sankey-tank-road.html

A NEW ADDITION TO THIS THREAD,DAILY WEATHER UPDATES FOR YOU ALL. :banana:

http://www.deccanheraldepaper.com/pdf/2012/06/21/20120621a_006100011.jpg

Copyright Deccan Herald

Petrol prices, which were hiked by Rs 7.50 last month, is likely to come down by Rs 4 in the state. The relief is likely to be announced soon. The state government has already indicated that it would bring down the sales tax on petrol which is one of the highest in the country. The Union government is expected to bring down petrol prices by Rs 2 in another few days with the global crude oil prices going down. The state government charges over 25 percent sales tax on petrol making it the most expensive in the country. Uttarakhand and Kerala governments waived sales tax on petrol last month, followed by Delhi on Sunday.

Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda has indicated that the sales tax on petrol will be rolled back soon. Experts suggested that there could be a rollback of around Rs 1.25 in the sales tax in the state. Bangalore Petroleum Dealers’ Association President B.R. Ravindranath said: “Sales tax will be rolled back as the chief minister has already announced it. But we are not sure of the extent of rollback. We anticipate that the price of petrol will be reduced by about Rs 4 as the Union government too plans to reduce petrol price.”

The Bangalore Petroleum Dealers’ Association has also proposed that the government should stop collecting entry tax on diesel as Karnataka is the only state that has imposed it. “If the state government rolls back entry tax by Rs 2, the cost of petro products, including diesel, will be on a par with other states. This will bring more revenue to the state as the sales of diesel will go up. We also requested the state government to stop collection of entry tax on diesel on a pilot basis for six months. According to our study, the government will earn Rs 100 crore more through this. Now, vehicles filling diesel in the state have to pay 5 percent entry tax on diesel which is repelling most of them to other neighboring states,” he said.
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/petrol-prices-may-fall-another-rs-4-216

City bus service in Mandya soon

New regional office of Pollution Control Board opened

Home Minister R Ashok said that the city bus service would be launched in Mandya city in a week’s time.

Speaking to mediapersons in Mandya on Wednesday, he said the long pending demand of the residents seeking city bus service will become a reality soon.

A meeting would be convened to discuss the drought situation in the state and other projects in progress. He also directed the APMD officials to take steps to clean the sites of labourers and handover them.

The stone quarrying will be implemented as suggested by the Supreme Court. The SC order cannot be violated just because some people are protesting against it, he stated.

He inaugurated the new regional office of the pollution control board and said it is the duty
of everyone to protect the environment. The state government too has implemented several projects in this regard. With the opening of new office, pollution control board can serve better for the society, he said.

MLA M Srinivas, CADA president D Ramalingaiah, Mysugar chairman Nagarajappa, pollution control board President Sadashivaiah, deputy commissioner B N Krishnaiah, ZP CEO P C Jayanna and others were present.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/258464/city-bus-service-mandya-soon.html

The BMTC will have the longest bus in its fleet by next week.

P B Ramamurthy, Principal Secretary, Transport Department, and KSRTC Vice-Chairperson said on Wednesday that the 14.5-metre-long bus will hit the road next week on a pilot basis.

Speaking on the sidelines of a seminar on “Green Economy: The way forward for sustainable public transport,” Ramamurthy said the existing 12-metre-long City buses have a seating capacity of around 70 passengers, while the new bus, to be procured from Volvo company, can ferry up to 110 passengers, he added.

BMTC Managing Director K R Srinivas said the bus with long chassis will be introduced along the Outer Ring Road which has high passenger density and scope for the movement of such a bus. Two diesel hybrid buses will be procured by Ashok Leyland at a cost of Rs 1.15 crore each.

Unlike the existing diesel-run buses wherein the engine directly consumes fuel, in the hybrid bus, diesel will be converted into electrical energy to run the vehicle. Whenever the vehicle slows down, electrical power will be used to run the engine, he added.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/258520/bmtc-ply-longest-bus.html

Now, get a feel of Himalayas, right here

Now, you don’t need to go to the Himalayan range or the Swiss Alps to experience the numbing cold during a snowfall. You can instead visit Snow City, a snow theme park that has just opened in the heart of Bangalore near TV Tower in JC Nagar.

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The park offers a slew of recreational activities. You can climb a snowy mountain, amuse yourself with snow sliding, or laugh to your heart’s content by hurling snowballs at others’ faces. Else, you can take part in snow zorbing. Not impressed? You can admire the beauty of the snow castle even as snow keeps falling.

The park has a 33-foot-high snow area spread over an expanse of 12,500 square feet. The entire area is filled with snow made of filtered drinking water and air, says Raja Jupudi, Vice-Chairman of the Hyderabad-based Vajra Group. The firm deals with tourism, entertainment and real estate, and Snow City is part of Fun World, an amusement park. Vajra Group has invested Rs 10 crore to Rs 15 crore on Snow City.

Temperature in the snow area is kept between -5 ºC and -10 ºC to ensure that it does not change to water to vapour. Snow machines pump 5,000 litres of filtered water which later becomes about 10 cubic feet of snow. Water thus pumped makes snow form by itself. No chemical is used in snow formation, Jupudi claimed.

In order to avoid body shock, visitors are taken through different temperatures. For example, the entry lounge has temperature between 18 and 24 ºC, and the air lock room between 5 ºC and 15 ºC.

“It enables the visitor’s body resist the shock of experiencing extreme temperature,” Jupudi told Deccan Herald. Visitors are provided overcoats with caps/hoods, hand gloves and boots.

The park is open from 10.30 am to 9.30 pm on all days. Every day, nine sessions of 45 minutes each will be conducted. The entry fee is Rs 390 per person per session on weekdays, and Rs 490 during weekends.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/258526/now-get-feel-himalayas-right.html

It’s snowing in Bangalore!

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It’s 30 degrees outside, but children in Bangalore are frolicking in the snow, looked on by indulgent adults.

The place is at Snow City, an amusement centre at the Fun World Complex in J.C. Nagar.

“Snow City aims to bring the experience of the Himalayas to everybody,” says vice-chairman and director Raja Jupudi.

The facility has been created with the help of snow-making machines imported from Australia. It houses a 12,500 sq ft indoor snow room, maintained at a constant minus 5 to minus 10 degrees, to create 10 to 30 metres of snow.

Amongst the many activities offered at the centre are snow mountain climbing, sliding and basketball, as well as a snow dance area.

Entry fees are Rs. 390 for a 45-minute session from Monday to Friday and Rs. 490 on weekends; group deals are also available. Visitors are provided with protective jackets, boots and gloves and are taken through a 5 degree room in order to acclimatise to the sub-zero temperatures of the snow room; the snow itself is made from drinking water and air in order to ensure that it is safe, and is changed every day.

Mr. Jupudi has ambitious future plans for the site, with an ice gallery of sculptures and art planned to open later on this year in December. He is keen to note that with the addition of the gallery, he hopes to attract visitors not only from Karnataka, but from neighbouring States as well.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3551570.ece

Expert bats for ban on free parking

In order to tune into a sustainable transport in the City, the State government should take some bold steps like banning free parking, said Prof T G Sitharam, Chairman, Centre for Infrastructure, Sustainable Transportation and Urban Planning (CiSTUP), IISc.

Speaking at a seminar on “Green Economy: The way forward for sustainable public transport,” organised by the KSRTC, Sitharam said the first step needed was to ban free parking in the City. Also, congestion tax needs to be introduced in the Central Business District (CBD) areas, which would force commuters to use public transport, he said.

Sitharam said public transport should aim at providing better access to citizens than easing out mobility issues. The focus of public transport should be on the movement of people and not just movement of vehicles.

To achieve this, a proper transport master plan was the need of the hour, the professor said and added that at least now, the State government should pursue commuter rail very seriously. A public transport can be considered good only when it is accessible, safe, environment-friendly and affordable, he said.

The professor said factors like proper planning, analyses, designing integrated transport systems, implementation and monitoring are key to sustainable transport.

Principal Secretary of the Transport Department and Vice-Chairman of the KSRTC P B Ramamurthy said it is high time we as a society move towards green economy from greed economy. A clean transport system is the need of the hour, he said.

CEO and MD of Diesel Gas Technologies, Robert Enc Thompson, said use of catalyst equipment in the engines of the public transport vehicles will go a long way in reducing emission of gases like carbon monoxide, hydro carbons, nitrogen oxide and particulate matter.

Karthik Sharma of Volvo company said hybrid buses proposed to be introduced in Bangalore can reduce the carbon footprint up to 30 per cent. The vehicle has an increased passenger capacity and silent start-3dB less noise.
On the first 15 km / hour-run, the vehicle runs on electrical energy and beyond that, diesel will assist. The emission of estimated 30 tonnes of carbon dioxide will be reduced during the entire lifetime of the bus that is 12 years.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/258521/expert-bats-ban-free-parking.html

Track trains online

Railways has introduced a new online platform which it says would be “faster and more accurate” in providing train information and location.

The portal –TrainEnquiry.com — launched by Centre for Railway Information Service (CRIS) and powered by RailYatri.com, allows users to learn about the running status of nearly 8,500 trains across the country. The user can know the last location of a train and whether it is running on time or late, at the click of a mouse. “The service has already reached 55 lakh users in two months,” said Sunil Bajpai, group General Manager, CRIS in an email response from Delhi.

Users can just enter the train name and number in the ‘simple to use’ interface to get the latest location of the train, which is updated more frequently. Passengers can use its mobile version to send out information to friends and relatives. “We have deployed the latest technology to provide information to the commuters. In Chennai, satellite facility is being used to have a live tracking of trains,” Bajpai said.

According to Manish Rathi, Co-founder, RailYatri.com, more information will be added to the site with support for various mobile devices. “We’re trying to provide information which would allow passengers to plan their journey. Information that needs ready reference such as platform and coach numbers will be made instantly available, ” Rathi said.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/258512/track-trains-online.html

Namma sky party at NASA

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source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article547027.ece

BBMP Councillors to get iPad3 soon

All 198 Councillors of the cash-strapped Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will soon get iPad3.

The reason: Councillors can track projects taken up in their wards through a web-based project monitoring system.

The procurement of iPad3 will cost the BBMP at least Rs 1 crore, which they will cough up from the taxpayer’s money.

According to official sources, the BBMP can scan the subjects to be tabled before the Council and email it to the Councillors if the iPads are given to them.

“This will bring down the quantity of paper used by the BBMP. Moreover, it is also planning to introduce a file tracking system and the Councillors can track the files pertaining to their ward on the iPad,” they explained.

Tenders invited

Meanwhile Mayor D Venkatesh Murthy said the proposal to give iPads to councillors was first tabled when Nataraj was the Mayor. It came up during Sharadamma’s period too.

“Now, we have invited tenders for the procurement of the iPads. It will be finalised in another two weeks. Once it is finalised, we will procure iPads for all the Councillors and by the end of July first week, all the Councillors will get it,” he explained.

When asked about the training, he said the Councillors will be trained in batches with each batch having 50 persons. The iPad company will itself train them.

The Mayor who admits that he does not know how to use the iPad said, “This is a hi-tech device. The Councillors who do not know how to operate can utilise their Personal Assistant’s help.”

A senior Congress Councillor said the Councillors deserve it when the MLAs and MLCs have been given iPads. “In this tech savvy age, why should we still depend on the paper?” he asked.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article547266.ece

Train journey to Ooty

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It is early morning at the Mettupalayam railway station. The weather is cold. Everyone is waiting for the train scheduled at 7.10 am. The station master looks a little busy and all of a sudden we hear a sweet sound of the horn from the forests, but all we can see is the smoke over the misty woods. The Ooty Train which is connected by a narrow gauge line from Mettupalayam finally arrives.

The train was crowded with 3 compartments comprising wooden coaches and large windows.

The distance is around 46 kms from Mettupalayam to Ooty, a 4.5 hour journey and the train moves through forests, tea plantations, sixteen tunnels, and more than 250 bridges, starting from Mettupalayam on the plains.

The construction of this line was a wonder throughout the journey. It was in 1854 that the initial plans were drawn up to build a mountain railway from Mettupalayam to the Nilgiris Hills. But it took a good 45 years, for the first train to chug up this track. It is hauled uphill by steam engines, designed and built by the Swiss Locomotive Works.

There are six stations between Mettupalayam and Ooty namely Coonoor, Kallar, Adderely, Hill Grove, Runnymede and Kateri - and, at one time, there used to be five between Coonoor and Ooty too. Though Wellington, Aruvankkadu, Ketti and Lovedale are still functional, Fern Hill, the last one, was closed down a few years ago.

Rice fields surround the 5 kilometre stretch between Mettupalayam and Kallar. Soon after is an impressive 20 kilometre section through a truly rocky terrain.

The track passes over 26 viaducts and twists and bends through 13 tunnels. After a steep climb, the train enters Coonoor, the little hill station known for its tea plantations. From here, the track is uphill till you reach Fern Hill at a height of 2,200 metres, the highest point on the railroad. Shortly before Ooty, the line dips downhill.

If you enjoy taking pictures, keep your camera handy for a few shots of the bridge between Kallar and Adderley. This ride is sure to turn the most hardened rail critic into an avid fan.

You’ll be on the edge of your seats, with the twists and turns, as the train will run across tall joist bridges and green hills before gently obliquing through rolling tea estates. The exhaust beat of the loco never falters, maintaining a loud staccato which can be heard for miles away. The locomotive pilot takes care in every turn during this mountain trip.

After 38 years of service, train technician Venkatesh is happy, but also sad that the train has only one trip per day ,i.e Morning 7.10am from Mettupalayam to Ooty and 1.30pm return. If you miss this journey, your travel to Ooty is incomplete!

Finally don’t forget to buy Nilgiri Organic Green Tea.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article547054.ece

Lane discipline at 10 junctions across city

The Lane Discipline Campaign is going on according to the plan and it has been already implemented in 10 junctions across the city, ACP (Traffic) Saleem said here on Wednesday.

“Out of the 12 junctions which we initially identified for this, only two are left to be regulated for direction oriented lane discipline: the Sony World signal and the Forum mall junction in Koramangala,” he noted after holding a meeting with officials on the issue.

He said the primary focus was on all the junctions with ‘free left turns’ because they are easier to regulate as there is traffic flowing constantly on the free lane.

“The commuters must get on to their lane 100 metres ahead of the junction. This depends on the turn they will take after the junction,” he explained.

“We are still in a phase where we are educating our people. We can give them some time. In addition to the existing 12 junctions, we have marked Siddalingaiah junction and Tiffany’s junction. Once the people start practising lane driving at prominent junctions, they will automatically do the same on other roads as well,” he added.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article547292.ece

No pipe dream, pipe gas soon

It might not be long before city gas distribution (CGD) through pipelines will become a reality in Bengaluru. For this, energy department officials are waiting for the anchor project - the 700 MW Bidadi gas plant that is expected to be commissioned by September.

“Bidadi is our anchor project and once it is commissioned, CGD work will also take off. For the 700 MW Bidadi gas plant, we have been given permission to go for the spot market. This will ensure that the plant is up by September,” said a senior official from KPCL. For over ten years now, the Bidadi gas plant has been in the pipeline; initially it was supposed to be a 1400 MW combined gas cycle plant with 4 units of 350 MW each. However, due to gas shortage, capacity was brought down to 700 MW.

“We have permission for opting for spot market. Though the gas will be expensive, it will benefit industries. Later, GAIL will establish the CGD network that will cater to the requirement of piped gas for homes and also supply fuel for CNG vehicles. There will be a separate department that will work in coordination with KPCL,” the official informed.

With GAIL to commission the Dabhol-Bengaluru pipeline by 2013, the CGD project is expected to get impetus. Further, the Dabhol-Bengaluru pipelines will also have network extensions to Gokak, Ratnagiri, Kolhapur, Sangli, Bijapur, Dharwad, Davangere, Harihar and Tumkur. GAIL also has two more pipelines that will be passing through Bengaluru - one is the Kochi -Bengaluru gas pipeline that is expected to be commissioned by 2013, while the Chennai-Bengaluru pipeline work will start in 2015.

“The CGD project was supposed to have started by June but there have been some delays. However, the city gas distribution will be taken care by GAIL and the project will be commissioned within this year,” said Suresh Babu, Joint Director (Projects),Power Company of Karnataka Ltd.

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/no-pipe-dream-pipe-gas-soon-548

‘Malls only on city outskirts’

With the election year round the corner and the BBMP budget expected to have bigger allocations for wards to woo voters, Mayor D. Venkatesh Murthy says the Jana Spandana programmes will be orgainsed at the constituency-level to understand woes of public and take steps to solve them. Excerpts from an interview:

After hearing out public woes at the Jana Spandana programme in Malleswaram, have you worked out strategies to solve the problems?
The joint commissioner and his staff have been directed to attend to the complaints department-wise and address the problems quickly. The officials have been directed to redress all the grievances by the time the next Jana Spandana programme is held in Malleswaram.

Will you stop allowing multiplex-cum-commercial malls in the already congested Malleswaram?
The BBMP has been mulling over preventing multiplex-cum-malls in the core areas of the city at it would congest the area. Malls will be permitted only on the outskirts on build-operate-transfer basis. Registration of interest has been invited from builders for the same.

When will work on Sankey Road widening begin? What are the measures being taken to bring back greenery in Bengaluru?
The work on Sankey Road is expected to begin in the next 15 days. The court has set a deadline of one year to complete the work and the deadline will be adhered to. Efforts will be made to make up for the loss of greenery on Sankey Road either by translocating the trees or by planting saplings along the widened roads.

When will work on CNR Rao junction be completed?
Emphasis is being given to complete it at the earliest. One side of the service road will be opened to traffic in the next one month. The entire underpass will be completed in the next five months.

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/%E2%80%98malls-only-city-outskirts%E2%80%99-545

Minor fruits boast major fan following

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PACKED WITH VITAMINS: People buy these fruits for their nutritional and medicinal value

Prices of litchis, jamuns and rose apples go up by a third this year

Mangoes are not the only summer fruit. There is an entire luscious range what is called minor fruits in the business such as litchis, plums, jamuns and rose apples. And, like mangoes, their prices are also high compared to last year, between 25 and 30 per cent.

A senior official in the Horticulture Department attributed this high price to the decrease in yield this year.

Production hit

“I have been in this business from past 10 years. There is less production of minor fruits compared to last year, hence there is low supply. Customers [love them], but are not buying due to high cost,” said Faisal Ahmed, who sells the fruits on a bicycle around Shivajinagar area. “This year, we are selling litchi and Ooty apple (plums) at Rs. 160 a kg, while they were Rs. 120 last year.”

This year, if you bargain hard, you can get litchis for around Rs. 140 a kg, jamun for around Rs. 120 a kg, and cherries at Rs. 220 a kg. Apricot costs around Rs. 120 a kg and plums and pears Rs. 100 and Rs. 90 respectively.

Demand and supply

Azam Shariff, who owns Fresh Fruits on Brigade Road, also concurred that the rise in prices was due to the good old demand and supply ratio.

According to him, avocado was the cheapest minor fruit at Rs. 50 a kg, followed by figs at Rs. 55 a kg.

Customers, according to Mr. Ahmed, buy these fruits for their nutritional and medicinal value. “Some buy in large quantities and don't usually bother about the price,” he added.

Tasty

However, there are also customers who buy them for their taste. “I would still buy them but in smaller quantity as my daughter loves fruits, especially litchi and anjeer (fresh figs). It is better to spend money on healthy fruits rather on a pizza or a burger,” said Preeti Sharma, homemaker.

Vineet Naik, who was buying jamun on Infantry Road, said: “I don’t buy litchi as it is too costly. Only rich can afford these fruits.”

Meanwhile, Additional Director of Horticulture (Fruits) S.V. Hittalmani said the weather had impacted minor fruits’ harvest. “While the climatic conditions have adversely affected litchi production, the jamun season is yet to start,” he added.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3551578.ece

A thinker far ahead of his times

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A four-volume set of Shankar Mokashi Punekar’s Kannada writings is being released on Sunday

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3551574.ece

Eureka! New way to widen Sankey Rd

The BBMP will begin work on widening the Sankey Tank Bund Road (STBR) by June-end; it has plans to erect pillars on the embankment on the Vyalikaval, Gayathridevi Extension and Kodandapura side to support the widened section. This means that the widened part of the STBR, when ready, will resemble a flyover, while the existing part of the road will continue to remain as it is.

The road widening plan entails extending the existing 14-metre width of the road to 27 metres. But as Sankey Lake is on one side of STBR, the widening will have to be carried out on the embankment side, below which stand several well-known structures including the violin-shaped Chowdiah Memorial Hall and Venkateshwara Temple owned by Tirumala Tirupathi Devastanam (TTD).

BBMP officials said this style of road widening plan (using pillars on one side of the road) has been suggested by scientists at the civil engineering department of Indian Institute of Science (IISc). The members of the BBMP’s technical advisory board were impressed by it.

“We have sought help from IISc’s civil engineering department, and professor Srinivas Murthy, who is on the technical advisory committee of the BBMP’s road widening board, has suggested a few ideas to address some of the issues we thought we would face,” BT Ramesh, engineer-in-chief, BBMP, told DNA.

Initially, the BBMP had planned to use the landfill technique, which seemed feasible idea. That plan involved filling up 10 feet with soil/mud on the embankment to raise the to-be-widened portion to the level of the existing STBR and then use concrete to strengthen the road.

However, it failed when experts suggested that such a method could lead to water leakage from Sankey Lake through cracks developing in the bund, and that could spell disaster for the residents and structures on the residential side of the structure. Vyalikaval, Gayathridevi Extension and Kodandapura, the areas on the other side of the lake are low-lying, densely populated areas.
“Now, we have planned to use a technique that we normally use for flyovers. Pillars and reinforcement panels will be used to widen the 800-metre-long stretch (by 13 metres) from Bashyam Circle (Sadashivnagar) to the end of STBR near Ayyappa Temple (the entrance to Malleswaram—on the left—leading to 18th Cross bus stand). This plan was suggested by the advisory panel (on being advised by the IISc scientists) and we are looking into this plan as very feasible,” said KT Nagraj, superintendent engineer, BBMP.
Being cautious

However, before a flyover-like part-structure is built on the embankment, a series of tests are scheduled before the actual construction begins.

The STBR is a man-made structure, built in 1882, to develop an artificial lake that is today named Sankey Tank. Because of this, there is some degree of apprehension about the safety of the pillars that are planned to be erected on the STBR’s embankment. Therefore, the BBMP will begin by conducting soil and load-bearing tests to first determine what kind of pillars could be erected and with what material (metal or concrete).

After prolonged protests, beginning August 2011, to save trees on the embankment—17 have been felled while at least 36 more remain to be axed—a high court division bench headed by Justice N Kumar had directed the BBMP, in December 2010, to complete the STBR road widening work within 12 months.

However, even after six months, no work has started.

The announcement to begin work on widening STBR was made on Tuesday at the Janaspandana programme by Mayor Venkatesh Murthy.

source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_eureka-new-way-to-widen-sankey-rd_1704772

No pipe dream, pipe gas soon



source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/no-pipe-dream-pipe-gas-soon-548

Any idea if BMTC might get into CNG mode after this? I always felt Bangalore had to go the Mumbai/Delhi way to reduce pollution and CNG is the best way

yeddy gets bail in cbi case... funny timesofindia.com if he denied bail always they put in their website main page in bold for full day, if he gets bail then no news in website main page :bash:

Vijay Karnataka widens the gap in Karnataka

BANGALORE: The latest Indian Readership Survey (IRS Q1'12), which records a readership of 34.25 lakhs to Kannada daily Vijay Karnataka (VK), reaffirms its position as Karnataka's No. 1 daily, leaving its rivals way behind. In Total Readership too, VK touches a staggering 79.97 lakhs.

VK is not only No.1 among Kannada dailies in Karnataka, but its readership (13.57 lakhs) is more than double the combined readership of all general English dailies in Karnataka. Advertisers will be glad to know that 77% of VK's readers are sole readers. For the first time, any daily (Kannada or English) has breached the 8-lakh readership mark in Bangalore City alone. VK's Urban Readership alone is more than the combined Urban and Rural readership of all general English dailies. VK has more than 19.87 lakh readers in Urban Karnataka.

The majority of VK's readers are young: 72% are below 40. With 5.4 lakh readers being graduates and above, VK has the most number of educated readers among any Kannada or General English daily. VK's dominance among wealthy Kannadigas continues with around 9 lakh readers belonging to SEC AB, almost equal to combined SEC AB readership of all General English dailies in the state.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Vijay-Karnataka-widens-the-gap-in-Karnataka/articleshow/14328076.cms

Light rail system passes soil test

The Light Rail Transit (LRT) system, said to be the best feeder rail network for Bangalore city when compared to monorail, has passed another test.


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Sources in the Infrastructure Development Department (IDD) told Deccan Herald that recently completed soil testing study, conducted as part of detailed project report (DPR) for LRT, has found no fault with the corridor wherein the feeder rail is proposed to be implemented.

“Soil testing was done at 40 different points along the length of two corridors proposed under LRT and the results are positive,” said a senior official with IDD. Soil testing, which began in JP Nagar in the month of April got completed a few days ago, he added.

LRT is proposed to be implemented for a total distance of 41.3 km in two corridors, namely from JP Nagar to Hebbal (31.3 km) and from Toll Gate on Magadi Road up to proposed Peripheral Ring Road (10 km) on Magadi Road. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 6,400 crore.

Capita Symonds - the UK-based consultancy firm for property and infrastructure solutions to which the State government had assigned the job of suggesting the best feeder rail network for the City - considered LRT more advantageous than monorail.

The Bangalore Airport Rail Link (BARL) Ltd, the nodal agency for implementing the project, is expecting the DPR to be ready in the next three months.
Speaking to Deccan Herald, BARL Director (Projects) C Jayaram confirmed that soil testing exercise has been completed.

Now the executing agency will estimate the maximum land to be acquired for implementing the project. However, as the proposed corridor for LRT is mostly along the existing roads, there won’t be much problem in land acquisition, he added.

An official from BARL said the alignment of LRT is in tune with the Comprehensive Traffic and Transportation Plan. LRT intersects the Metro corridor and other mass rapid systems for better connectivity. Also, LRT network was drawn up after a detailed analysis of the Comprehensive Development Plan 2015, traffic density and a field survey, he added.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/258793/light-rail-system-passes-soil.html

Bijapur to get Karnataka’s first solar park

The State government, that has for long been talking about establishing a 500 MW solar park on the lines of Gujarat, has finally zeroed in on Munnur village in Bijapur district, where the Karnataka Renewable Development Ltd will acquire 5,000 hectares. “We have taken up several surveys, the location is ideal for a solar park as the area get over 300 days of sunshine. We will be acquiring 5,000 hectares for the purpose,” said KREDL managing director N.S. Prasanna Kumar.

The project, with a solar capacity of 500 MW, will have plug-and-use facility, where private players can set up their solar panels. It will also have a facility for evacuating power into the grid. “Solar parks will, in the first place, take away the need for solar power developers to look for a place. We will provide them the space, including the facility to evacuate power into the local grid,” Mr Kumar added. For the project, the KREDL is looking at an investment of about Rs 200 to 350 crore. Taking a cue from Gujarat, Karnataka has decided to take up project development in a phased manner.

“We are acquiring about 5,000 hectares which will be developed in a phased manner. As the investors come in, we will make the land available to them,” he added. The challenge before the KREDL is scarcity of land. According to sources, even as the KREDL expressed interest to set up a solar park over 5,000 hectares, it may have to face several challenges, especially in acquisition. It is learned that anticipating this, the KREDL will be setting up a high level empowered committee that will be responsible for looking into land issues. KREDL is expected to start the work by October and will require 18 months to commission the project.

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/bijapur-get-karnataka%E2%80%99s-first-solar-park-835

9 new horticulture colleges in State

The state government has decided to start horticulture colleges in nine districts under the State University of Horticulture Sciences, which was set up in Shimoga, said Minister for Horticulture and Sugar S A Ravindranath.

He told media persons at Harapanahalli town on Wednesday after handing over Aasare houses, that the state government has earmarked Rs 60 crore for the proposal. On former minister Karunakara Reddy’s appeal to set up a college in Harapanahalli, Ravindranath said it would be considered. He said that as heavy rain had damaged hundreds of houses in Harapanahalli town as well as in 294 villages in 2009, the state government had decided to build 60,000 Aasare houses for the victims.

“Similarly, under the Ashraya housing scheme for Davangere district, 70,000 houses have been sanctioned,” he said. Ravindranath said that real democracy exists in BJP as all are welcome to express their views whereas in other parties there is no such freedom. On the charges of Harihar MLA Harish against Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda, Ravindranath said that those who defy the party discipline will pay.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/article547320.ece

CAPA, Vittal Innovation City to promote Aerospace City in Bangalore

Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) India and Vittal Innovation City (VIC) have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to co-promote CAPA-VIC Aerospace City, a high-technology aviation manufacturing, research and knowledge park in Bangalore.

Spread over an area of 750-acre, the aerospace park will form one of the industry clusters at VIC which is located around 50 minutes from Bangalore International Airport. The site has been acquired by Global Emerging Markets, a $3.4 billion alternative investment group. VIC, promoted by EMPI Innovation Parks is focusing on aerospace, defence and electronics, and integrating industry, design, research and education, according to a company release.

``India's ability to deliver high quality research and manufacturing in various industries at relatively lower cost is a unique and valuable proposition. By transferring these strengths to the aerospace sector, there exists the potential to position India as a global centre for excellence. We are very excited to be supporting this landmark initiative,’’ Peter Harbison, executive chairman, CAPA-Centre for Aviation stated.

Technical pre-feasibility studies for the development of a 3.2km runway, which would facilitate test flights for aerospace manufacturers, enable aircraft to be flown in for maintenance, repair and overhaul and allow for the development of a world-class flying school, have been already done. The initiative is led by N. Vittal, chairman, VIC, and former Secretary, Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology. The advisory board is headed by Narayana Murthy, chairman Emeritus, Infosys Technologies, and includes Nandan Nilekani, chairman, Unique Identification Authority; and Ajai Chowdhry, founder and chairman, HCL Infosystems.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/business/companies/article3546916.ece

Kakodkar bats for nuclear energy

Eminent nuclear scientist Dr Anil Kakodkar on Thursday said nuclear energy may be an intense source of energy, but it is necessary to harness it in order to make up for the Earth's depleting resources.

Kakokdar was speaking at 'National Seminar on Applications of Isotope and Radiation Technology for Societal Benefits', a three-day seminar being held at Jnanabharthi Campus, Bangalore University.

“There is a lot of debate when it comes to nuclear energy and that is because it is an intense form of energy. It is destructive. But it is also constructive and we should focus on that,” Kakodkar said.

“The Earth has depleting resources, so we can't ignore a source through which large quantity of energy can be harnessed,” he added.

The seminar is being organised by the Bangalore University, in collaboration with Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences (BRNS) and Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC).

Solar mission on target
On the sidelines, Kakodkar also talked about the recently constituted Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, for which he was appointed chairman. “Currently there are several things happening on the solar front and our targets for phase one is being more or less met. We are focussing on boosting solar energy through policy initiatives,” he said.

Another focus of the mission is bringing the right kind of technology to India, Kakodkar said.

“We must also focus on bringing the right kind of technology down to India. It should be suitable for the Indian climate,” he added.
The nuclear scientist emphasised upon the need to curb costs while harnessing solar power.

“What I would consider a success at the end of phase one would be rapidly bringing down the costs of solar power. Solar energy costs should be brought down to the same level as other sources. Currently lot of subsidies is being given on the solar front, but it should be cheaper even without them,” he added.

source:http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_kakodkar-bats-for-nuclear-energy_1705262

Yaaru kooda..............................Nimmigagi....


ftoStJuajBk:cheers:

Civic agencies eye land far from project

BANGALORE: What do Basaveshwaranagar and Patalamma Street in Jayanagar have to do with the proposed signal-free corridor from Agara to Sirsi Circle?

Everyone would agree they're far removed from the corridor. But experts on BBMP's technical advisory committee state in the Detailed Project Report approved by them in 2009 that land would be acquired in Basaveshwaranagar and Patalamma Street for this project.

The corridor begins from Sirsi Circle on Mysore Road, proceeds through Minerva Circle, Lalbagh Fort Road, Hosur Road, Sarjapur Road and ends at Agara.

A DPR copy was given by BDA to the Koramangala Infrastructure Task Force on a directive from the Karnataka High Court following a public interest litigation questioning the necessity of the corridor. A KITF member said some pages in the DPR were not at all connected to the project. "They are completely irrelevant. It appears BBMP did a 'cut and paste' job while preparing the DPR. Some other project's information was added. This only proves the ad hoc approach that marks the project," he explained.

The BBMP handed over the responsibility of implementing the project to BDA and land is yet to be acquired.

When contacted, technical advisory committee members refused to comment on the issue. Rajasimha, technical advisor to the BBMP commissioner and a committee member, said, "I am out of station. I do not want to comment on discussions held in 2009." Prof CEG Justo, who headed the committee, also refused to comment. BBMP engineer-in-chief B T Ramesh said he wasn't aware of the DPR.

What does DPR say?

"To accommodate the signal-free corridor improvement scheme, 4850 sq m (Jaimunirao Circle 2123.8 sq mtr, at Basaveshwara Nagar road junction 325.32 sq mtr, near Patalamma Street 1130.49 sq mtr, between Patalamma Street and Outer Ring Road junction 1270.38 sq mtr) of land needs to be acquired. The process of land acquisition has been initiated by BBMP and this will be carried out by the TDR scheme."

Expertspeak

Firstly, signal-free corridors must not come on arterial roads. The concept of such corridors or access-controlled facility is implemented in western countries only on the outskirts. Constructing flyovers and underpasses in the middle of arterial roads will affect the trading sector and residents. They cut off access to adjoining interior roads. Such projects will only kill the city.

Vivek Menon | urban infrastructure expert

Arterial roads to widened?

The project is causing a lot of heartburn in core areas. The DPR says land will be acquired in densely populated areas like Wilson Garden and Chamarajpet. About 1.2 lakh sqft will have to be acquired on Charmarajpet I Main between A N Krishnaniah Circle to M Ramamurthy Circle.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Civic-agencies-eye-land-far-from-project/articleshow/14348498.cms

Groundwater depletion causes concern for Bangalore

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Groundwater-depletion-causes-concern-for-Bangalore/articleshow/14348807.cms

Indo-German ties grow stronger at mela

BANGALORE: German-Kannada ties were underlined at the launch of the Indo-German Urban Mela at Palace Grounds on Friday.

Inaugurating the mela, chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda said: "Karnataka's relationship with Germany dates back to German missionary Hermann Mogling who started the first Kannada paper 'Mangalooru Samacharu' in the 1800s. Another German missionary, Fr Ferdinand Kittel, produced the first Kannada-English dictionary which is still used today. Karnataka is a state of many opportunities and Germany is a land of many ideas - we're happy to host the Indo-German Urban Mela here."

Federal foreign minister Guido Westerwelle responded warmly: "I heard from a friend who has been living for a long time in Bangalore that people here are very friendly. More than 50,000 jobs have been generated in Karnataka by German companies. We look forward to a long period of beneficial partnership. We don't come to invest here, take the profit and leave. We seek sustainable partnerships, especially between the younger generations of India and Germany."

Clas Neumann, representative, Asia-Pacific Committee, who set the launch in motion, said: "I've been working in Bangalore and it's become my home in these past 10 years," he said.

Reflecting the mela's theme, of building a dream city through sustainable development, German dancer Samir Akika took the stage with Bangalore's Attakalari dancers to showcase a metamorphosis of languages, cultures and body movements.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Indo-German-ties-grow-stronger-at-mela/articleshow/14348588.cms

Engineering maadi, become bawarchis

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source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article548827.ece

‘2 industrial parks to come up in Bangalore’

http://newindianexpress.com/incoming/article548940.ece/ALTERNATES/w460/GOWDA.jpg

Union Minister for Labour and Employment Mallikarjuna Kharge said the Union government was planning to set up industrial parks in Doddballapur and Bommasandra with a special hospital to cater to the needs of the work force. The Centre was awaiting clearance from state government to identify the place and permission, he added.

Speaking after inaugurating Apex Hi-tech Institute on Peenya’s Foremen Training Institute campus on Friday, he said, “If we get all the facilities from the state government, then the Centre will pump in `100 crore to each park which will help in generating more jobs in the manufacturing sector.”

Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda, who was the chief guest of the event, thanked External Affairs Minister S M Krishna and Mallikarjuna Kharge for showing a keen interest in improving the labour sector in the state which earlier was left in abyss.

“The ITIs which were reeling under pressure have picked up and shown results. As a responsible state we have provided the state-of-art four-storied building, measuring 4,870 sq ft, with centralised AC at a cost of `32 crore.”

Labour Minister B N Bache Gowda, Deputy General and Director General of Employment and Training R L Singh, Secretary of Labour Department G S Narayanswamy were present.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article548941.ece

Green report card says city in the red

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For every new entrant into the state, Bangalore is the eyes, to look at Karnataka. The city’s bustling population which is nearly 8.5 million, is growing at the rate of 46 per cent. Water problems and increasing air pollution are some of the major concerns. These were some of the main problems highlighted in the Environment Report Card (ERC) of Bangalore 2012. Jointly prepared by the Centre for Sustainable Development and IBM, the report highlights the areas where the city has failed and has lauded the officials for the areas where they scored better.

The frame of reference in the report was similar to the one prepared in 2005, highlighting the problems faced by the city then. S V Ranganath, Chief Secretary, R Sridharan, Principal Secretary Forest, Environment and Ecology, along with A S Sadashivaiah, Chairman, Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) and Amit Sharma, VP and GM, IBM India released the report, in the presence of Shankarlinge Gowda, Commissioner, BBMP and Gaurav Gupta, MD, BWSSB.

Explaining the three-pronged approach used to conduct the report, R Srinivas, executive director, Centre for Sustainable Development said, “Volunteers have evaluated the baseline information on the existing environment, citizens’ perception of the environment and finally the government’s efforts to mitigate the environmental problems.”

The multi-stage stratified sampling was carried out to cover different economic stratas. Volunteers conducted a door-to-door survey involving 1,657 households and 108 commercial establishments. Officials highlighted that such co-ordinated efforts to work on the failures and increase the success rate will help the city.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article548947.ece

KIMS land too for corridor project

Sirsi Circle-Agara junction signal free corridor to consume 54 lakh sqft of land
The list of ‘victims’ for the construction of signal-free corridor from Sirsi Circle to Agara Junction continues to grow. After swathes of Lalbagh, it has come to light that large tracts of prestigious medical colleges in the City too will be acquired for the project.

According to the detailed project report (DPR) submitted to the High Court of Karnataka by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), portions of the Kempegowda Institute of Medical Science (KIMS) and the Bangalore Medical College (BMC) too have been earmarked for the 12-kilometre corridor project.

As much as 13,483 sq metre of space on the stretch at Prof Shivashankar Circle, where the two colleges are located, will be acquired.

When questioned on the proposed acquisition, Dr Siddappa, Director, BMC, said he had no knowledge of the matter.

While the BDA has submitted the report to the High Court, its Commissioner, Pradeep Singh Kharola, said he was yet to verify on the details.
According to the project report, the corridor will consume 54 lakh sqft of land. Officials associated with similar project are now referring the document submitted to the Court.

‘Can be modified’

The Engineer Member for the BDA, Chikkarayappa, said the detailed project report was subject to modification, and will be considered during the implementation phase.
The detailed project report has been submitted to the High Court in a public interest litigation filed by the Koramangala First Block Residents’ Welfare Association, challenging the project.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259033/kims-land-too-corridor-project.html

Indo-German Urban Mela opens

The 10-day-long Indo-German Urban Mela in the City opened on Friday, reviving memories of Hermann Mogling who founded the first Kannada newspaper in Mangalore in 1843, and Ferdinand Kittel who compiled first English-Kannada dictionary.

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Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda, who inaugurated the Mela at the Palace Grounds, said Germans have contributed extensively to Kannada language.
“The partnership will help both Germany and Karnataka build a better future,” he added.

“It is important to further consolidate the relationship between Germany and Karnataka as Germany is the land of ideas and we are one State with many opportunities. Together, we can achieve common goals in urban development, scientific research, and technology development and so on,” Gowda said.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the problems of urbanisation are not unique to India, and that Germany, although not as populous as India, is more densely populated than China.

“In the next 20 years, an additional 250 million people will be part of Indian cities and more than 68 Indian cities will have a population of over one million.

Such a situation will throw up challenges in planning, architecture, mobility and infrastructure, which Germany has expertise in some of these fields. Having partnership with India, we can both achieve the goals,” he said.
The event, a cultural extravaganza has series of youth-centric events.

The ‘Youth University’, a programme organised by the Goethe Institute, Bangalore, is expected to be one of the highlights of the event with several lectures and seminars planned. As many as 20 CEOs, researchers and educators from top German companies and universities will interact with participants at the ‘Youth University’.
Besides, competitions such as poetry, quiz, science lab and brake-dance battles are also scheduled. ‘

Several business meetings, conferences and lectures are scheduled over the 10 days.

ಶಿರಾಡಿ ಘಾಟ್*ನಲ್ಲಿ ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗ


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ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು: ಬೃಹತ್ ಎನ್ನಬಹುದಾದ ಒಂದು ಕಮಾನು ಸೇತುವೆ, ಐದು ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗಗಳು ಮತ್ತು ಮೂರು ಆಧುನಿಕ ಬೃಹತ್ ರಸ್ತೆ ಮೇಲ್ಸೇತುವೆಗಳನ್ನು ಒಳಗೊಂಡ `ಬೈಪಾಸ್ ಎಕ್ಸ್*ಪ್ರೆಸ್ ಹೈವೇ` ಮಂಗಳೂರು ಮಾರ್ಗದ ಶಿರಾಡಿ ಘಾಟ್*ನಲ್ಲಿ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣವಾಗಲಿದೆ.

ಜಪಾನ್ ಸರ್ಕಾರದ `ಜಪಾನ್ ಅಂತರರಾಷ್ಟ್ರೀಯ ಕನ್ಸಲ್ಟೆನ್ಸಿ ಏಜೆನ್ಸಿಯ (ಜೈಕಾ) ತಜ್ಞರು ಇತ್ತೀಚೆಗೆ ಸಕಲೇಶಪುರದ ಶಿರಾಡಿ ಘಾಟ್ ಪ್ರದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ಥಳ ಪರಿಶೀಲಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಯೋಜನೆ ಜಾರಿ ಯೋಗ್ಯ ಎಂದು ವರದಿ ನೀಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಅನುಷ್ಠಾನಕ್ಕೆ ಸರ್ಕಾರವೂ ಉತ್ಸುಕವಾಗಿದೆ.

ಮಳೆಯಿಂದ ಶಿರಾಡಿ ಘಾಟ್ ಪ್ರದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ರಸ್ತೆ ಪದೇ ಪದೇ ಹಾಳಾಗಿ, ವಾಹನ ಸಂಚಾರಕ್ಕೆ ತೊಡಕಾಗುತ್ತಿದೆ. ಪರ್ಯಾಯ ರಸ್ತೆ ವ್ಯವಸ್ಥೆ ಕಲ್ಪಿಸಲು ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರೀಯ ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿ 48ರ ಸಕಲೇಶಪುರದ ಮಾರನಹಳ್ಳಿಯಿಂದ ಗುಂಡ್ಯವರೆಗೆ ಒಟ್ಟು 18.5 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದ ಚತುಷ್ಪಥ ಎಕ್ಸ್*ಪ್ರೆಸ್ ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ನಿರ್ಧರಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ. ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಸುಮಾರು 4,800 ಕೋಟಿ ರೂಪಾಯಿ ಖರ್ಚಾಗುವ ಸಾಧ್ಯತೆ ಇದೆ.

ಈಗಿರುವ ಸಂಚಾರ ದಟ್ಟಣೆ ಸಾಕೆ?
ಕೇವಲ 18.5 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದ ಚತುಷ್ಪಥ ಎಕ್ಸ್*ಪ್ರೆಸ್ ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ರೂ 4800 ಕೋಟಿ ವೆಚ್ಚವಾಗಲಿದೆ ಎಂದು ಅಂದಾಜಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ. ಈ ರಸ್ತೆಗೆ ಇಷ್ಟೊಂದು ದೊಡ್ಡ ಮೊತ್ತದ ಹೂಡಿಕೆ ಸಾಧುವೇ? ಈ ಬಗ್ಗೆಯೂ ಜೈಕಾ ವರದಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ಪಷ್ಟವಾಗಿ ಉಲ್ಲೇಖಿಸಿದೆ.

ಇಂತಹ ಯೋಜನೆಗಳು ಆರ್ಥಿಕವಾಗಿ ಕಾರ್ಯ ಸಾಧುವಾಗಬೇಕಾದರೆ ಕನಿಷ್ಠ 10 ಸಾವಿರ ವಾಹನಗಳು ಪ್ರತಿನಿತ್ಯ ಸಂಚರಿಸಬೇಕಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. ಅದೂ ದೂರಕ್ಕೆ ಸಂಚರಿಸುವ ವಾಹನಗಳಾಗಿರಬೇಕು ಎಂದು ಅದು ಹೇಳಿದೆ. ಆದರೆ, ಗುಂಡ್ಯ- ಸಕಲೇಶಪುರ ನಡುವೆ ಪ್ರತಿನಿತ್ಯ ಅಂದಾಜು 8000 ವಾಹನಗಳು ಸಂಚರಿಸುತ್ತಿರುವ ಮಾಹಿತಿಯನ್ನು ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರೀಯ ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿ ಪ್ರಾಧಿಕಾರ ಒದಗಿಸಿದೆ. ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ದೂರಕ್ಕೆ ಸಂಚರಿಸುವ ವಾಹನಗಳೆಷ್ಟು, ಸ್ಥಳೀಯವಾಗಿ ಸಂಚರಿಸುವ ವಾಹನಗಳೆಷ್ಟು ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು ವಿಭಜಿಸಿ ತಿಳಿಸಿಲ್ಲ. ಈ ಸಂಚಾರ ದಟ್ಟಣೆ ಜತೆಗೆ ಸರಕುಸಾಗಣೆ ವಾಹನಗಳಿಗೆ ಹೆಚ್ಚಿನ ಒತ್ತುಕೊಡಬೇಕು. ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಪೂರಕವಾಗಿ ತಮಿಳುನಾಡಿನ ಬಂದರುಗಳನ್ನು ಮಂಗಳೂರು ಬಂದರಿಗೆ ಸಂಪರ್ಕ ಕಲ್ಪಿಸಬೇಕು. ಹಾಗೆ ಮಾಡಲು ಮಂಗಳೂರಿನ ಬಂದರುಗಳನ್ನು ಅಭಿವೃದ್ಧಿಪಡಿಸಿ, ಸರಕುಸಾಗಣೆ ಸಾಮರ್ಥ್ಯವನ್ನು ಹೆಚ್ಚಿಸಬೇಕು ಎಂದೂ ಅದು ಸಲಹೆ ಮಾಡಿದೆ. ಇದು ಸಾಧ್ಯವಾದರೆ ಯೋಜನೆ ಕಾರ್ಯಸಾಧು ಆಗಲಿದೆ ಎಂದು ತಿಳಿಸಿದೆ.

ರಾಜ್ಯದ ಬಂದರು ಅಭಿವೃದ್ಧಿಗೆ ವಿಶೇಷ ಒತ್ತು ನೀಡುವುದರಿಂದ ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು ಮತ್ತು ರಾಜ್ಯದ ಇತರ ಭಾಗಗಳ ಸರಕುಸಾಗಣೆಗೆ ಈ ರಸ್ತೆ ಪ್ರಮುಖ ಸಂಪರ್ಕ ಸೇತುವೆಯಾಗಲಿದೆ. ಆ ಮೂಲಕವೂ ಯೋಜನೆಯನ್ನು ಯಶಸ್ವಿಗೊಳಿಸಬಹುದು ಎಂದು ಜೈಕಾ ವರದಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ತಿಳಿಸಿದೆ. ಜೈಕಾ ಅಧಿಕಾರಿಗಳು ನವ ಮಂಗಳೂರು ಬಂದರಿಗೂ ಭೇಟಿ ನೀಡಿ, ಅಲ್ಲಿನ ಕಾರ್ಯಚಟುವಟಿಕೆಗಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಅಧ್ಯಯನ ನಡೆಸಿದ್ದು, ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿ ಯೋಜನೆಗೆ ಪೂರಕವಾಗಿ ಬಂದರು ಅಭಿವೃದ್ಧಿಗೂ ಸಹಕಾರ ನೀಡುವುದಾಗಿ ಹೇಳಿದ್ದಾರೆ.

ದ್ವಿಪಥದ ರಸ್ತೆಗಾದರೆ ಇದರಲ್ಲಿ ಅರ್ಧದಷ್ಟು ಖರ್ಚಾಗಲಿದೆ ಎಂದೂ ಜೈಕಾ ತನ್ನ ವರದಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ತಿಳಿಸಿದೆ.
ಸಕಲೇಶಪುರ- ಗುಂಡ್ಯ ನಡುವೆ ಈಗಿರುವ 26 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದ ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿಯನ್ನು ಅಗಲ ಮಾಡುವುದು ಕಷ್ಟಸಾಧ್ಯ. ಅರಣ್ಯ ಪ್ರದೇಶವಾದ ಕಾರಣ ಪರಿಸರಕ್ಕೂ ಹಾನಿ. ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗದಿಂದ ಪರಿಸರಕ್ಕೆ ಅತಿ ಕಡಿಮೆ ಪ್ರಮಾಣದಲ್ಲಿ ಹಾನಿಯಾಗಲಿದೆ. ಈ ಪ್ರದೇಶದ ಒಟ್ಟು ಅಂತರದಲ್ಲಿ ಸುಮಾರು 9ರಿಂದ 10 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಕಡಿಮೆ ಆಗಲಿದೆ ಎಂದು ವಿಶ್ಲೇಷಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ.

ಖಾಸಗಿ ಸಹಭಾಗಿತ್ವ: `ಖಾಸಗಿ ಸಹಭಾಗಿತ್ವದಲ್ಲಿ ಯೋಜನೆ ಕೈಗೆತ್ತಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ನಿರ್ಧರಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ. ಈ ಸಂಬಂಧ ಕೇಂದ್ರ ಭೂಸಾರಿಗೆ ಸಚಿವಾಲಯಕ್ಕೆ ಪತ್ರ ಬರೆದಿದ್ದು, ಅನುಷ್ಠಾನಕ್ಕೆ ಜಪಾನ್ ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ಆರ್ಥಿಕ ಮತ್ತು ತಾಂತ್ರಿಕ ನೆರವು ಕೊಡಿಸುವಂತೆಯೂ ಕೋರಲಾಗಿದೆ. ಒಂದೆರಡು ತಿಂಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಜಪಾನ್ ಸರ್ಕಾರದಿಂದ ಪ್ರತಿಕ್ರಿಯೆ ಬರಬಹುದು` ಎಂದು ಲೋಕೋಪಯೋಗಿ ಇಲಾಖೆ ಪ್ರಧಾನ ಕಾರ್ಯದರ್ಶಿ ಸುಭಾಷ್*ಚಂದ್ರ ಕುಂಟಿಯಾ `ಪ್ರಜಾವಾಣಿ`ಗೆ ತಿಳಿಸಿದರು.

`ಗಿರಿ ಶಿಖರಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣ ಹೇಗೆ ಎಂಬ ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆ ಸಹಜವಾಗಿಯೇ ಎಲ್ಲರನ್ನೂ ಕಾಡುತ್ತದೆ. ಶಿರಾಡಿ ಘಾಟ್ ಪ್ರದೇಶ ಸಮುದ್ರ ಮಟ್ಟದಿಂದ ಸುಮಾರು 850 ಅಡಿ ಎತ್ತರದಲ್ಲಿದೆ. ಉದ್ದೇಶಿತ ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿಯನ್ನು ಸುಮಾರು 700 ಮೀಟರ್ ಎತ್ತರದಿಂದ ಇಳಿಜಾರು ರೂಪದಲ್ಲಿ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಬೇಕಾಗಿದೆ. ಇದೊಂದು ಸವಾಲಿನ ಯೋಜನೆ. ಅಗತ್ಯ ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞಾನ ಒದಗಿಸುವಂತೆ ಜೈಕಾವನ್ನು ಕೋರಲಾಗಿದೆ` ಎಂದೂ ಅವರು ವಿವರಿಸಿದರು.

ಜೈಕಾ ಪರಿಣತಿ: ಪರ್ವತ ಶ್ರೇಣಿಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗ ಹಾಗೂ ಎತ್ತರಿಸಿದ ರಸ್ತೆ ಮೇಲ್ಸೇತುವೆ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸುವಲ್ಲಿ ಜಪಾನ್ ಎತ್ತಿದ ಕೈ. ಇದೇ ರೀತಿಯ ಯೋಜನೆಯೊಂದನ್ನು ಅದು ಯಶಸ್ವಿಯಾಗಿ ತನ್ನ ನೆಲದಲ್ಲಿ ಕಾರ್ಯರೂಪಕ್ಕೆ ತಂದಿದೆ. 11 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದ `ಕನೇತ್ಸು` ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗವನ್ನು ಜೈಕಾ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಿದೆ. ಇದು ಸುಮಾರು 1100 ಮೀಟರ್ ಆಳದಲ್ಲಿ ಹಾದು ಹೋಗಿದ್ದು, ವಿಶ್ವದ 11ನೇ ಅತಿ ಉದ್ದದ ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗ ಎಂದೂ ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ಧಿ ಪಡೆದಿದೆ.


ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿ ಎಲ್ಲಿ ಹಾದು ಹೋಗುತ್ತದೆ?
ಈಗಿರುವ ರೈಲ್ವೆ ಮಾರ್ಗ ಮತ್ತು ರಸ್ತೆ ಮಾರ್ಗದ ಮಧ್ಯ ಭಾಗದಲ್ಲಿ ಉದ್ದೇಶಿತ ಎಕ್ಸ್*ಪ್ರೆಸ್ ಹೆದ್ದಾರಿ ಹಾದು ಹೋಗಲಿದೆ. ಇದರ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ಕನಿಷ್ಠ ಆರು ವರ್ಷ ಬೇಕಾಗುತ್ತದೆ ಎಂದೂ ಹೇಳಲಾಗಿದೆ.

ಮಾರನಹಳ್ಳಿ ಸಮುದ್ರ ಮಟ್ಟದಿಂದ 700 ಮೀಟರ್ ಎತ್ತರದಲ್ಲಿದ್ದರೆ ಗುಂಡ್ಯ 155 ಮೀಟರ್ ಎತ್ತರದಲ್ಲಿದೆ. ಇವೆರಡೂ ತುದಿಗಳಿಗೆ ರಸ್ತೆ ಸಂಪರ್ಕ ಕಲ್ಪಿಸುವುದಕ್ಕೆ ಪ್ರತಿ ನೂರು ಮೀಟರ್*ಗೆ ಕನಿಷ್ಠ ಶೇ 3.5ರಷ್ಟು ಇಳಿಜಾರು ಕಲ್ಪಿಸಬೇಕಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. ಇದರಿಂದ ವಾಹನ ಸಂಚಾರಕ್ಕೆ ತಾಂತ್ರಿಕವಾಗಿ ಯಾವ ಅಡಚಣೆಯೂ ಆಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲ ಎಂದು ಜೈಕಾ ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞರು ತಮ್ಮ ಪ್ರಾಥಮಿಕ ವರದಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಉಲ್ಲೇಖಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ.

ಇದೇ ರೀತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಶಿರಾಡಿ ಘಾಟ್*ನಲ್ಲೂ ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಬಹುದು. 18.5 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದಲ್ಲಿ 7.7 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದ ಐದು ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗಗಳು ಹಾಗೂ 3.9 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದ ನಾಲ್ಕು ಎತ್ತರಿಸಿದ ರಸ್ತೆ ಮೇಲ್ಸೇತುವೆಗಳನ್ನು ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಲು ಯೋಜನೆ ರೂಪಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ.

ಇದರಲ್ಲಿ ಬೃಹತ್ ಎನ್ನಲಾದ ಎರಡು ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದ ಕಮಾನು ಸೇತುವೆ ಕೂಡ ಸೇರಿದ್ದು, ಇದನ್ನು ಕಣಿವೆ ಪ್ರದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಲಾಗುವುದು. ಇದೊಂದು ಪ್ರವಾಸಿ ತಾಣವಾಗಿಯೂ ರೂಪುಗೊಳ್ಳುವುದರಲ್ಲಿ ಅನುಮಾನ ಇಲ್ಲ ಎಂದೂ ಜೈಕಾ ಅಭಿಪ್ರಾಯಪಟ್ಟಿದೆ.

ಒಂದರಿಂದ ಮತ್ತೊಂದು ಪರ್ವತ ಶ್ರೇಣಿಗೆ ಸಂಪರ್ಕ ಕಲ್ಪಿಸುವ ಮಧ್ಯ ಭಾಗದಲ್ಲಿ ಎತ್ತರಿಸಿದ ಸೇತುವೆಗಳನ್ನು ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಲಾಗುವುದು. ಇದಕ್ಕೂ ವಿಶೇಷ ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞಾನದ ಅಗತ್ಯ ಇದೆ. ಪ್ರಾಥಮಿಕ ಹಂತದ ಪರಿಶೀಲನೆಯಿಂದ ಶಿರಾಡಿ ಘಾಟ್*ನಲ್ಲಿ 30 ಮೀಟರ್*ಗೂ ಎತ್ತರದ ಪಿಲ್ಲರ್*ಗಳನ್ನು ಸೇತುವೆ ಸಲುವಾಗಿ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಬೇಕಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. ಪರಿಸರಕ್ಕೆ ಹೆಚ್ಚಿನ ಹಾನಿಯಾಗದಂತೆ ನಿಗಾ ವಹಿಸಿ ಇಂತಹ ಕಾಮಗಾರಿ ಕೈಗೆತ್ತಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವುದು ಸವಾಲಿನ ಕೆಲಸ. ಇದನ್ನು ಕಾರ್ಯರೂಪಕ್ಕೆ ತರಲು ಬೇಕಾದ ಅಗತ್ಯ ನೆರವು ನೀಡುವುದಾಗಿಯೂ ಜೈಕಾ ಹೇಳಿದೆ.

ಸುರಂಗ ಮಾರ್ಗ ಮತ್ತು ರಸ್ತೆ ಮೇಲ್ಸೇತುವೆ ಒಟ್ಟು 11.6 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದ ಬರಲಿದೆ. ಉಳಿದ 6.9 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಉದ್ದದಲ್ಲಿ ರಸ್ತೆಯನ್ನು ಭೂಮಟ್ಟದಲ್ಲೇ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಲಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. ಕೆಲವು ಕಡೆ ಮಣ್ಣು ಭರ್ತಿ ಮಾಡುವುದು ಸೇರಿದಂತೆ ಸಣ್ಣಪುಟ್ಟ ಕಾಮಗಾರಿಗಳಿಂದಲೇ ರಸ್ತೆ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಬಹುದು. ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಪ್ರತಿ ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ರಸ್ತೆಗೆ 20 ಕೋಟಿ ರೂಪಾಯಿ ವೆಚ್ಚ ಮಾಡಬೇಕಾಗುತ್ತದೆ ಎಂದು ವಿವರಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ

source:http://prajavani.net/include/story.php?news=83204&section=2&menuid=10

KIMS land too for corridor project



source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259033/kims-land-too-corridor-project.html

Yes the roads were marked for widening 3yrs back from now.
This corridor will be a relief..
Sad part is the greenery of Chamarajpet will be gone..

KIMS land too for corridor project



source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259033/kims-land-too-corridor-project.html

Yes the roads were marked for widening 3yrs back from now.
This corridor will be a relief..
Sad part is the greenery of Chamarajpet will be gone..

550 trees to be axed for flyover

http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/06/24/259239_thump.jpg

More than 550 trees will be felled in the City to ease traffic bottlenecks.

The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) plans to axe the green canopy at Sadashivanagar police station junction and Shamanna Garden.

The BBMP plans to cut 347 trees at the Sadashivanagar police station junction to pave the way for the Bangalore Development Authority’s proposed flyover and an underpass.

At Shamanna Garden, the Palike plans to chop off 66 trees and 154 saplings to construct a railway overbridge and a railway underbridge. To achieve this, the assistant conservator of forest (ACF) sent two mails to the Hasiru Usiru, an NGO, asking its office-bearers to attend a meeting on June 25 between 3 pm and 4 pm. The notices were enough to alarm the green brigade who shot back a mail to the ACF.

Green activist Leo Saldanha told Deccan Herald: “I asked the ACF the necessity of the project at the cost of gigantic grand old trees. A few hours later I got another mail saying that the meeting that was scheduled for Monday had been postponed for an indefinite period.”
Saldanha was wary of the hasty decision to cut trees. “It’s alarming that the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagr Palike (BBMP) unilaterally took the decision to cut the trees without even consulting the local residents. The decision to defer the meeting for an indefinite period was taken soon after I shot the mail,” said Saldanha.

Another green activist Vinay Srinivasa said: “The overbridge / underbridge at Shamanna Garden will not only claim the lives of 66 trees and 154 saplings but also encroach on a portion of a park land, which is a violation of the Karnataka Parks, playgrounds and Open Spaces Act.”

Regarding the Sadashivanagar project, a senior Bangalore Development Authority officer requesting anonymity told Deccan Herald that the project worth Rs 25 crore is necessary to ease traffic at the “ever-busy” police station junction. He said the worries for the loss of greenery were uncalled for as the tree varieties were not of good quality.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259239/550-trees-axed-flyover.html

Govt to announce steps on Monday to improve economy: Pranab

http://www.deccanherald.com/images/editor_images1/2012/06/23/economy-150.jpg

The government on Monday will announce measures to improve market conditions, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said.

“I am concerned over signs of weakness in the Indian economy.
The government after consultation with Reserve Bank of India Governor D Subbarao would unveil some measures Monday to improve the market conditions,” Mukherjee said at his residence in South Kolkata.

“Yesterday (Friday), secretary of economic affairs had consultations with him (Subbarao). We will be able to take certain measures which will be announced on Monday that will improve market condition,” Mukeherjee said.

Referring to the uncertain condition of global economy, Mukherjee said, “Please remember that when the whole world is in turmoil, no country can expect that there will be a pocket of development.
And particularly a large economy like India which is third in the purchasing power parity, cannot remain insulated from the external influences. Therefore I am concerned but I am not depressed.”

Rupee has lost over 20 per cent against the US dollar in the last one year. It has weakened to over Rs 57 to a dollar, exerting inflationary pressure on the economy, particularly with regard to crude oil imports. The stock market has lost ground and industrial growth has slipped to 0.1 per cent in April.

However Mukherjee said, “Though the global economy is in a vulnerable condition, the basic fundamentals of Indian economy are strong enough to resist the pressure.”

“Between January and June 2012, $8 billion made inroads into the country through the FII route which was negative in the year ago period,” Mukherjee said, adding that, “...Foreign Direct Investment stood at $46-48 billion which is higher than last fiscal.”

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259066/govt-announce-steps-monday-improve.html

Special water project for 2 dists

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A special drinking water coverage project will be taken up on a public private partnership (PPP) in Bijapur and Chitradurga districts, said Union Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Jairam Ramesh here on Saturday.

After a meeting with Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda and Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Jagadish Shettar, Ramesh told the reporters that his ministry has sought a detailed project report on the proposal submitted by the chief minister.

The Centre and the State government will share 30 per cent of the cost of the proposed project while the rest would be borne by the private agency which executes the project.

Jagadish Shettar said the project would require Rs 800 crore to Rs 1,000 crore per district. “This is a pending proposal, but when we presented it before the Union Minister, he was impressed. The idea is to effectively utilise surface water to provide drinking water to the parched districts,” he said.

Upgrading roads

In response to Karnataka’s long-pending demand for sanction of funds under the Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojana, Ramesh said, the Ministry would accord its approval by July-end to upgrade 2,000 kms of roads.

Shettar said the project is estimated to cost Rs 600 crore and Ramesh has promised that the Centre would share 75 per cent of it. The Ministry has proposed that the road works should be taken up on a 50 per cent cost sharing basis, Shettar added.

Subsidy

The State would get an additional food subsidy of Rs 426 crore. Under the calamity relief, 30,000 tonnes of rice and wheat will be distributed to the State, 2.40 lakh tonnes of rice and wheat to the BPL families and additional allocation of food grains for six months to Bidar, Gulbarga, Chitradurga and Davangere.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259207/special-water-project-2-dists.html

Travel on 14.5 m long bus now

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The BMTC and Volvo together launched Asia’s first 14.5-metre long city bus here on Saturday.

Minister for Home and Transport R Ashok flagged off the first bus and travelled around the Lalbagh and back to the Shanthinagar TTMC.

Speaking on the occasion, he said, “The idea is to bring down the use of personal vehicles by promoting mass transport through such high-capacity buses and the Metro will soon be doing the same.”

“These buses are longer and have the capacity to carry more than 100 passengers and will also give better fuel efficiency. The ticket rates will be the same as in the existing Volvo buses,” he noted.

The trial bus made its first trip from the Shanthinagar TTMC to Hebbal.

Explaining the three month-long trial run planned for the buses, BMTC’s Chief Mechanical Engineer Anand said, “From Monday, we will have a trial run for the 500C route between Banashankari Bus Terminus and ITPL. After ten days, we will have it plying on routes between Kempegowda Bus Station and Kadugodi (335E), Attibele (360B) and the Bannerughatta National Park (365) and the 500D route between the Central Silk Board and Hebbal.”

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article549662.ece

Such a ‘long’ journey!

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The bus can accommodate 110 people

Longest Volvo bus on trial run in city

The longest Volvo bus, stretching 14.5 metres, was inducted into the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) on a trial basis here Saturday.

The bus, which can accommodate 110 people at a go, will run between Banashankari to ITPB, Kempegowda bus station to Kadugodi, Majestic to Attibele, Kempegowda bus station to Bannerghatta National Park, and Silk Board to Hebbal on different days.

Transport Minister R. Ashok, who flagged off the bus, said: “We have been striving to promote mass transport and this new bus is an initiative in that direction.”

Mr. Ashok said this bus model bus would reduce diesel consumption, traffic jams and pollution.

He also spoke about plans to introduce intra-city bus services on the lines of BMTC in smaller towns like Mangalore, Shimoga, Mandya and Kolar, as well as in north Karnataka districts by the end of the month.

BMTC Chief Mechanical Engineer (Production, Transport and Planning) C.G. Anand said: “If the response of the public is good and the vehicle performs well, we will go ahead and purchase the bus.”

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3565420.ece

‘State committed to diverting Nethravathi’

Labour and Sericulture Minister B N Bache Gowda said that the government is committed to divert Nethravathi river to bring water to drought-hit districts like Chitradurga, Tumkur, Kolar and Chikballapur.

He said that the government has set aside Rs 400 crore for this and a proposal is being prepared.

Speaking to presspersons here on Saturday, Gowda said that the government is also considering to bring water from the rivers Bhadra and Hethenahalla as the water table in the districts have receded below 1,300 feet. This has affected the drinking water supply.

He said that the state government has effectively handled the drought situation by providing drinking water and fodder. He added that the government spent Rs 500 crore and submitted a proposal seeking Rs 5,000 crore grant.

Gowda said that the Union government is yet to release Rs 186 crore calamity relief fund. He added that government will build 1,500 Industrial Training Institutes, including 153 government and 193 aided training institutes. These institutes will train 1.5 lakh students and conduct training courses.

On the fall in sericulture cultivation, the Minister said that in Mysore, the sericulture cultivation, which was spread over50,000 hectares has been reduced to 4,000 hectares. Meanwhile, previously sericulture cultivation was spread over 1.8 lakh hectares in the state. But this has been reduced to 50,000 hectares following the crash in prices and import of China silk. He said the Sericulture Department and Central Silk Board have launched programmes to encourage sericulture cultivation.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/article549680.ece

Low treatment cost brings US citizen to Namma city

It was the comparatively low and effective cost of treatment in Bengaluru that brought Penny Philppi from Arizona in the United States to Apollo Hospital in the city. Having suffered six years of pain in her knee, the 53-year-old surgery assistant decided on a knee replacement.

“Initially, I just had slight pain in my knees, but gradually it was severe. My knee cartilage had practically eroded and I could hardly do my daily ablutions. Doctors in the US advised surgery. Despite having health insurance I could not have afforded the surgery in the United States. It would have cost me an exorbitant US $ 90,000 excluding the post-surgery care”, Ms Philppi told Deccan Chronicle.

She did a lot of research over the internet about hospitals, doctors and treatment options from across the globe. Singapore, Thailand and India were options, and she zeroed in on Apollo Hospital, Bengaluru. “I got in touch with Dr Arvind Patil from the hospital through an email and discussed my case with him in detail. I checked the doctor's background as well. Reaching Bengaluru on May 31, I went for preliminary tests. On June 2, I underwent the first set of surgery and on June 6 the second knee replacement procedure was done. The cost was almost one-tenth of similar surgery in the US. I am now able to walk with support and hope to walk on my own in a week's time”, she says.

Besides the cost factor, the medium of communication was another factor in favour of Bengaluru. “There was no communication gap. This helped me explain my case better and clearly to the doctors”, said Ms Philppi. Explaining the case, Dr Arvind D. Patil, consultant orthopaedic and joint replacement surgeon, Apollo Hospital said: “Penny’s medical report showed that her knee cartilage had almost eroded and surgery was the only option. A bilateral knee surgery involves replacing of eroded bone and cartilage portion with metal, cement and poly (plastic) after opening the knee joint.”

Regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle can help prevent eroding of the knee cartilage, which is very common among people after 40 years of age.

As for whether this is a one-time operation, Dr Patil says, “Once the knee replacement is done, its longevity depends on how the person carries it. Generally it lasts for about 15-20 years. Meanwhile, follow up tests are necessary once in a while”.

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/low-treatment-cost-brings-us-citizen-namma-city-462

Green belt directed around BIA

The Lok Adalat has directed the State government to create a green belt around the Bengaluru International Airport in view of the increasing air pollution.

During the three-hour marathon hearing on Saturday, the environment experts brought to the notice of the Adalat that there had been an increase in the air pollution around the airport, with nearly 15,000 vehicles plying to and fro, every day.

The experts said the flight operations at the BIA too had been casting an impact on the ecosystem. Yellappa Reddy, a member of the Adalath, observed that the oxygen level had come down in the area. More than 500 flights operate from the airport, per day.

The Adalat Bench comprising Justice D V Shylendra Kumar and member Yellappa Reddy directed the Infrastructure Development Department, Urban Development Department, Bangalore International Airport Area Planning and Forest Department to create a green belt in a radius of 25 km of the airport.

Mining leases

The Adalat directed the Mines and Geology Department to cancel the mining leases within one kilometre radius of Bannerghatta National Park after observing that the Forest Department had identified 29 cases of mining in the area.

The Forest Department was asked to acquire 1,000 acres from Revenue Department to create drinking water facility for elephants so as to prevent human-animal conflict.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259193/green-belt-directed-around-bia.html

Tunnels, expressway proposed on Shiradi Ghat

The Rs 4,800-crore project expected to be completed in six years

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The State government has conceived a ‘bypass express highway’ to tackle the poor road condition in Shiradi Ghat. If all goes well, the express highway with five tunnels, an arch bridge and three overbridges will be a reality in six years.

The road in Shiradi Ghat gets damaged due to heavy rain frequently leading to traffic chaos on the narrow and risky stretch. Repairs had become an annual affair with the maintenance turning out to be a challenge.

Under the ambitious project, it had been planned to construct a 18.5-km four-lane express highway from Maranahalli near Sakaleshpur up to Gundia on National Highway-48.

The experts of Japan International Consultancy Agency (JICA) who conducted a spot inspection near Sakaleshpur, have certified the feasibility of the Rs 4,800-crore project. Widening the present 26-km road between Sakaleshpur and Gundia is a Herculean task.

The project raises environmental concerns. But the proposed tunnel route will reduce the distance and ensures minimum damage to environment, JICA said in its report.

Subhashchandra Kuntia, Principal Secretary to Public Works Department, told Deccan Herald that it had been decided to take up the project in public-private partnership. “We have written to Union Ministry of Road Transport urging technical and financial assistance from Japan. A reply is expected in about two months,” he added.

Shiradi Ghat is about 850 feet above sea level. The expressway needs to be constructed in a slope from a height of 700 metre and hence the project poses a huge challenge. JICA had been requested to provide technical expertise, Kuntia disclosed.

Japan is experienced in the construction of tunnels and elevated roads. JICA has successfully constructed a 11-km Kanetsu tunnel in Japan, billed as the 11th longest tunnel route in the world.

It had been proposed to construct five tunnels covering a distance of 7.7 km, four overbridges for a distance of 3.9 km for the expressway. A two-km arch bridge near a valley also forms the part of the project.

Elevated bridges will have to be constructed to link hill ranges in the ghat. Pillars of a height of 30 metre will have to be erected to accomplish the task. Maranahalli is 700 metres above the sea level and Gundia, is located at a height of 155 metre from the sea.

In order to connect the two places at varying height downward gradient will have to be provided at every 100 metre, according to the preliminary report of JICA.

Traffic density

The financial viability of the project has been linked to the traffic density on the stretch. According to the JICA report, a project of this scale can be financially viable if the traffic density on the road is at least 10,000 vehicles per day.

The report furnished by the National Highways Authority of India puts the traffic density between Sakleshpur and Gundia at 8,000 vehicles a day. The data does not differentiate between the vehicles bound for long-distance journey and those plying locally.

JICA has suggested bolstering the consignment handling capacity of Mangalore port and connecting the port with those in Tamil Nadu. The Agency has also said that it would extend co-operation for developing the Mangalore port.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259400/tunnels-expressway-proposed-shiradi-ghat.html

BJP invites Ambareesh

Speculations were rife in political circles on Sunday that the State BJP has invited cine star Ambareesh to join the party.

The offer is that Ambareesh would be nominated to the Legislative Council and if required given a ministerial berth if he agrees to join the saffron brigade.

Sadananda Gowda is said to have invited Ambareesh, who hails from the Vokkaliga community, for lunch at his official residence “Anugraha” recently.

The party feels that Ambareesh would help the party make inroads in the old Mysore area, a bastion of the Vokkaliga community.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259396/bjp-invites-ambareesh.html

Cancer patients to benefit from DRDO wonder capsules

Herbal capsules developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is expected to be available for use in the next one year. According to officials, the pills will be made available for quick reaction teams (QRTs), that are pressed into service first during nuclear attacks or leaks.

Others who will benefit from this wonder drug will be cancer patients exposed to radiotherapy, and finally, those living in areas which have high-level radio-active presence.

The capsules, when consumed, act as de-corporating agents, thereby reducing the risks in case a person came in contact with nuke substances.

William Selvamurthy, DRDO’s Chief Controller and life sciences head said, “We are to complete the Nuclear-Biological-Chemical (NBC) project in 2014, which has 12 deliverables and 24 science and technology projects leading to deliverables. We are on track,” he said.

According to him, Indian armed forces have already began the process of acquisition of NBC equipment worth Rs 3,000 crore in the next five years.

“Most of these equipment and technologies are made in India, a strong pointer towards the inroads we made in developing life-saving devices,” Selvamurthi said.

To counter chemical warfare threats, the scientists have also developed auto-jet injectors, which can deliver ‘atropine sulphate’ and ‘palm chloride’ for the treatment of nerve agents.

“Sulfur mustard and nitrogen mustard are blister-causing agents. We have developed the first anti-dote that works against these agents. Blisters can reduce the fluids in the body significantly,” he said. The scientists have also developed nano-particles in decontamination solution in the event of NBC attack.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/nation/article549589.ece

Tamil Nadu gangs prey on state’s sandalwood treasure

The sandalwood treasure in Bannerghatta forests of have yet again come under the radar of smugglers from Tamil Nadu with at least five attempts being made in the last three months to smuggle them. The latest incident was reported on Wednesday last, when forest guards from Bannerghatta National Park (BNP) opened fire at a gang which was trying to remove a tree stump which was earlier chopped. One of the smugglers was injured in a shootout and later caught, but his four other accomplices fled the scene.

A few years ago, the sandalwood mafia from Bengaluru use to hire men from Pulidukote village in Selam district of Tamil Nadu to chop the precious wood during night hours. But, after a few shooting incidents on sandalwood poachers, such smuggling was brought under control. But according to forest officials, the Bannerghatta forests have always been on the radar of sandalwood gangs operating from Tamil Nadu. For many gangs from Tamil Nadu, Bengaluru and its surrounding areas, where sandalwood grows naturally, have become a major hunting ground. There have been attempts in the past when forest officials have gone to TN looking for smugglers, but in vain.

“For the last few months, we had information about smugglers from Tamil Nadu trying to enter into BNP from Anekal wildlife range which opens to both Karnataka and TN. The vast stretch of forests makes it easy for smugglers to gain entry and look for the right kind of sandalwood tree to cut. Since there is profuse growth of sandalwood inside our forests, the lure for poachers is always there. Hence, we are beefing up the staff strength at the anti-poaching camps inside BNP”, said DCF BNP, N. Devaraj. Protecting the precious trees inside the forest area is a Herculean task, no doubt. There are also quite a few green campuses in city which have hundreds of sandalwood trees.

“Every month, at least two sandalwood theft cases are reported in Sadashivnagar police limits alone and many cases go unnoticed. The large vegetated campuses like IISc and the Sankey residential quarters behind Aranya Bhavan, are two vulnerable areas”, noted an official.

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/tamil-nadu-gangs-prey-state%E2%80%99s-sandalwood-treasure-733

KMF looks to market its huge stock of milk powder

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Federation has three times the usual stock of SMP owing to record milk procurement

Deficient rainfall or a delayed monsoon in the country could bail out the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF), which currently stocks 6,000 tonnes of skimmed milk powder (SMP) following a record increase in milk procurement in recent months.

While in the past, the average stock of SMP was around 2,000 tonnes, it shot up to 6,000 tonnes after the average daily procurement of milk went up by 23 per cent over the last year.

The increase in milk procurement across the State, which is currently around 51.93 lakh kg daily, surprised experts, who expected KMF to reach the figure only by 2015-16.

The federation was hoping for a rise in demand from the northeast and eastern States, where the availability of milk was low and could further decline in the event of deficient rainfall or delayed monsson.

The shelf life of SMP is one year. According to sources in the KMF, there was a steep increase in stock because the daily surplus milk went up from about 5 lakh litres to about 14 lakh litres. While the daily procurement was around 52 lakh kg, the federation used only about 38 lakh litres as liquid milk, curd, UHT (Goodlife) milk and milk products. “As a farmers’ cooperative, we cannot refuse milk from members,” said the sources.

Currently, India has about 1.7 lakh tonnes of SMP, of which about 1 lakh tonnes is with milk federations, according to the sources. This was due to a ban imposed in February 2011 on the export of SMP by the Centre, which also allowed for duty free import of 50,000 tonnes of SMP to overcome milk shortage, they said. However, the Union government lifted the export ban about a fortnight ago. The KMF may not be able to sell SMP in the market at the prevailing price with the international price chart released by New Zealand-based Fonterra being lower than its production cost.

“The current price of around Rs. 158 a kg is lower than our production cost. We will break even if the price crosses Rs. 165 a kg. The federation would also lose heavily because the transportation cost is additional,” sources said, adding that last year, the KMF sold SMP for an average price of Rs. 180 a kg, with the highest price being Rs. 200 a kg. In recent weeks, the price dropped to Rs. 145 a kg.

Meanwhile, a top official said the KMF was not panicking and was hopeful of finding markets, and pointed out that the federation sold nearly 2,000 tonnes of SMP in January. “We are also expecting demand for SMP from State federations that are not big milk producers,” the official said.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/karnataka/article3566564.ece

Engaging with Bangalore

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We Are Here, designed by Archana Prasad and Vera Maeder, is an experiential journey into the city. Its objective is to make you become aware of your city


Imagine a scenario in which you are out on the streets, not on work or to meet friends, but to experience the city. Archana Prasad, founder and co-director of Jaaga and Vera Maeder, German choreographer and director of Hello! Earth, has created a virtual project titled, We Are Here. The project is an experiential journey into the city. It is an interactive performance that is also a social experiment — which involves a series of laboratories — that will be shared in a site specific participatory intervention at the Urban Mela, to be held this month.

“We travel by car or bus and spend most of our time at the workplace and at home. This project will motivate people to walk around and experience the city,” says Archana, a graduate of Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath and National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.

“The project explores the relation between virtual and physical presence and its influence on collective, community and place within cities,” explains Archana. Intensive research has gone into the project, which has also seen the participation of Indian artists with backgrounds in journalism, dance, multimedia, design and visual arts and technology.”

Vera contends We Are Here has an element of choreography in it as “it is a guided action”. The viewer has to call a number and artists will guide him or her through a designated neighbourhood. But the artists will not judge for the viewer; he or she has to draw their own conclusions from their experience.

Every city has a character to it. Bangalore has been considered variously as a Pensioner’s Paradise, Garden and IT city. But every Bangalorean engages differently with the city. Contemporary Indian artist Archana Prasad, over the last few years, has been working to develop an aesthetic perception of the city. Her medium of expression are digital tech and video. Archana agrees that Bangalore is experienced according to an individual’s perspective. “We had in fact put up a questionnaire on Facebook that asked what Bangalore means to them. Some wrote of how they identify the city’s green cover while others associated the city with sparrows.”

When asked how she finds a common thread between technology and art, Archana says she does not find the two disparate.

Vera’s organisation Hello! Earth urges residents “to experience, sense and do rather than sit and see”. The tools Vera works with to achieve this are theatre and movement-based performances for the stage, installations and a combination of these.

Vera says that Bangalore is an orderly city, but that there need to be more spaces where residents can walk and congregate.

Urban Mela will be held at the Palace Grounds from June 22 to July 1, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the Palace Grounds. To register for We Are Here call 7676810088. For more details visit http://we-are-here.in/.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/metroplus/article3554513.ece

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105 seat na hosa bus - sachiva ashok. Namma 105 bembaligarannu agaga resort galige karkond hogake bekaguthalla adakke.

105 seater new bus - Transport minister Ashoka.

This bus is required to transport our 105 supporters now and then to resorts.

Humour on BJP's Resort politics in Karnataka.

E-ticketing planned for Bannerghatta, Bandipur national parks

The e-ticketing service, which was launched at the Mysore Zoo on Monday, is expected to be extended to Bannerghatta and Bandipur National Parks next month, said principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) and chief wildlife warden Deepak Sharma.

Mysore Zoo is the first in the country to provide this facility.

Speaking at the inauguration of e-ticketing system at Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens here on Monday, Sharma said the new facility will make buying tickets to visit Bannerghatta and renting out guest houses at Bandipur easier.

He said an increasing number of tourists were heading for Bandipur and Nagarahole.

With the implementation of eco-tourism policy, private vehicles have been banned from conducting tours and only Jungle Lodges and forest department vehicles are used for safari.

One route has been fixed for every four vehicle, and use of mobile phones has been banned on the safari.

Elephant census

About the status of elephant census, he said the data has been provided to the Indian Institute of Science for analysis and the details would be available by the end of July.

Zoo Authority of Karnataka (ZAK) chairman M Nanjundswamy said a modern mini-bus has been introduced for tourists at Bannerghatta. Plans to introduce another mini-bus would be discussed at an administrative board meeting, he added.

Visitors can log on to the website www.mysorezoo.info and book tickets, battery operated vehicles for tours inside, pay for usage of still and video cameras, book luggage racks and also pay for parking vehicles.

e-Tickets will be valid for seven days from the date of purchase for the convenience of planning visits.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259682/e-ticketing-planned-bannerghatta-bandipur.html

Railways to double tracks by 2014

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Railways-to-double-tracks-by-2014-LINE/articleshow/14397136.cms

BANGALORE: The Railways will complete doubling of tracks between Bangalore and Mysore by 2014. Announcing this, Union minister of state for railways KH Muniyappa said there were land acquisition hurdles which were resolved.

"This route has become busier by the day. At present, around 25,000 people travel between these two cities by train on a daily basis," he said.

A total of 138 km of track has to be doubled and is sanctioned in three phases - Bangalore to Kengeri (12km), Kengeri to Ramnagaram (32 km) and Ramnagaram to Mysore (94 km). Although these works were sanctioned between 2003 and 2008, work never started because of right of way issues in Mandya. Muniyappa said the work is going on full swing. "Fifty acres of land has to be acquired in Mandya district. The work was supposed to be complete by 2011. The delay is attributed to land issues," he said.

He also said that shortage of funds from the ministry of railways is a reason why multiple rail projects are yet to be taken up in the state. He said that when the SWR requires Rs 210 crore for works related to the state, they get only Rs30 crores as funds. Last year the SWR was sanctioned Rs60 crore only.

@akash: lol good one!! :D

@akash: lol good one!! :D

Thank yogendra for that...nice humour he posted it in karnataka discussions thread.

Alert Bangalore constable cracks murder in Andhra Pradesh

BANGALORE: An alert constable, a deft hand in identifying fake numberplates of vehicles, could solve a murder in Andhra Pradesh after he intercepted a Mahindra Scorpio while patrolling in Bangalore's JP Nagar recently.

Constable G Srinivasu was on his usual rounds when he noticed the Scorpio SUV with a suspicious numberplate bearing KA 04-S-5515. Srinivasu knew that the 'S' series is normally not allotted by the transport department to four-wheelers but to two-wheelers.

As he stopped the vehicle, Dinesh, the driver, pleaded with him to spare him. The constable took Dinesh to the police station. He told police that the documents were missing from the vehicle. But slowly Dinesh opened up and confessed that the actual number of the vehicle was AP 04-S 5515 (In AP, the series is different).

Soon police found that they had stumbled on a murder case. Dinesh told police that the vehicle driver was murdered by some of his associates in Rayachoti near Kadiri town in Andhra Pradesh. He said that on June 1, he and three other inter-state vehicle lifters stopped the vehicle and strangled the driver Anwar Pa8sha with an electric wire, on the outskirts of Kadiri town and dumped the body. The car was sold to Dinesh through Nyamath, who was known to him.

JP Nagar cops seized the Scorpio worth Rs 10 lakh. All four were arrested and Andhra police have taken them into their custody for further investigation as they suspect that the gang kingpin is still at large.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Alert-Bangalore-constable-cracks-murder-in-Andhra-Pradesh/articleshow/14420729.cms

Remembering Hebbar, the doyen of art

BANGALORE: On KK Hebbar's 101st birth month, renowned artists have gathered to showcase their works as a tribute to the master.

Titled the 'ArtMantram KK Hebbar festival', the exhibition at Chitrakala Parishath showcases some of Dr Hebbar's works in confluence with the works of some of the artists who have been closely associated with him.

The exhibition will continue till June 27, 2012."This three day art fest is our tribute to the master. Dr. Hebbar was only an artist but also an institution builder. He had his unique style of painting which was combination of European and Indian art," shared Jija Harisingh, founder of ArtMantram. "This festival is unique and it caters to those who appreciate and collect fine art pieces," she added at the launch.

If Hebbar lived to motivate young artists, ArtMantram is following suit with its scholarships in collaboration with the Hebbar Foundation. Students from all over India are eligible for this scholarship.

source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Remembering-Hebbar-the-doyen-of-art/articleshow/14406738.cms

South’s first fodder cake unit ready

District’s fodder problem to be solved, plan to produce 12 tonnes every day

The farmers of the district have a reason to cheer as the first fodder cake manufacturing unit in South India, being constructed near Manachanahalli-Kalanahalli, will start functioning in a couple of months.

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The unit is being constructed with an objective to prevent wastage and also produce dry fodder with byproducts that are available aplenty in the district.

The establishment of the unit will encourage farmers, who had stopped rearing of cattle as they could not afford it due to rising fodder prices.

The dry fodder cake technology is used in North India. Cattle rearers in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh use such cakes.

Boost dairy farming

The Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) decided to set up a dry fodder cake production unit in the state to boost dairy farming. Such units were sanctioned for Chamarajanagar, Shimoga and Haveri districts.

The Mysore-Chamarajanagar District Cooperative Milk Producers Union Federation (Mymul), using the Rs one crore grant under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas project, has set up the unit at Chamarajanagar well before other districts.

Mymul has purchased five acres of land for the purpose. More than 50 per cent of equipment have arrived and the remaining are expected in a week.
Production method
Hay from paddy, ragi and jowar will be cut into half inch size pieces and mixed with grains, husk, salt, etc. It is made into fodder cakes after processing.

Initially, there is a plan to produce 12 tonnes of cakes, with each weighing eight to 10 kg, per day.

As hay and fodder are utilised to make cakes, it would be a balanced food for the cattle.

It would help in increasing milk production and also fat content in the milk, said Mymul managing director Suresh Babu.

Preparations are on to float tenders to supply hay and raw materials. The price of the cakes will be decided later. The cakes will be sold to farmers in the district in a couple of months, he added.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259976/souths-first-fodder-cake-unit.html

This software helps save energy

http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/06/27/259969_thump.jpg

With several IT firms chanting ‘Go Green’ mantra, a software developed by city-based Vigyanlabs, helps tech companies save massively on power consumption.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259969/this-software-helps-save-energy.html

New garden attracts birds, butterflies at Nandi Hills

http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/06/26/259928_thump.gif

The Nandi Hills have a pleasant climate throughout the year and is a haven for migratory birds.

The new garden developed by the Horticultural department will enhance its reputation as a hill station. Birds from the Himalayan region and other places have already started arriving here.

To attract birds and butterflies different varieties of fruit trees and flowers have been grown.

Nandi Hills are currently undergoing a multi-crore development, including a one crore renovation of the Tipu Fort, via private-public partnership to transform the hills into a tourist hub.

The Department of Horticulture is setting up a food court modeled after one in Singapore at a cost of nearly one crore.

Various varieties of vegetarian and continental food, beverages, bakery products, ice-creams and fresh fruit juices will be available.

A 30 lakh music stage located on a three-and-a-half acre grove, which has hundreds of eucalyptus trees and rain trees, will conduct cultural programmes.

Further, the Horticulture department is developing 140 acres (0.57 km2) of pristine land in the Nandi Hills region with the creation of a large scale exotic botanical gardens.

A state of the art Planetarium with an initial one crore investment is also being constructed. A Gondola Lift system will connect the peak of the Nandi Hill with the nearby Muddenahalli.

The State Government had decided to spend Rs. 16.60 crore during the financial year 2011-12 to improve infrastructure and tourist facilities at Nandi Hills.

These included a food court (Rs 15 lakh), an open air auditorium (Rs 83 lakh), a children play area (Rs 85 lakh) and artificial waterfalls (Rs 1 crore).

The new facilities would be developed without disturbing the existing structures and
the environment at Nandi Hills.

Five more cottages are to be constructed at a cost of Rs 71.51 lakh near the existing cottages and, five rooms would come up at the Gandhi Nilaya at a cost of Rs 1.46 crore. Besides, Rs 25 lakh and Rs 55 lakh had been earmarked for improving the facilities at the Gandhi Nilaya and the Nehru Nilaya, respectively.

The bus stand at the hill station would be improved by spending an estimated Rs 81.63 lakh and, Rs 1.80 crore had been set aside for the construction of toilets.

Funds have also been reserved for construction of a car park bay to accommodate at least 500 vehicles and taking up other civil works, she said.

A committee on the development of Nandi Hills and Kemmanagundi, finalised the plans for the development of the two hill stations that attract tourists round the year.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259928/garden-attracts-birds-butterflies-nandi.html

Project to generate power from bamboo on the cards

Project proposed in Kanakapur on a pilot basis

http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/06/27/259948_thump.jpg

The generation of power from bamboo will be a reality soon if the Forest Department has its say.

Forest Minister C P Yogeeshwara told reporters on Tuesday that a proposal had been submitted to the government to take up the project on a pilot basis in Kanakapur taluk.

Land in some parts of Kanakapura had become unfit for agriculture due to flow of sewerage water from Bangalore. Bamboo plantation can be taken up on such land and power can be generated by setting up gasifier plants, he said.

The minister said he had recently visited Mundargi in Gadag district where a bamboo-based gasifier plant was being set up and collected details about the project.

He said he had already appraised Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda of the proposed project and had received a positive response from him.

According to the minister, about 40 tonnes of bamboo can be grown in an acre of land. About 5 mega watt of power can be generated from about 40,000 tonnes of bamboo.

Per unit cost of power generation under this method is Rs 1.50. Bamboo can be cultivated anywhere in the State and in all seasons.

“If the government can take up bamboo cultivation on dry and barren land and set up a gasifier plants in all districts, the State will become free of power shortage problem,” he said.

He said he will soon urge the Centre to consider bamboo as a plantation crop so that those who take up bamboo cultivation can get subsidies.

Kaan forest

The Western Ghats Task Force submitted a report on the conservation action plan for Kaan forest of Shimoga district.

The task force, among others, recommended the government to come out with a clear policy on identification, recognition, demarcation, protection and management of different kinds of Kaan forests, including sacred groves, in the district.

Steps should be taken to prevent encroachment and works like fencing, cattle-proof trench formation and rising live fencing should be taken up immediately.

Protection and management of Kaan forests should be included in the annual action plan of the Forest Department, the Task Force recommended in its report.

Yogeeshwara said in many parts of Shimoga, Kaan forests come under the Revenue Department. Hence, people were misusing the forest.

The process to transfer Kaan forest land from Revenue Department to Forest Department will be initiated soon, he said.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259948/project-generate-power-bamboo-cards.html

Pvt firms to maintain industrial zones

The State government is considering to rope in private companies to develop and maintain industrial estates, Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda said on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters after a review meeting to follow up investment bids received at Global Investors’ Meet (GIM) 2012, Gowda said that the proposal is one of several ideas being considered by the government to help make the State more investment-friendly.

According to the chief minister, allowing private companies to develop and maintain industrial estates would help industries develop zones to suit their requirement and infrastructure needs.

Proposals received will be reviewed every month by a high-level committee headed by the Industries Minister.

“I will also review the cases once every three months,” he said, adding that the State government had signed investment proposals worth Rs 7.6 lakh crore at GIM 2012.

Based on feedback received at GIM-2012, the government has also decided to take up measures to strengthen the single window system for clearing investment proposals.

The government is working on a comprehensive plan to make land acquisition for
industries faster and at the same time more transparent, he said.

Gowda said the the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), an independent bureau within The Economist Group, had rated Karnataka as 16th among the top 20 investment destinations across the world.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260018/pvt-firms-maintain-industrial-zones.html

Israel to help State boost agricultural produce

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Israel has decided to open three ‘Centres of Excellence’ in the field of agriculture in Karnataka. The country also plans to open its second consulate in India, in Bangalore by October to attract tourists, especially from South India.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, the Consul General for Israel in India, Orna Sagiv said the country was now targeting three major sectors in Karnataka – IT, agriculture and food processing.

Infosys has already inked a knowledge pact with a Israeli chief scientist for providing inputs to start-up companies in Israel. Sagiv said the three centres were being set up to train farmers in three different products.

While one centre will be located in Kolar for mangoes, Belgaum will host the other for pomegranate crop.

The third centre of excellence will be set up at Bagalkot for teaching people on advanced techniques to grow vegetables. The centres will ensure that those trained by our personnel will pass on the information to the farmers to increase their yield with a little more investment, she said.

More flights

Following a tourism pact between India and Israel inked earlier this month, it is now likely that the Jewish state, will open its doors to private airlines with the hope of boosting its tourism industry.

“Currently, with only the Israeli official carrier, El Al, flying three times a week we hope to see more flights to Israel. Our Minister for Tourism is open to the idea of having private players (airlines) to fly to Tel Aviv,” she said.

The Consul General was hopeful that the Tourism Working Committee, formed to bolster the tourism industry will work on the proposal to allow private carriers from various other cities in India.

Sagiv said that Israel has already decided to open a tourism office in Mumbai and that the matter is currently in the approval stage. “We have also invested much on the tour operators by giving them ideas of making Israel an attractive package to Indian citizens,” she said.

According to Israeli statistics, 40,000 tourists and travellers, from each nation, visit India and Israel. “In fact, the biggest population of visitors coming to Israel are from India,” she said.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259935/israel-help-state-boost-agricultural.html

Project to generate power from bamboo on the cards

Project proposed in Kanakapur on a pilot basis

http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/06/27/259948_thump.jpg

The generation of power from bamboo will be a reality soon if the Forest Department has its say.



source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259948/project-generate-power-bamboo-cards.html

Excellent :cheers:

http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/6361/120623kpn78.jpg

http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/428788_487036607988994_845894244_n.jpg

105 seat na hosa bus - sachiva ashok. Namma 105 bembaligarannu agaga resort galige karkond hogake bekaguthalla adakke.

105 seater new bus - Transport minister Ashoka.

This bus is required to transport our 105 supporters now and then to resorts.

Humour on BJP's Resort politics in Karnataka.

Bus is not needed. They can now do both types of politica together in Belgaum.

Legislators’ Home project in Belgaum finds private sector disinterested (http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259938/legislators-home-project-belgaum-finds.html)

The government now plans to take up the project on its own. The project envisages construction and operation of a 500-room LH-cum-resort on the leased government land adjacent to Suvarna Soudha on the outskirts of Belgaum city.

Tunnels, expressway proposed on Shiradi Ghat

The Rs 4,800-crore project expected to be completed in six years

http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/06/25/259400_thump.jpg

The State government has conceived a ‘bypass express highway’ to tackle the poor road condition in Shiradi Ghat. If all goes well, the express highway with five tunnels, an arch bridge and three overbridges will be a reality in six years.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/259400/tunnels-expressway-proposed-shiradi-ghat.html


Forest land needed is 6.9 km x fourlane width
(18.5 km - 7.7 km tunnels - 3.9 km overbridges)

Land returned to forest is 26 km x twolane width

Gain to forest
= 26 km x twolane width - 6.9 km x fourlane width
= 12.2 km x twolane width
(assuming 4 lane width = 2 x twolane width)

So, MoEF will be happy if whole length of existing 26 km Gundya-Maranahalli is returned to forest.


Fuel Saving:

Fuel to cover 7.5 km is saved for 8000 to 10000 vehicles per day. (26 km - 18.5 km = 7.5 km)
As the road is made straight there will be less lossage of fuel for break/accelerator works at turns.


MoEF will be happy as that much pollution will go down.


Now, the new road will give easy access for exporting goods to western countries through Mangaluru Port. You need not spend money on cutting Adam's Bridge or Ram Setu as a easy passage will be now available to move goods from north TN to west. And assume that fuel needed for transporting goods through land will not exceed fuel needed for ships to turn around peninsular tip.

Ram Setu believers will be happy. Marinelives will be happy. MoEF will be happy again.

Only thing I can comment on is possible increased weight on hills as they have to support bridges although they lose some weight for tunnels. I hope that good construction techniques will help here.

And safetwise, road without turns will reduce number of accidents.

gentem, are you happy?

^^ :bow:

Good one krishnamoorthy

Japan agency seeks to build Rs. 4,800 crore tunnel in Western Ghats

Under the JICA proposal, the proposed 18.5km stretch will include five tunnels, and four overbridges

Bangalore: The Karnataka government is looking to solve the recurring problem of unmotorable roads on the national highway between Bangalore and the port city of Mangalore by constructing an 18.5 kilometre, multi-stage tunnel through the Western Ghats at a cost of Rs. 4,800 crore.


An expert group from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has submitted a report to the Karnataka government on the construction of a four-lane expressway between Sakleshpur in Hassan district and Gundia in Dakshina Kannada district along National Highway 48 connecting Bangalore and Mangalore.
Under the JICA proposal, the proposed 18.5km stretch will include five tunnels, and four overbridges. A 2km arch bridge will also be constructed to provide connectivity across a valley.

The current 30km road from Sakleshpur to Mangalore climbs over the Shirdi ghat section of the Western Ghats.

The condition of this section of the highway deteriorates every year because of heavy rainfall—around 400 centimetre annually—and accidents are frequent.

In 2011, the state government spent nearly Rs. 22 crore on repairing the stretch.

The proposed expressway, to be built over six years, is expected to reduce the commuting time from 3 hours to less than half-an-hour. The proposed road will also improve connectivity to the New Mangalore Port.

“Currently, consignments from several parts of Karnataka prefer to go either to Chennai or to Goa despite Mangalore port being closer,” said Karnataka’s large and medium industries minister Murugesh Nirani. “We need to close the gap in the connectivity infrastructure.”

JICA also submitted that the project will be financially viable if traffic density is around 10,000 vehicles per day. According to the figures furnished by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), the traffic density is estimated at around 8,000 vehicles daily.

Nirani added that the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) had expressed interest in providing technical assistance to build the tunnel with private firms in a public-private partnership.

Public works minister C.M. Udasi said the state government had already submitted the proposal to the union ministry of road transport and highways and is awaiting a reply.

“We had a long discussion with the Japanese delegation during the Global Investors Meet earlier this month and some firms have expressed interest in taking up the project,” he said.

The state government took the tunnel approach after it failed to receive environment clearances for converting the the ghat section into a four-lane highway.

Several projects in the Western Ghats have been held up due to lack of environmental clearances. These include the Hubli-Ankola railway line and a hydel power project in Gundia.

http://www.livemint.com/2012/06/27231114/Japan-agency-seeks-to-build-Rs.html

Bangalore-Mangalore can be done in 5 hours and most of consignment can be shipped through NMP :cheers:

Fly Bangalore-London-Amsterdam @ Rs 999 and you, the pilot

http://newindianexpress.com/incoming/article552698.ece/ALTERNATES/w460/PILOT.jpg

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article552699.ece

Budget for 2012-13 will be presented on Thursday

The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike’s (BBMP) budget for 2012-13 will be presented on Thursday.

Citizens, who are anxiously waiting for some development work to be taken up, may have to wait longer, sources in the BJP (ruling party) told The Hindu.

Outlay

The sources said the budget outlay is likely to touch Rs. 10,000 crore.

“However, with most works spilling over to this budget, there may not be any new projects,” sources added. The outlay for the 2010-11 budget was Rs. 8,484 crore and that for 2011-12 was Rs. 9,675 crore.

With the Assembly elections round the corner, residents hoped the budget would include several projects and schemes to woo voters. However, sources claimed that this may not be the case.

“The spillover works itself will come up to about Rs. 4,000 crore, another Rs. 1,500 crore will go towards administrative expenses. Whatever is remaining will be used for ward works and some projects,” sources said.

They also said that after the budget is presented, the BJP may announce some new projects that will be taken up on public-private partnership and Build Own Operate and Transfer basis.

Funding

“We will get funds from various sources, including Centre’s Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, to announce schemes and projects,” sources added.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3579834.ece

Forest land needed is 6.9 km x fourlane width
(18.5 km - 7.7 km tunnels - 3.9 km overbridges)

Land returned to forest is 26 km x twolane width

Gain to forest
= 26 km x twolane width - 6.9 km x fourlane width
= 12.2 km x twolane width
(assuming 4 lane width = 2 x twolane width)

So, MoEF will be happy if whole length of existing 26 km Gundya-Maranahalli is returned to forest.


Fuel Saving:

Fuel to cover 7.5 km is saved for 8000 to 10000 vehicles per day. (26 km - 18.5 km = 7.5 km)
As the road is made straight there will be less lossage of fuel for break/accelerator works at turns.


MoEF will be happy as that much pollution will go down.


Now, the new road will give easy access for exporting goods to western countries through Mangaluru Port. You need not spend money on cutting Adam's Bridge or Ram Setu as a easy passage will be now available to move goods from north TN to west. And assume that fuel needed for transporting goods through land will not exceed fuel needed for ships to turn around peninsular tip.

Ram Setu believers will be happy. Marinelives will be happy. MoEF will be happy again.

Only thing I can comment on is possible increased weight on hills as they have to support bridges although they lose some weight for tunnels. I hope that good construction techniques will help here.

And safetwise, road without turns will reduce number of accidents.

gentem, are you happy?

tunnels are welcome, even stage govt may fund part of it, though 4.8k crore will be lil steep. Anyways recently railways concor started bangalore-mangalore freight train weekly, that frequency should be increased to daily, rail is much better than road for freight. What is the status of ongoing madikeri-mangalore two laning which will take away half traffic from shiradi ghats, is it finished?

but im not sure about ram sethu, which is supported by karunanidhi who support ravan, that is actually political issue. and time saved by ram sethu cutting is very less compared to total distance. and mangalore connectivity may not have much impact on that, fuel is very cheap for ships. imports from east will anyway come to chennai :cheers:

What is the status of ongoing madikeri-mangalore two laning which will take away half traffic from shiradi ghats, is it finished?


Road is fantastic i.e. SH 88,this is what happens when you don't visit Karnataka highways thread regularly.Yogendra has posted fantastic pics of SH 88 madikeri-mangalore section.Minor works like culvert were underway few months back which i suppose are over by now.

SH 88 Mysore-Meracara


http://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/552622_10151011200253128_2022269973_n.jpg

Copyright DHNS


At Mercara

http://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/168895_10151001590403128_334392419_n.jpg

PTI

Karnataka State Highway 88 - Madikeri Mangalore road updates

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7076/7203785198_4ff825dcf6_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mysoreone/7203785198/)
Karnataka State Highway 88 - Kodagu 2012 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mysoreone/7203785198/) by mysoreone.com - One City Infinite Admirers...!!! (http://www.flickr.com/people/mysoreone/), on Flickr

Check previous page as well

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1092097&page=51

Happy birthday strike2 :cheers:

thanks akash

Hey Happy Birthday Shreyas :cheers2:

Party ell kodastha idhiya antha heLu, it'll be SSC B meet as well ;) :)

but im not sure about ram sethu, which is supported by karunanidhi who support ravan, that is actually political issue. and time saved by ram sethu cutting is very less compared to total distance. and mangalore connectivity may not have much impact on that, fuel is very cheap for ships. imports from east will anyway come to chennai :cheers:

There is no point in dispatching goods meant for middle east, Africa or Europe from Bengaluru, Mysuru, Tumkur, Kolar, Hosur, Tirupattur or even Salem & Vellore through TN ports like Chennai, Ennore or Cuddalore as they incur both land transportation and water transportation costs. There is a lot of scope for saving fuel by diverting western shipments to ports like Mangaluru from these regions. I agree with you that rail network to Mangaluru port should be further strengthened to save fuel.

Import & Export to eastern countries is fine through TN ports.

Anyway constructing channel through Adam Bridge could be a big loss to marine environment. Also it is too costly affair needing regular dredging works and dredging also need fuel.

I forgot to list a few more advantages of the proposed tunnel-bridge road as it is well known to us:
1. Allows smooth movement of animals under bridge. (for example elephants)
2. Saving of Time
3. Tourism attraction. (As I have posted earlier in other threads eco-tourism in forests may lead to environmental issues unless done with care.)

Chennai man conned

A man from Chennai, who came down to the town on Thursday following the lure of lucre, has been cheated of Rs 17 lakh.

Joseph Stalin was running a business after securing loan from different banks in his home state. He came in contact with Rajkumar, Baburaj and Shanmuga Sundaram, also from Chennai, who offered Rs 35 crore loan at a very low rate of interest.

The trio allegedly brought Joseph to Gundlupet. It was after arriving here that they demanded Joseph for relevant documents and Rs 17 lakh to secure the amount.

They also promised Joseph of bearing 15 lakh of the total Rs 32 lakh for registration. Joseph who believed them allegedly gave the amount. As promised, the trio gave Joseph Rs 15 crore. Two locals Narayan and Eshwar were the brokers for the deal.

Shock awaited Joseph when he came to know that the cash brought in trunks were not genuine. The fraudsters had topped wad of paper with genuine currency.

The police have registered a case and have arrested Narayan and Eshwar. The search is on for the remaining accused.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260419/chennai-man-conned.html

City’s water bodies lost: CSE report

The City’s rapid growth has come at a heavy price – in the form of the loss of its lakes and ponds, according to a Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) report.

“These water bodies are now either repositories for sewage or have been turned into prime real estate,” a study conducted by the CSE revealed. “As a result, even with huge investments and projects for bringing water to the City – including the much debated Greater Bangalore Water and Sanitation Project (GBWASP) – the water crisis has become real and regular,” the report said.

According to the land use classification, bodies of water such as lakes, tanks and ponds, consituted four per cent of Bangalore’s metropolitan area in the past and were instrumental in providing the City with much of its drinking water. Such bodies were also responsible for recharging Bangalore’s groundwater.

But since their demise, the City has been forced to turn to the Cauvery river and only groundwater to meet its ever-growing needs, the report said.

There are currently no reliable estimates for the amount of groundwater still remaining in Bangalore.

“Some researchers have counted wells and studied tanker mafias but the information is limited to case studies,” said Sunita Narain, Director of the CSE. But she added that despite the damage done to the environment, Bangalore is making an effort to change.

“It is thinking big and trying out several new things. The real challenge for Bangalore in the coming years would be to turn that thought into action – learn to recycle and reuse. That is where the future lies,” she said.

BWSSB Chairman Gaurav Gupta said: “The power cost of supplying Cauvery River water is Rs 300 crore per year. Therefore, over a 30-year life cycle, the operations and management expenditure exceeds capital costs. We can get this in the form of grants and loans, but what about covering the operation costs of sourcing water from a distance.”

Currently, however, Bangalore is still looking to the Cauvery for water.

The Cauvery River Water Disputes Tribunal has earmarked 600 cusec (or 1,470 MLD) of water from the river for the City. But this river water is being contested as farmers say their fair share is being taken away for cities and industries.

The CSE director has also pointed out that drawing water from Cauvery is inefficient.

“Distance leads to high transmission losses, it leads to high costs of energy and high costs of repair. Therefore, it is important that the City looks at developing local water bodies,” she said.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260479/citys-water-bodies-lost-cse.html

Fingerprints to protect property owners

In order to make issue of permanent khatas (property ownership documents) tamperproof, the BBMP will be fingerprinting property owners.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260471/fingerprints-protect-property-owners.html

In BJP’s achievement report card, Sadananda shines

http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/06/29/260465_thump.jpg

Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on Thursday released a report card on the achievements of four years of the BJP rule in Karnataka.

The report was released to the media amid indications that the BJP high command favoured a change of guard in the State.

Titled ‘Four years of All Embracing Performance’, the 148-page report covered most of the schemes, programmes and events related to the administration during both Yeddyurappa and Gowda’s tenures.

Though the report prominently displayed photographs of Yeddyurappa, now his bete noir, Gowda’s photographs outnumbered that of his predecessor. The report card mainly showcased the performance of Gowda’s 11-month governance.

Presenting a “Rs 1-lakh crore” 2012-13 budget, the symbolic handing over of Aasare houses to beneficiaries, the inauguration of GIM-II… these and several photograhps of various events of Gowda’s tenure adorn the report card, which is seen as Gowda’s move to send out a message to the party high command that he is a performer. “Despite confusion, we have been able to successfully provide good administration…You (media) should appreciate this fact,” he said.

That Gowda’s ministry is a divided house became evident as none of the ministers loyal to Yeddyurappa was present at the release of the report card, except Animal Husbandry Minister Revu Nayak Belamagi. He left the venue within a few minutes of his arrival. All the ministers were asked by Gowda to be present.

Though Gowda tried to keep smiling at the media conference, his anxiety over the political upheavals was palpable in his reactions to queries. He lost his cool whenever reporters asked him questions about the chief minister’s post.

Asked why the government had not been celebrating its achievements, he said: “Some people believe in celebrations. But we believe in hard work… We, instead, want see people who benefit from our work celebrate.”

On speculations that there would be a change of leadership, Gowda said: “There are speculations right from day one of my becoming the chief minister.” Asked whether the Cabinet would be expanded, he said the party high command had said it would indicate the date for expansion after the presidential elections.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260465/in-bjps-achievement-report-card.html

Jeans-clad women barred from Kodagu temples

Next time you visit Bhagamandala or Talacauvery temples, make sure you are clad in traditional or decent attire.

http://www.deccanherald.com/images/editor_images1/2012/06/29/temple-file.jpg

The members of the Talacauvery-Bhagandeeshwara Temple Management Committee along with local residents have decided to impose a dress code on tourists and devotees, especially women.

The decision was taken during the committee meeting at Bhagamandala on Thursday. The meeting, presided over the Legislative Assembly Speaker K G Bopaiah, was attended by local residents.

It was decided that antics of tourists needed to be curbed as Bhagamandala and Talacauvery were places of worship and not picnic spots. The members urged that the dress code prevalent elsewhere in the Hindu pilgrim centres should be enforced at the twin places to preserve the sanctity.

It was decided that devotees, especially women wearing jeans, T-shirts, sleeveless, skirts and other revealing dresses would be stopped at the entrance of the temples. Women clad in saree, chudidar, salwar kameez will be allowed inside.

A notice board will be installed in front of the temples giving details about the dress code. Hundreds of tourists who visit Talacauvery, illegally sneak into the peak of Brahmagiri Hill in the vicinity.

Garbage, especially liquor and beer bottles and plastic covers have been strewn on the peak spoiling the pristine and eco-sensitive region, said Kodava Sahitya Academy president Addanda Cariappa. “We can’t depend on police to curb the infiltration. A Security Force must be established by the temple committee,” he added.

It is not reasonable to leave every thing to the police. Local residents usually have rifles with them. The infiltration can be greatly controlled even if youth go on rounds with rifles near the temple, Bopaiah said.

The Hundi (donation box) stolen last year from the Talacauvery Temple is yet to be recovered. The security near the temple needs to be further beefed up, said committee member G Rajendra.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260450/jeans-clad-women-barred-kodagu.html

High court tells state, AP govts to decide on water for Pavagada

The high court on Thursday warned that it will be left with no alternative but to pass appropriate orders on providing drinking water to the parched border taluk of Pavagada if both Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh fail to negotiate and arrive at a formula for using/sharing water in the next four weeks.

"What were the authorities doing when Andhra Pradesh drew up this scheme? It is simple psychology that if water (pipe) passes through and it is not available to them the people will agitate. It iscommon.

You (both governments) sit together and work it out. If no agreement is arrived at, we will be constrained to pass necessary orders. At present, we are reluctantly adjourning the hearing," the division bench headed by Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen observed while granting time till July 26 for both sides. The bench was also not happy with the response from Karnataka Urban Water Supply and Drainage Board.

Earlier, the government advocate told the court that the chief minister has written to his Andhra Pradesh counterpart. However, the state's counsel said several areas in Andhra Pradesh are far worse than Pavagada. He also claimed that any sharing would reduce allocation of water to Andhra Pradesh.

DEADLINE FOR GOVT

A division bench headed by the chief justice has given a four-week deadline to the government to come out with the list of posts to be reserved for persons with disabilities as per Section 32 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995. The bench warned that it would be left with no other option but to direct the government to adopt list of such posts already identified by the Centre in case the state fails to come out with its list.

The PIL is filed by a number of organizations, including the Karnataka Rashtriya Kissan Sangha, the Indian Medical Association (Pavagada), Indian Medical Association seeking for supply of drinking water to Pavagada taluk through the pipeline laid for the Neelakantapuram Srirami Reddy water project in Andhra Pradesh .They claim that 10 km pipeline(Andhra claims as 7 km ) passes through through the territory of Karnataka in Pavagada taluk.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/High-court-tells-state-AP-govts-to-decide-on-water-for-Pavagada/articleshow/14477617.cms

40% water lost in distribution: Survey

Bangalore: If you're not getting enough water or your tap sputters once too often, blame it on a jaw-dropping 40% loss in water transmission and distribution.

This was one of the findings in a survey conducted by the Centre for Science and Environment ( CSE) in 71 cities across India. The second volume of the seventh 'State of India's Environment report - Excreta Matters' was launched here on Thursday.

Water is distributed in Bangalore through a 4,400-km piped service. The city has 46 ground reservoirs and as many overhead tanks, holding 616 MLD ( Million Litres Daily) and 41 MLD, respectively . Despite that, the water supply is unequal . While the core municipality covers

100% of the population, smaller municipalities or urban local bodies get anywhere between 10% and 60% of water with the rest lost in distribution. Bangalore has 3,67,579 piped connections, of which 3,46,793 are domestic and the rest non-domestic . Every year, around 20,000 connections are added. Around 15,182 community taps cater to the urban poor, and still the water distribution figures remain elusive.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/40-water-lost-in-distribution-Survey/articleshow/14484595.cms

Swipe your fingers, get your khata

BANGALORE: Here's some good news for those facing problems while paying property tax: BBMP has enhanced its ambit of services for online payment. Now, along with IDBI Bank, Corporation Bank is also included for tax payment.

BBMP is also looking at IT to curb the duplicate khata racket, and will introduce a biometric document from this year. This means, the khata will be issued only if fingerprints are taken. "We have instances where the same property has many khatas. The e-governance department has already initiated a project to have a unique ID number for every property, so there are no fake khatas and duplication of documents.

To bring all civic amenities under the Global Information System (GIS), BBMP is set to establish a data centre at its IPP centre in Malleswaram. This will be used to monitor and maintain roads, street lighting, storm water drains, electrical network and traffic control. This data can also be used by other civic agencies -- BDA, BWSSB, BMTC and Bescom.

Realizing that many IT companies and group housing complexes have understated the extent of their properties in the Self Assessment Scheme, BBMP has come up with a move to survey all high-value properties through the GIS. During the survey, such properties will be revaluated to increase property tax collection and will be monitored based on data in the GIS server.

In order to enhance property tax collection, BBMP will bring all apartment complexes, serviced apartments and paying guest accommodation under the tax net, and expects to collect Rs 2,000 crore.

BBMP, which has failed to provide even the required staff and medical equipment to its hospitals, is looking to establish the Hospital Information Management System ( HIMS). This new information system will be developed to capture information on hospitals and patients in a systematic database.

CODES FOR ROADS

Every street will have a unique permanent number and a road history will be maintained. Any work taken up on a road -- be it filling of potholes, relaying tar, road-cutting for laying water pipelines, will be taken up based on this road history. It is expected to play a major role in issuing the transferable development right (TDR) certificate to those affected by road widening, as the PID number of the properties and unique road number must be quoted mandatorily to avoid misuse of the TDR scheme.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Swipe-your-fingers-get-your-khata/articleshow/14477205.cms

High court tells state, AP govts to decide on water for Pavagada



source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/High-court-tells-state-AP-govts-to-decide-on-water-for-Pavagada/articleshow/14477617.cms

Cannot supply TB dam water to Karnataka, AP submits before HC


The Andhra Pradesh government submitted before the Karnataka High Court on Thursday that it could not supply water from Tungabhadra reservoir to the border districts of Karnataka in connection with a PIL filed by Karnataka Rashtriya Kissan Sangha and others over the issue.

The counsel for AP government stated before a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen and Justice B V Nagarathna that it could not supply water to Pavagada and other taluks under the Neelakantapuram Srirami Reddy Water Project as the pipeline was very small and could supply water only to AP. He added that the AP government had borrowed a `582-crore loan from HUDCO and the project supplied water to 36.46 lakh people in 874 villages. “The groundwater table there is very low as the Pennar and the Chitravathi have dried up,” he said, adding that AP might provide land for the project.

The Karnataka counsel said a letter from the CM to the AP government in this regard did not elicit any response. Directing Karnataka to negotiate the issue with AP, the Bench directed Tumkur Urban Development Authority to file an affidavit, before adjourning the matter.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/article553785.ece

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Former Karnataka Chief Minister, Mr B. S. Yeddyurappa… Central to decline in governance.

Karnataka is home to most of the poor among the country’s relatively well-off southern states. To be precise, about one-fifth of the total population in the State lives in poverty as per the latest economic survey.

These are 2009-10 figures, but with the economy slowing down, the number of people living in poverty must have gone up further.

Let us look at the other economic indicators which tell us how the State is run:

the state’s growth rate as per the advance estimate has turned out to be 6.4 per cent in 2011-12 compared with 8.9 per cent during the previous year.

the farm sector is expected to achieve a negative growth of 2.9 per cent compared with the previous year’s growth of 5.9 per cent; foodgrain production will be 15 lakh tonnes less than 2010-11 output.

industry growth is expected to nearly halve to 3.6 per cent.

There will be enough people in the government, at least in the finance department, who will argue that other states in the country are worse off than Karnataka and one should not look at numbers in isolation.

THE HUGE DIVIDE

But it is not just the numbers that present a dismal picture. The fact that Bangalore is the Silicon Valley of India is well known but it is a way too old story now. It is a bit of a let-down that the successive governments haven’t thought of using this success story to generate more of such successes in other sectors.

The neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra are fine examples of how local governments have used the available resources to project other towns in their respective states as key investment destinations. In the case of Karnataka, there is such a huge divide between the northern and southern parts of the State, that both the regions could as well be two different states.

If Karnataka has not exactly been putting up an outstanding performance, the fault, critics will tell you, lies with the political party which runs the state. Let us now look at their performance:

the State Cabinet can accommodate a total of 34 ministers, but so far only 23 of them are part of the cabinet. In a country where every other person aspires to become a minister, the BJP-led Government has been unable to fill up 11 vacancies.

such a scenario has meant that the current Chief Minister, Mr D. V. Sadananda Gowda is burdened with as many as 20 portfolios, perhaps one of the highest among all chief ministers in the country.

since the BJP came to power in the State in 2008, a total of nine ministers have resigned over one controversy or the other though early this week; one of them returned to the cabinet after the advocate general who reports to him, exonerated him of any wrongdoings.

former chief minister and the ruling party’s leader, Mr B. S. Yeddyurappa had to step down from his post after he was indicted by the Lokayukta for accepting money in certain land deals.

another former Cabinet Minister, Mr G. Janardhan Reddy, is facing a CBI probe and cooling his heels in jail.

The cumulative effect of such developments has paralysed the state administration and even a severe drought in north Karnataka hasn’t shaken up the government to act fast. About 123 taluks, out of a total of 176, have been declared drought-hit and except for seeking funds from the Centre, the Chief Minister has been unable to deal effectively to control drought.

Even though the Chief Minister keeps claiming that in spite of carrying such a heavy burden of portfolios, the administration has been running smoothly, the economic numbers don’t support his claim.

DIFFERENCES WITHIN PARTY

Mr Gowda became the chief minister after Mr Yeddyurappa was forced to resign from the post in July last year. He was in fact a candidate of Mr Yeddyurappa himself, but has ironically has not been able to get his support for running the Government.

What it has meant is that the rebellion inside the party keeps growing while the party High Command hasn’t a clue on how to tackle this menace. The State Cabinet itself has several senior ministers who still owe allegiance to Mr Yeddyurappa and aren’t exactly well disposed towards the current chief minister.

Not being a mass leader either, Mr Gowda has not been able to cobble together his own band of supporters who can counter Mr Yeddyurappa’s growing nuisance in the party.

Karnataka’s politics largely operates on caste lines, sometimes even cutting across various party affiliations.

At present, the BJP is the only party in the state which has a powerful leader from the Lingayat community, which is the predominant caste in the State. And that leader happens to be Mr Yeddyurappa himself.

Alienating him would mean shutting doors on a huge vote-bank which the BJP can ill-afford at this moment as the assembly elections are less than a year away.

What such squabbles have done to the party’s image is an altogether different issue, but what it has done to the State’s economy is something is something far more serious and its people will have to pay a heavy price for the party's omissions.

If things don't change fast enough, the next economic survey's report could show more minuses than pluses..

source:http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/article3585297.ece?homepage=true

Bangalore: Truth, the general belief is, will always triumph. It just has in Karnataka where talk of the town in the last four years has been that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) used money, caste and other not-so-fair means to capture power in the state. After being in denial over the way it managed to catapult to power in the state in May 2008 for the first time, the BJP has acknowledged the truth that people have been talking about all these years.
"We used money, caste, took in all and sundry going in the lanes and bylanes to form our government (in May 2008) as we did not have majority," state BJP chief K.S. Eshwarappa admitted at a party meeting Wednesday in his hometown Shimoga, about 280 km north of Bangalore.
The confession of the BJP's first chief minister in the south, as expected, has not evoked any public anger at all, because already people knew the reality. The noises from the opposition Congress and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) have also been muted as they too had been going around saying that BJP liberally used money, caste and offers of ministerial and other plum posts to muster majority to grab power.
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However, Eshwarappa's truth-speaking drive has, expectedly, angered Congress and JD-S legislators who 'defected' to the BJP and have become ministers. It has also incensed several BJP legislators and ministers who are loyal to former chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa as he formed the party's first government in the state in May 2008 with the help of six Independent legislators - the party had won only 110 seats in the 225-member assembly.
Later Yeddyurappa and the BJP launched what has been termed Operation Lotus (the flower is the BJP's election symbol) to lure around 10 Congress and JD-S legislators to quit the assembly and their parties and contest by-elections on the BJP ticket. With this operation, the BJP succeeded in getting a majority of its own and now boasts of 120 members in the 225-member assembly.
Operation Lotus was believed to have been bankrolled by the now jailed mining baron G. Janardhana Reddy, whose name was particularly mentioned by Eshwarappa when he made the confession in Shimoga.
"We took in people like Janardhana Reddy," Eshwarappa said. His statements are being seen in political circles as an attempt to distance the party further from Yeddyurappa and his loyalists as elections to the assembly are less than a year away and could possibly be held this year-end.
Yeddyurappa is facing a dozen corruption and illegal land deals cases, including mining bribery charges over which he was forced to quit in July last year. As he was stepping up efforts to become chief minister again or replace the incumbent D.V. Sadananda Gowda with another loyalist, Yeddyurappa suffered a severe setback with the Supreme Court ordering a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into mining bribery charges. He fears arrest and has sought anticipatory bail from the CBI court here; a ruling on this is expected June 13.
With clear indications that Yeddyurappa will not get out of the deep legal troubles he is facing any time soon, Eshwarappa has begun to speak the truth hoping the blame for using unfair means to grab power will shift from party to the former chief minister ahead of the next polls. It is clear from the games its factions are playing in Karnataka, the BJP is out to prove that it has mastered the art of reducing truth to a mere tool to save face and seek another term to rule the state.

source:http://ibnlive.in.com/news/karnataka-bjp-plays-truth-games-to-save-face/265118-62-129.html

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A file photo of former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa with his supporters.

The festering crisis in the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Karnataka reached a flash point on Friday with eight ministers loyal to former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa submitting their resignations to Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, who they want to be removed.

Precipitating the crisis, the ministers met Mr. Gowda and handed over their resignation letters upping the ante in their oust Gowda campaign, seeking to put pressure on the central leadership which has so far refused to buckle to their demand.

Emerging from Mr. Gowda’s official residence, PWD Minister C.M. Udasi told reporters that eight Ministers personally submitted their resignations and that of Shobha Karndalaje, who is away from the city, was handed over to the Chief Minister, who insisted that she should do so herself.

Besides Mr. Udasi, others who resigned are Jagadish Shettar, V. Sommanna, Basavaraj Bommai, Murugesh Nirani, Revu Naik Belamagi, M.P. Renukacharya and Umesh Katti. Another Minister Raju Gowda would quit on Saturday, Mr. Udasi said.

“There was a trust deficit between the Ministers and the Chief Minister in the last 3-4 months. We had been pressuring the Chief Minister to convene the BJP legislature party meeting. That also did not happen,” he said.

He said many issues raised by the MLAs were not addressed by the Chief Minister.”So we have decided to resign. We also brought the issues to the notice of central leadership.”

“We were forced to precipitate the issue... There was no real working arrangement between the Chief Minister and ministers. There were a lot of complaints by MLAs also,” Mr. Bommai said.

He quoted the Chief Minister as having told them that he would bring the resignation issue to the notice of the party central leadership.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/karnataka/article3584795.ece?homepage=true

Almost done :banana:

Landscaping works underway

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http://www.karnatakanews.com

Hey Happy Birthday Shreyas :cheers2:

Party ell kodastha idhiya antha heLu, it'll be SSC B meet as well ;) :)

Howdh alla, SSC B meet ondh baaki idhae guruvae...neev yalla ok andhrae...Mysore nalli saerona ondh beladingallali...en anthiraa? Chamundi betta ratri 1 am alli super maja maad bahudu...:banana:

Howdu naavella ondh kade seridre yellara parichaya innu chennaagi agutthe :)
Adre akash avare 1AM swalpa late aaglilwa ?

Meet ge ready, but Mysore alli meet sadhyakke kashta :(

last time mercara hogodhu plan ith alwa? Nanigae bengalore alli meet agodhu sadhya nae illa.....bere jannagala abhipraya thilkolona amele desicion thogolona...Bidadi water park gae kooda plan haak bahudu...adhu aguta nimmigae nandan avare?

Jayanagar’s icon to get new life

BANGALORE: One of the landmarks in South Bangalore - the Jayanagar shopping complex - is all set to sport a new, glossy look. This common man's mall will give way to a swanky six-storeyed building. Not just that. The Puttanna Kanagal theatre on the complex premises will also be redone totally.

Mayor D Venkatesha Murthy who inspected the complex on Friday said the market had been in a bad shape and that unfortunately the decision to renovate the building had been pending. "Now we will demolish the four parts of the building, one by one, and re-construct the market," he said.

His plans clearly indicate that the old market complex will go. He said as a first step, Block 1, which houses Puttanna theatre, will be demolished . The block will have two swanky basements and seven floors to house shops and business corners.

"While the re-construction process is on in one part of the building, vendors will be shifted to other parts of the complex until work is completed. Block 2 will have three basement floors, ground floor and five floors atop. This will house two multiplexes and one theatre," the mayor explained.

Similarly, Blocks 3 and 4 will have three basement floors each and six floors and five floors respectively. All the blocks will have multi-level car parking facilities. This gives an impression of a mall-like structure in place of the complex.

The work will be done by BDA, which shortlisted Nagarjuna Construction Company for the re-construction at a cost of Rs119 crore.

TRADERS WORRIED

Walk into the complex in the morning and you will know why it has attained its iconic status. It has the highest footfalls among all the BDA complexes in the city. It houses many establishments ranging from bookstalls, eateries, shops, vegetable market to banks, government offices and a railway reservation counter. "This is the Sarojini Market (in Delhi) of Bangalore. Why should they replace it with a mall,'' asked Rekha Shenoy, who shops for virtually everything here.

Traders who have been doing business for years now fear that the complex once renovated will push up the rentals. "We do not know if we can ever do business here,'' some shopkeepers said.

Mukunda Rao, member, Jayanagar 5th block Residents Welfare Association who has been fighting to get this work done for years, said he was happy that the renovation work would begin finally, but does not want a mall there. "I had attended a presentation where BBMP promised not to make it a mall-like structure," he said.

"When there was talk of renovation , we were told that the vegetable market and the theatre would go and that everything else will remain the same," said B Bhaskar, vice president, Jayanagar Residents Welfare Association.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Jayanagars-icon-to-get-new-life/articleshow/14519799.cms

Status quo ordered on proposal to cut 4,153 trees

BANGALORE: The Karnataka high court on Friday ordered status quo in respect of the move to cut 4,153 trees along Gubbi-Maddur Road during the proposed road-widening.

The division bench headed by Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen passed the order while admitting a PIL suo motu. The bench also appointed advocate H Srinivasa Rao as amicus curiae to assist the court in the case. The court has treated a letter written by GT Arun Kumar of Tumkur to the Chief Justice on June 5 as a suo motu PIL.

In his letter, Arun Kumar has complained that the trees on either side of the Gubbi-Maddur Road are proposed to be cut for widening the various stretches of the state highway without assessing the density of vehicles presently plying on the road. He has also brought to the court's notice the auction notification issued by the forest department on March 26 for cutting/collection trees.

CT Ravi, wife get interim advance bail

BANGALORE: Justice Subhash B Adi of the Karnataka high court on Friday granted interim anticipatory bail to BJP legislator CT Ravi, his wife KN Pallavi Ravi and two others in a case related to alleged land grabbing and misuse of power pending before the Lokayukta court, Bangalore.

The judge asked them to furnish bail bond for Rs 1 lakh and a surety for like sum. The complainant had alleged that Ravi and his relatives managed to secure three CA sites in favour of a fictitious educational society in Chikmagalur.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Status-quo-ordered-on-proposal-to-cut-4153-trees/articleshow/14519750.cms

Bangalore residents happy with maintenance of green space in city

BANGALORE: Heartening to note that majority of Bangaloreans are happy with the extent of tree cover in their vicinity. Satisfaction level for tree cover has significantly gone up from 45% in 2005 to 69% in 2011. This found mention in the recent Environment Report Card 2012 released by the Centre for Sustainable Development in the city.

Significantly, people in the West Zone of the city tend to perceive that trees could be the source of their allergic conditions, though the percentage of people suffering from allergies in the west is actually less than the east and added areas of Bangalore put together.

What has really come as a surprise is the fact that amongst the commercial establishments in the city, almost 55% are satisfied with the tree cover. Among other sectors, it is the hospitals which have recorded a satisfaction level of 86% with the green in the city. The report mentions that over 80% of people including slum dwellers are satisfied with the maintenance of parks in Bangalore. In respect of playgrounds, about 65% and 97% of the general and slum respondents have given satisfactory nods to the city's infrastructure.

However, hardly 20% of people visit parks regularly now. This figure has come down from 30% as it stood in 2005. Importantly, in the overall satisfaction level about maintenance of parks in the city, the authorities have managed to score brownie points.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Bangalore-residents-happy-with-maintenance-of-green-space-in-city/articleshow/14508745.cms

Electronics City expressway toll up by 10 pc

The Bangalore Elevated Toll way Limited (BETL) has increased toll by 10 to 15 per cent on the elevated expressway to Electronics City.

The BETL announced the annual revision of the toll rates which will be in effect from July 1, 2012 to June 30 next year. User fee for two-wheelers for single trip has remained unchanged.

However, the fee for daily pass for the two-wheelers is increased by Rs five and monthly pass by Rs 35 respectively. For four-wheelers, fee is up by Rs 5 for single trip and multiple trips, and Rs 85 for monthly pass.

BETL officials said toll rates have been revised to adjust increase in the (Wholesale Price Index (WPI) as on March 31.

The revised rates on the stretch between CSB Junction and Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border will be announced soon, they said.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260690/electronics-city-expressway-toll-up.html

‘Mysore Gold’ shines out

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Anything in the name of gold seems to sell for sure. One such product ‘Mysore gold’, compost made from organic waste, has been attracting customers from far and away.

Launched by the Mysore City Corporation (MCC), nearly 35 tonnes of ‘Mysore Gold’ have already been sold (including orders placed) since its launch two months ago on April 7. Nearly 25 tonnes have been purchased by customers from Chennai, while Bangalore-based consumers have placed orders for seven tonnes - although the demand is expected to rise in the near future.

Purchases from Mysore and Chamarajanagar districts have been modest, with most customers buying in retail between five and 10 kg. Nevertheless, both districts account for another three tonnes.

Although the make of the compost is not public knowledge, one officer, on the condition of anonymity, told Deccan Herald that it is produced through a process of mulching. Consequently, it is perfectly suited for roof-top gardening, an eco-friendly sensation among urban dwellers, he said.

Currently, ‘Mysore Gold’ sells for Rs 6,000 per tonne, making it tad higher compared to other brands of manure. “But it is in high demand for the roof-top variety of gardening,” the officer added.

Sales are expected to not only boost city corporation revenues, but also create employment opportunities and help the city rid itself of extra compost.

Elaborating on the mulching method of composting, the officer said cow dung is mixed with 30 litres to 60 litres of water. The leaves are then immerse in the cow dung-mixed water, which is then spread on a dry bed. Finally, gunny bag covers are placed on the bed. Water is sprinkled every day on the bed to accelerate the mulching process.

A total of 258 such beds have been raised at different parks in the city. At Ananthaswamy Park alone, 92 beds have been set up, followed by Cheluvamba Park with 38, CITB Hall and Rajkumar Park with 20 each, People’s Park with 23,  Forest Park with 28, Shivaji Park with one and Saraswathipuram Park with seven - besides other places where dry leaves are available in abundance.

The University campus has 16 beds, Karanji Lake, Pinjrapole and AIISH have two each, RBI Quarters, Postal and Telecom, Curzon Park, Central Nursery, MUDA, Race Course and Gokulam have one each.

The officer said the mulch will be unearthed after 60 days. According to an estimate, 1.2 tonnes to 1.4 tonnes of compost can be produced by this method from a single bed.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260675/mysore-gold-shines-out.html

Your attitude should be in top gear while driving in the rain

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While many enjoy a drive during the rains, particularly in the hinterlands during the monsoon, it is prudent to follow safe driving practices to avoid treacherous situations.

After the searing summer months, the monsoon is a welcome relief but there’s a big difference while enjoying the rain from the safety of your home and driving amid cascades of water. Driving during rain comes with risks, requiring special focus on vehicle maintenance and improved driving skills.

Spike during monsoon

According to Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Bangalore, M. Abdulla Saleem, the number of road accidents sees a rise during rains. He advises drivers never ever to let down their guard.

Ravi Kirpalani, automotive director and chief operating officer, Castrol India Ltd., offers some safe driving tips during monsoon.

Planning ahead

The first and foremost is to get a thorough pre-monsoon check of the vehicle, including batteries, tyres, all lights, electrical wiring, brakes and their fluids, engine fluids and wipers, Mr. Kirpalani said in a press release.

It is not just enough to keep the windshield wipers in good condition; one has to ensure the wiper fluid bottle is full at all times. Because, once it stops raining, the rainwater on the road is bound to splash your windshield thanks to other moving vehicles. If the windshield becomes dirty, driving becomes difficult.

Keeping the headlights on at low beam during rains irrespective of whether it is foggy, dark or overcast outside helps the driver have a better view of the road and won’t affect the vision of oncoming vehicles as high beam does.

Keep a safe distance

It is better to follow a vehicle moving in front of one’s vehicle during rains at a safe distance and keeping an eye on its brake lights. Such a practice not only helps one drive safely during poor visibility but also alerts the driver about submerged potholes. As for the distance between your vehicle and the one ahead of you, it should be twice the usual maintained during dry conditions as vehicles take a longer to halt during wet road conditions.

Hydroplaning — or aquaplaning — is a phenomenon every driver should be respectful of. It occurs when a layer of water builds up between the tyres and the road surface leading to loss of traction and insulating them from control inputs. To avoid this, the driver should ensure proper air pressure in tyres and drive slowly keeping safe distance from other vehicles. It is also necessary to have proper wheel alignment as incorrect alignment increases braking distance by at least 15 per cent.

Know your vehicle

Lastly, it is essential to know one’s vehicle: to be familiar with its heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems.

You should mentally be prepared for emergencies and have contingency plans in place.

It is better to keep a hammer or spanner inside the car — not inside the boot — to break the glass in case of an emergency.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3585687.ece

State tourism industry chases the monsoon

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The Abbi Falls just outside Madikeri town in Kodagu is a popular tourist destination.

The trend, which started in the State’s Malnad areas since 2010, saw good business in 2011, and the industry is expecting to repeat or better last year’s performance.

Usually the monsoon is off-season for the tourism industry in Kodagu. However, the industry is waking up to the potential for monsoon tourism though the great Indian phenomenon is delayed. This optimism is despite a general decline in tourist arrivals.

Malnad areas are seeing a spike in visitors during this rainy season

Hoping for the best

“Though the region is yet to receive heavy rainfall, hotels have started receiving good bookings. Kodagu received a good number of youngsters from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh last year who came only to enjoy the rain,” said K.T. Subbaiah, who owns Green Haven, a popular budget hotel in Madikeri. “We are hoping this to be a good year too.”

So much so several hotels and home stays have started buying raincoats, boots and umbrellas to supply the tourists who turn up unprepared. “We are planning to introduce these facilities from this year,” Mr. Subbaiah said.

Heavy rains usually lash Kodagu in the months of July, August and September when several waterfalls, including the popular Abbi falls, Iruppu falls and Mellahalli falls are at their glorious best.

It is not just Kodagu which attracts those chasing the monsoon. Tourism officials say Chikmagalur, Sakleshpur, Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada and parts of Shimoga also attract the crowds.

Not impressed

However, a member of the Karnataka Tourism Forum, an umbrella organisation for travel and tour operators, said that though Karnataka has plenty of opportunities to push monsoon tourism, the department had done very little. “There is no policy in this regard. On the other hand, Goa popularises monsoon tourism with campaigns such as ‘Goa by Rain’ and Kerala does it through ‘Splash’.” If at all tourists are visiting Kodagu and other districts during the monsoon, it is only on the district’s own strength, but not through any government initiative, he pointed out.

A senior Tourism Department official acknowledged that the discussion to promote monsoon tourism is currently under way, and the action plan will be chalked out soon.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3585680.ece

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Source: http://epaper.udayavani.com

:cheers:

Akash bhai, please iska pura anuvaad kijiye. Kya likha hai upar ke article mein?

Akash bhai, please iska pura anuvaad kijiye. Kya likha hai upar ke article mein?

you visited mysore palace yesterday? Palace is lit up on sat and sundays..It would have been better if you visted the city during dasara or just after dasara....Lot of renovation works underway within and around palace premises. :cheers:

http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/BGMIR/2010/01/02/6/Img/Pc0060300.jpg

Border Andhrites prefer Karnataka

Drought-hit

People living in Andhra Pradesh, just beyond the border villages in Mulbagal, prefer Karnataka as the drought conditions in Andhra Pradesh are far worse than in Kolar district.

“There is no rain, borewells as dry and as a result there are no crops to harvest. We are facing a severe drought”, said brothers Anjanappa and K Narayanappa, who hail from Alkuppam, the village just beyond Mulbagal border.

The brothers are the head of a 10-member family. They own a five-acre land, in which they have cultivated tomatoes, chillies and beans in a small part. The rest of the land is
barren.

The brothers still hope for rain and, in the meantime, manual work from Mulbagal all the way to Bangalore sustains them.

Whatever little vegetables they grow is sold in N Vaddarahalli market of Mulbagal. But largely they have to depend on labour work.
Uncared for

They said that the Andhra Pradesh government has not bothered about the people in the border villages. The citizens are like orphans and are neglected, they added.

Their village which lies along National Highway 4 has about 70 houses and a population of about 300 people. The village has a severe water crisis and the borewells have gone dry.

The borewell which they sunk a few decades ago has gone dry and the pump has remained silent for several years now.

The village is 53 km away from Kolar, where there is also a drought situation. Mulbagal also faces a water problem, but the brothers feel that Karnataka is any day better than their village in Andhra Pradesh border.


source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260902/border-andhrites-prefer-karnataka.html

From road to rail, City’s next leap

There is an urgent requirement of commuter rail for Bangalore. Different transport authorities need to work in tandem to achieve the task.

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Trapped in the middle of a humongous traffic jam, you might be left cursing your fate, your roads, the traffic police, the State government and the vehicles that keep invading the City’s overburdened roads.

And then you look up to those Namma Metro pillars, promising you the glitzy urban rail, a dreamlike escape from the mundane, hellish ride down below.

Yes, there seems no escape for Bangaloreans but harbour their collective hopes on those 114 kilometres of Metro lines, and fancy the 405-km Commuter Rail System (CRS) starts chugging with the 60-km Light Rail Transit (LRT).

So, if Bangalore makes that decisive shift from road to rail, commuters can breathe free. That is a real possibility, because the draft report on implementing the CRS has been submitted to the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT), the Namma Metro is gathering steam with trial runs of the Green Line, and the Detailed Project Report (DPR) on the LRT is under progress.

Also in the pipeline is the high-speed rail link to Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), to be implemented by the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL). Combine all these rail systems and you are looking at adding an impressive 515 km to the City.
This will be besides the existing rail network of the South Western Railway.

Yet, the projects aren’t without challenges. The issue now is whether these ongoing and proposed “projects on wheels” are feasible or adequate to meet the commuting needs of a City that continues to clock mindboggling growth. Does this network of different rail services help us tackle the mega challenge of decongesting the City? If so, what precautions should our civic agencies and the State government take while executing these projects?

Deccan Herald spoke to civic experts, traffic experts, government officials and the common man himself to throw more light. Nilanjana R, an urban planner, is convinced that boosting public transport is a must, simply because the population density of the Silicon City is set for a steep hike in the coming decades.

While the present population of Bangalore district is around 95 lakh as per the 2011 census, the projected population for 2031 is a whopping 118 lakh! The population density in the City, which was 2,985 per sq km in 2011 census, has crossed 4,378 as per 2011 census. In the coming years, Bangalore will only get denser.

More rail services, she says, would definitely be better since it is a cheaper and better mode of public transport.

RITES (Rail India Technical and Economic Services), in its draft report on commuter rail, mentions that Bangalore has not yet actively tapped the huge potential the railway system has. The Mumbai suburban and Chennai suburban trains’ share of their city’s public transport needs no explanation, the report notes.

The report also talks about how a passenger-friendly rail system could decongest Bangalore by bringing commuters from the suburban areas into the City and take them back within a span of a maximum 90 minutes. Commuter traffic mainly originates at the suburban hamlets or towns and satellite cities situated at a distance ranging between 30 km and 100 km from the main hub Bangalore.

As such requirement cannot be met either by road or by monorail or by Metro, there is an urgent requirement of commuter rail for Bangalore. Different transport authorities need to work in tandem to achieve this, the report says.

The different civic agencies are required to co-ordinate efficiently to implement the different rail-related projects. Bangalore Airport Rail Link (BARL) Director (Projects) C Jayaram says, irrespective of the rail or any public transport project, civic authorities have been directed by the government to be in tune with the Comprehensive Traffic and Transportation Plan (CTTP) as well as the Comprehensive Development Plan 2015.

“The CTTP is like the Bible for all civic agencies and we ensure that our plan didn’t violate the guidelines in it. For example, we have made sure that LRT intersects the Metro corridor and other mass rapid systems for better connectivity. Further, LRT and other rail projects have been drawn up after a detailed analysis of the traffic density and a field survey,” says Jayaram.

On the draft report of the commuter rail, DULT commissioner V Manjula says at the project report level they should make it sure that opinions of all stakeholders connected with the project are taken. “We have already circulated the draft report on commuter rail to the South Western Railway, BBMP, transport department, etc. Only after receiving the opinion of the respective stakeholders, we will move towards finalising the report,” she says.

According to Mahesh H S, another urban planner, developing a rail network is a welcome move, but one should agree that no single mode of commuting, be it rail or road or metro rail, can fully gratify the commuting needs of Bangalore. BMTC buses, which are the traditionally preferred means of transport for commoners, should be made better use of as a supplement feeder network for the upcoming rail network. The best possible mix of different modes of public transport should be the approach for any urban planning.

Growth centres such as Mandya, Ramanagaram, Hosur, Hoskote, Tumkur, and Bangarapet surrounding Bangalore City should also be kept in mind while planning public transport for Bangalore. Only then the pressure on Bangalore will ease, he contends.

Namma Metro

* Length: Phase 1 (42.3 km), Phase 2 (72.09 km)=114.39 km
* Connectivity: Considering Majestic as the starting point till Whitefield in the east, Kengeri in the west, BIEC along Tumkur Road in the north and Anjanapura Township in the south. Also, two new lanes under phase 2, namely from Jayanagar to Electronics City and Nagavara to Gottigere
* Estimated cost: Phase 1 (Rs 11,609 crore) and Phase 2 (Rs 25,000 crore) = Rs 36,609 crore
* Status: 6.7 km under phase 1 operational, and DPR for phase 2 accepted
* Expected date of completion: Phase 1 by May 2014 and Phase 2 by 2017-18

High-speed rail

* Length: 35 km, estimated cost: Rs 6,000 crore
* Connectivity: MG Road to Bengaluru International Airport
* Status: Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation has been as signed to take up the project task with Central assistance
* Expected date of completion: Not yet set

Commuter rail

* Length: Projected 405.60 km
* Connectivity: To connect Bangalore City with suburbs in the districts, namely Bangalore Rural, Mandya, Kolar, Chikkaballapur and Tumkur
* Estimated cost: Not yet set
* Status: Draft project report under State government review
* Expected date of completion: Not yet set

LRT/Monorail

* Length: 60 km (includes 41.3 km of light rail transit (LRT)
* Connectivity: Two out of five corridors under LRT:
JP Nagar to Hebbal and Toll Gate on Magadi Road up to the proposed peripheral ring road. Other corridors
include Jaraganahalli to Cantonment, Kathriguppe Road to National College and Hosur Road to Bannerghatta.
* Estimated cost: Rs 6,400 crore for LRT
* Status: DPR under progress for LRT corridors
* Expected date of completion: Not yet set

source:http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=694904&page=13

Bangalore’s fourth driest June in 112 yrs !

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This June, Bangalore recorded the fourth lowest rainfall for the month in 112 years! Receiving only 7.2 mm of rain for the entire first month of the monso*on, the City remained pa*rc*hed like never in recent memory.

The June 2012 rainfall figure is dangerously close to 4.5 mm, the lowest ever recorded for the month in 1945. Laid out in asce*nding order, the June rainfall figures for Bangalore since 1901 reve*al that 2012 ranks at the bo*ttom 5 percentile since the turn of the last century. The figures were analysed by Know Your Climate, a climate-tracking initiative of the Bangalore-based NGO, Public Affairs Centre.

The 7.2 mm rainfall indicated a whopping 92 per cent de*ficit, a record that ought to ring alarm bells for the City which is reeling under an unprecedented drinking water crisis. In June 2011, the City received 57.7 mm. In June 2010, it was a high 105.2 mm, a far cry from this year’s near dro*ught. The figures are distu*rb*ing even if the Meteorological Department is in a rush to assure that the rains are just 24 hours away. If the BBMP was banking on rainwater harvesting to partially solve the city’s water crisis, the skies failed to respond .

The implications are clear. Already hit by a below-par pre-monsoon showers, Bangalore’s surviving lakes and the already low groundwater table would have to wait even longer to get recharged. Thousands of reside*nts in the outlying areas of BBMP are hit hard. Bo*r*e*w*e*lls are drying up in several ap*a*r*tment bl*ocks. Bangalore’s April rainfall was a low 13.8 mm against the month average of 43.9 mm. The 143 mm rainfall in May ba*r*ely compensated for the acute shortfall.

Dr V S Prakash, director, Karnataka State Natural Disaster Management Centre warned the lack of rain in June will have a cascading effect.

Dr N H Ravindranath of the Indian Institute of Science said, “Dr*y spell for one whole month may be an impact of climate ch*ange, but again it is very co*m*plex phenomenon to establish the actual reason.”

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260954/bangalores-fourth-driest-june-112.html

Krishna reduced to a trickle; Almatti hits dead storage level

With rain playing truant, inflow in reservoir has completely stopped


River Krishna, the lifeline of North Karnataka is now gasping for breath. Lack of rain has had its toll on the river, which is now flowing thin. The river, which flows into the Lal Bahadur Shastri dam in Almatti and keeps it full every year, has not reached the dam at all this time.

By June-end, the Almatti dam, which used to be full with Krishna water, has now reached the dead storage level, with not a drop of rain in the Krishna valley. The district administration, which usually gears up to tackle flood by this period of the year, is busy this year with drought-relief measures. For the first time in the history of the dam, a situation has arisen wherein, water from the dead storage level of the dam will be put to use. This has sounded alarm bells for the people of this region.

The height of Almatti dam is 519.6 metre (1704.810 feet), while the MDLL level in the dam is 506.870 metres (1663.040 feet). Every year, a maximum of 123 tmc feet of water gets collected in the dam, of which the 17.620 tmc feet is considered as dead storage. The water at the dead storage level is something which has been never put for use till now.

Sources in the Krishna Bhagya Jala Nigama said water level in the Almatti dam had remained maximum since 2002. The dead storage was never utilised. Now the water level has fallen below the crest gates compelling the authorities to draw water from the sluice gates (the small gates at the lowest level in the dam).

On Thursday, the water level in the dam was at 506.040 metre (1660.37 feet) with a storage of 15.243 tmc feet. During the corresponding period last year, the reservoir had water upto 514.17 metre - 54 tmc ft of water with an inflow of 18,494 cusec.
The reason for the drying up of dam could be traced to scanty rain in November and December last.

The inflow to the dam came to a complete halt in October itself. Scanty rain in the catchment area has only aggravated the crisis. There was a time when, on occasions, water from the Almatti dam used to be supplied to the Raichur Thermal Power Station. River Krishna swells only when it rains in Sangli and Miraj in Maharashtra and Belgaum in Karnataka receive heavy rainfall, and the tributaries of River Krishna, - Koyna, Doodhganga, Ghataprabha and others - are in spate.

Kharif crops affected

The farmers have already completed the sowing kharif crops, even as the monsoon is yet to make its presence felt. The usually water-filled canals in the command area of River Krishna have gone dry, threatening the survival of kharif crops. Under the Upper Krishna Project, 170 tmc feet of water from the Almatti dam and the Narayanpur dam irrigates five lakh hectares of land. The beneficiary farmers are now in trouble. The power generation plant at the Almatri reservoir comprises six units which together produce 290 MW of electricity. However, water is not being released to power generation plant since April 2011. All the six units together require at least 45,000 cusec of water a day.

No water to Solapur

Sources in the Nigama said water from the dam cannot be released to Solapur also. Explaining the glitches involved in the release of water, which was technically impossible, the sources explained that, of the 16 tmc feet dead storage water in the dam, two tmc feet of water will be released to the Narayanpur dam through the sluice gates. From there, the water will be released to the Indi branch canal, via Narayanpur Left Bank Canal. The water flow completes a journey of 150 km long in the canal, before it reaches Maharashtra, through the Oujh barrage of Bhima River near Takali.

Apart the renovation work which is being undertaken in the Narayanpura left bank canal, removal of silt and repair works were being executed in the Indi branch canal. It was impossible for the water to flow past all these hurdles. Hence, water to Solapur is best to be forgotten at the moment, the experts opine.

With the possibilities of Andhra Pradesh demanding its share from the River Krishna, the water crisis will only deepen in the days to come, Nigama sources said.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260924/krishna-reduced-trickle-almatti-hits.html

Tax-free bonds, a taxing task

Palike intends to raise Rs 1,000 crore by issuing municipal bonds

The ambitious plan of the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike to raise a whopping Rs 1,000 crore by floating municipal bonds this fiscal appears to contravene the guidelines of the Union Urban Development Ministry which forbid municipal corporations from raising tax-free bonds above Rs 300 crore.

The annexure-II to the guidelines for issue of tax-free municipal bonds states: “The maximum amount of tax-free municipal bonds as a percentage of the total project cost (excluding interest during construction) will be 50 per cent or Rs 300 crore, whichever is lower.” It also says that the ministry will approve the issue size on a case to case basis.

The Palike has another hurdle on its way to raise money. The central regulations suggest a credit rating from a reputed agency as a pre-condition to issue bonds. The last known credit rating was conducted in 2010 by two agencies - ICRA and CARE - and since then it is said the Palike is yet to show signs of improvement in its rating to issue bonds.

While ICRA rated the BBMP at ‘-BB,’ CARE has given ‘+BBB’ grade to the BBMP. Both the ratings suggest that the Palike’s financial situation is one which is ‘considered to have moderate risk of default regarding timely servicing of financial obligations’. The Palike officials are however confident that the ratings will improve, provided the credit rating agencies consider their suggestion of having a separate parameter to rate the civic body.

“Most urban local bodies are not driven by profit motive. They are riddled with considerable social obligations. Hence, their creditworthiness cannot be assessed on the basis of the parameters applied to profit-oriented private or public undertakings,” a senior official at the Palike said. The Palike representatives will be meeting the credit rating agencies to put forth their contention and convince them to adopt a separate parameter to assess the creditworthiness of BBMP.

Assets inventory

According to the officials, with the addition of 110 villages, six city municipalities and a town municipality, the assets inventory of the Palike will have to be made for raising the creditworthiness of the BBMP. A financial consultant will be appointed to look into the possibilities of raising money by issuing municipal bonds.

Shankaralinge Gowda, the Palike Commissioner, was upbeat over the possibilities of raising Rs 1,000 crore through municipal bonds. “The bonds are not for the common man.
It is basically the financial institutions which invest in the bonds. We believe the ratings are good enough for investors to subscribe to our bonds.”

The Bangalore Municipal Corporation was the first municipal corporation in the country issue the municipal bonds in 1997.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/260923/tax-free-bonds-taxing-task.html

Saturday shock: ‘Majestic’ trees axed for Metro work

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Twenty more trees are being axed in front of Bell International Hotel adjacent to Bangalore for the construction of Bangalore Metro’s Central Railway Station at Majestic area.

Out of the 20 trees, some are rain trees which are quite old. Even the trees planted in the median in front of the Bell Hotel have been cut much to the worry of environmentalists. From now on, people do not get even a little shade on this stretch from the Goodshed Road to the City Railway Station. This boulevard is too old and the old timers still recall the trees that were like natural umbrella.

The cutting of these trees is being taken up at a time when the citizens are complaining of sultry weather not only during summer season, but also during other seasons. The trees are being cut at night to escape from the opposition of environmentalists.

On Saturday morning, motorists were shocked to see the cutting of almost all the trees on this stretch. Trucks were busy in clearing their trunks and roots.

A forest officer, on the condition of anonymity said, out of 20 trees, nine have already been given to contractor on auction and those trees have been axed. “Remaining nine trees will be chopped soon,” he added.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article555406.ece

Ride on Metro, pedal to work

The Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) has announced an eco-friendly initiative in introducing the rent-a-cycle concept to encourage commuters ride bicycles to and from the Namma Metro stations. According to general manager (finance) U.A. Vasantha Rao, the aim is to promote sustainable alternative transport which will help reduce gas emissions and protect the health and quality of life of citizens.

The BMRCL will allot designated spaces in the vicinity of Metro stations along Reach-1. The bidders for the initiative can set up automated bicycle stands and all other sub-systems required for the operation of the 24x7 bicycle hiring services. Space to accommodate at least six cycles will be provided at all the Metro stations, he said.

The BMRCL has floated tenders to implement the project along Reach–1 on June 30 and July 27 will be the last date to participate in the tender process. Commuters who have brief work can hire a bicycle from the Metro station to the nearest place on hourly basis and drop it back at any of the nearest stations. With this, commuters will not have to haggle with autorickshaw drivers, he added. Pedaling your way helps beat traffic snarls and with cycling picking up in the city, the concept will get a boost, BMRCL feels. The state government and BBMP too have agreed to provide cycle tracks for the safety of cyclists.

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/ride-metro-pedal-work-583

Heart surgeries telecast live from City to Germany

Six cardiac procedures conducted at the Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research were telecast live to the international cardiology conference held at Frankfurt, Germany on Saturday.

The live transmission lasted for over four hours, and was used to highlight advances in medical science. It was viewed by nearly 1,500 cardiologists and delegates from all over the world.

One of the telecast cases was Punith, 18, who had been suffering from fever, cough, breathlessness. An examination revealed that a portion of his aorta had ruptured into a heart chamber.

The rupture was successfully closed using a non-surgical method. Four other patients with similar heart holes were also treated at this workshop. All patients were from socially and financially-constrained families. The procedures were conducted free of cost.

The Jayadeva Hospital team consisted of Dr C N Manjunath, Dr Krishna Kumar, Dr K H Srinivas and Dr Jayaranganath.

According to the medical team, 50 per cent of all heart diseases can be treated by non-surgical methods using advanced technology. The advantages of employing modern technology removes the need for general anaesthesia and in most cases, allows patients to return to work after 48 hours.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261187/heart-surgeries-telecast-live-city.html

VTU to start course in marine engineering

If you love the sea and the waves and don’t mind spending six months on a ship with water everywhere, then you may as well take notice.

In a first in Karnataka, Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) will introduce a four-year undergraduate course (BE) in marine engineering from the 2012-13 academic year.

Marine engineering refers to research conducted in oceans and coastal or inland waters. It deals with construction and maintenance of ships and other sailing vessels. The course will be offered at Mangalore Marine College and 60 students will be admitted.

The programme has been approved by the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS), Mumbai, and is expected to get a stamp of approval from the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) in a few days. Students will be able to pick seats once the Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) starts the counselling for professional courses later this month, VTU Vice-Chancellor, H Maheshappa, said.

“It’s the first of the new engineering disciplines we have planned to introduce,” Maheshappa told Deccan Herald. Railway engi neering and aerospace engineering may be introduced in the next academic year.

Of the total intake, 27 seats will be offered through KEA and the rest will be made available under the management quota, according to Abdul Razak, Public Relations Officer (PRO), MMC.

Although the DGS requires students to score at least 60 percent in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics at Class 12 (II PUC level), the Mangalore college will not insist on the minimum qualifying marks. Under VTU, a student with 45 per cent marks is eligible.

The college will follow the syllabus adopted by the Indian Maritime University, Visakhapatnam. VTU has just made some small changes. Half of the syllabus will be the mechanical engineering component; the rest will be knowledge of ships.

Students will have to write eight examinations from the Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping (STCW) during the course. In addition, VTU will conduct semester-wise exams.

The course at a glance

* A course in Marine engineering will be available at Mangalore Marine College from this academic year. Earlier, students had to study the course outside Karnataka. The Directorate General of Shipping, Mumbai, has approved the course. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to give a go-ahead in a few days.
* Students with 45 per cent marks in PCM and those who have written the CET can vie for 27 seats under the government quota. The fee is Rs 33,090. A total of 33 seats will be available under the management quota for which the fee is Rs 1.25 lakh. Students need to clear a college-level entrance test.
* Upon completion, students will be given a Continuous Discharge Certificate (CDS), the passport for sea voyage. They will be registered with the Indian National Database of Seafarers (INDOS).
* Admission will be subject to medical fitness. Students sho*u*ld be 157 cm tall, have a 6X6 eyesight and no disea*s*es. A DGS doctor will examine them.
* Starting salary will be at least $500 (Rs 30,800) in ad*d*i**tion to boarding and lodging.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261168/vtu-start-course-marine-engineering.html

Karnataka shows the way in promoting organ donation

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Karnataka transport department has come up with a novel initiative of facilitating organ pledging at the time of issuing driving licence. Photo shows Swarna Jaswanth, whose organs were donated, following her death in December 25, 2011.

Driving licence will indicate that a person is willing to donate organs

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/karnataka/article3591922.ece

you visited mysore palace yesterday? Palace is lit up on sat and sundays..It would have been better if you visted the city during dasara or just after dasara....Lot of renovation works underway within and around palace premises. :cheers:

I had visited Mysore/Mandya/Maddur/Srirangapatna.

Good points:

1. Road is 4-lane (unlike Mumbai-Pune/Noida-Agra which is 6 lane) but good condition.
2. Mysore also roads are good and the city looks well kept.
3. Modern buses in Mysore and Mandya; definitely scope for more AC and non-AC modern buses.
4. Ramanagara seems to be slowly becoming an extension of Bangalore; GOK can accelerate the integration of the two,
5. Lots of tourists from all over India (Punjabi/Bengali/Tamil being most prominent) :lol:
6. Mysore central bus stand is in good condition.

Bad points:

1. Condition of toilets at many places was really bad. :ohno:
2. Need more trained guides to explain to tourists.
3. Mysore needs more road signs in English/Kannada.
4. Lighting on the highway can certainly improve.

All in all, a good trip. :cheers::) Had tasty Maddur vada in Maddur. Reminds me of our Pune onion bhajji. :cheers:

I had visited Mysore/Mandya/Maddur/Srirangapatna.

Good points:

1. Road is 4-lane (unlike Mumbai-Pune/Noida-Agra which is 6 lane) but good condition.
2. Mysore also roads are good and the city looks well kept.
3. Modern buses in Mysore and Mandya; definitely scope for more AC and non-AC modern buses.
4. Ramanagara seems to be slowly becoming an extension of Bangalore; GOK can accelerate the integration of the two,
5. Lots of tourists from all over India (Punjabi/Bengali/Tamil being most prominent) :lol:
6. Mysore central bus stand is in good condition.

Bad points:

1. Condition of toilets at many places was really bad. :ohno:
2. Need more trained guides to explain to tourists.
3. Mysore needs more road signs in English/Kannada.
4. Lighting on the highway can certainly improve.

All in all, a good trip. :cheers::) Had tasty Maddur vada in Maddur. Reminds me of our Pune onion bhajji. :cheers:


You need to visit mysore after a year,right now the city looks in transition with debris all over.JUSCO 24*7 has raped our city badly,leaving one time beautiful pavements shattered.BTW i did ask you to write an article on footpaths in mysore,ask your friends to do it. :)

Yes, highway lighting is bad very bad.Those small towns like mandya have better street lighting.

3).I have to disagree,no South indian T2 city has such beautiful road signages.These are found in almost every junction in Mysore.Tourists never find any problem.People who have driven extensively in Mysore suburbs will agree with me.Main core junctions too sport these signages.

Two random samples :cheers:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7211/7194152100_95dbdbc8d1_b.jpg

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/498/dsc03015w.jpg


Route hoardings Mysore rocks!!! I can vouch for that,probably you visited just old mysore/palace area.Even there we have such boards.Check this below took this yesterday.. on victor albert road in front of palace :) You can see the board shining on my flash :happy:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7248/7473726582_2a29517aab_b.jpg

Such small roads have it

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/2443/img1319uk1.jpg

Both in Kannada and English

http://desmond.imageshack.us/Himg835/scaled.php?server=835&filename=27238311.jpg&res=landing

Such small roads have it

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/2443/img1319uk1.jpg

Both in Kannada and English

http://desmond.imageshack.us/Himg835/scaled.php?server=835&filename=27238311.jpg&res=landing

Thoda sa busy hu, baad me detailed report duunga about my trip. However, aapne Suvarna Soudha ke baara me jo article tha translation ya gist nahi diya. :)

Thoda sa busy hu, baad me detailed report duunga about my trip. However, aapne Suvarna Soudha ke baara me jo article tha translation ya gist nahi diya. :)

anuvaad toh main kar doonga,aap apni abhipray bin sankoch hue dijiyae....Mein janana chahatha hoon ki mysore mein kya kya kamiyaa aur kya kya khoobiya dikhte hain ek yaatri ki nazaria se :cheers:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/548089_439773726044135_1484001414_n.jpg

Thoda sa busy hu, baad me detailed report duunga about my trip. However, aapne Suvarna Soudha ke baara me jo article tha translation ya gist nahi diya. :)



Kuch hi dino mein Suvarna soudha karnataka rajya ko samarpith kiya jayega.Iskae chalte logon mein kaafi utsuktha jagi hai.
Log sadan shuru hone se pehle ek bar apni ankhon se is emarath koh dekhna chahatein hain.Log din bha din padhar rahe hain....

Baaki mein suvarna soudha ki vishesthaein ke bare mein likha hai... :cheers:

Ghats influence monsoon pattern

BANGALORE: India's 1,600-km long Western Ghats mountain chain has joined the Egyptian pyramids , the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Great Wall of China on a coveted list.

The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) voted to add the Western Ghats — believed to have forests older than the Himalayas — to its World Heritage List, taking India's tally of such sites to 29.

On July 1, the World Heritage committee, a 21-member body, met at St Petersburg, Russia, and included the Western Ghats on its list, along with 14 other sites around the world. About 17 nations, including Russia and Japan, participated in an elaborate discussion and backed the proposal to include the Ghats on this prestigious list.

Popularly known as 'Sahyadri' and 'Malnad' in local parlance, the Western Ghats mountain

chain starts at the border of Gujarat and Maharashtra, and runs through the states of Maharashtra , Goa, Karnataka , Tamil Nadu and Kerala, ending at Kanyakumari . It is recognized as one of the world's eight hottest hotspots of biological diversity, that largely influences the Indian monsoon weather pattern.

"The Western Ghats is added to the list based on criteria 9 and 10, under which the natural site qualifies under the operational guidelines of the World Heritage Convention," said Wildlife Institute of India dean VB Mathur, who was part of the Indian delegation, in a communication here.

According to Unesco's guidelines, criteria 9 deals with ongoing ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and marine ecosystems and communities of plants and animals . Criteria 10 mentions sites that are important natural habitats for conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value , from the point of view of science or conservation ."

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Ghats-influence-monsoon-pattern/articleshow/14626325.cms

City traffic cops to stop towing away two-wheelers

Money collected as penalty from violators found to be misused

http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/07/03/261455_thump.jpg

Kowtowing a police officer in a towing vehicle may be a thing of the past soon. The City Traffic Police are contemplating to suspend towing two-wheelers following allegations of misappropriation of the penalty collected from the violators.

Under the prevailing towing system, out of the Rs 300 collected for towing, the police remit Rs 200 to the exchequer - Rs 100 towards fine and another Rs 100 as towing charge; the remaining Rs 100 is paid to the towing agency.

Sources in the department said the towing agencies generally siphon off the money in connivance with the police personnel.

“Recently, one traffic police station had hired eight towing vehicles for Chickpet. However, after having been caught red-handed for not remitting the actual amount collected as fine, the towing operations were suspended in the area,” said a police officer.

M A Salim, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic), told Deccan Herald that doing away with towing will ensure transparency in the police department and also bring down the quantum of penalty levied for violation to Rs 100.

“There has been a lot of misappropriation in towing two-wheelers. While the towing agencies claim to have towed a certain number of vehicles, in real terms the numbers never match when they arrive at the police station,” Salim admitted.

The towing agencies bill the Police a whopping Rs 80 lakh per month. The vehicles were hired by calling tenders in 2009. “We are now inviting fresh tenders for towing vehicles, only for four-wheelers,” said Salim.

Rendered obsolete

Towing vehicles have already been rendered obsolete with the traffic police adopting new technology such as photographing, to curb traffic violations. The number of towing vehicles has been reduced by 25 per cent over the last year.

Besides, fixing clamps to offending vehicles has reduced the utility of towing vehicles.

“We have issued 500 clamps to various traffic police stations and an additional 500 have been procured.

“This, in itself, will cut down the use of towing vehicles,” Salim said. However, the clamps are being used only for four-wheelers as of now.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261455/city-traffic-cops-stop-towing.html

Motorists take over cycle tracks in Jayanagar

Schoolchildren are scared to cycle on City’s roads, bicycle enthusiasts are bullied by motorists and those driving powered vehicles believe that they rule the road.
But things may be changing *- at least on paper.

http://www.deccanherald.com/images/editor_images1/2012/07/03/cycle-lane-parking.jpg

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261457/motorists-take-over-cycle-tracks.html

Ration card registration centres go the ‘extra mile’

Franchisees charge exorbitant fees for collecting bio-metric details in B’lore

The bribery bug seems to have bitten the online registration for ration cards in the city.


source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261436/ration-card-registration-centres-go.html

SW Rly plans green stations

In a push to the plans of creating ‘Green Energy Stations’, the South Western Railway has selected 30 stations, including the infamous Penukonda where 25 people were killed in a rail collision in May, to install solar power lights. These stations will rely solely on these solar powered lights for their lighting purpose. The railway ministry, in this year’s railway budget, had announced plans to bring in several “green initiatives” in the Railways.

“The selected stations are in remote places and face frequent and long power cuts. In the next six months, these stations will completely depend on solar power for their lighting needs,” said a senior official from the Railway division. Some of the stations that will be included in the project are: Devanahalli, Chikballapur, Peryanagathunai, Kelamangalam, Srirangapatna, Dodballapur, Yelahanka, Byatrayanahalli, Malur and Kengeri. The project will start from July-end and will be completed by December. The initial investment for the entire project is around Rs 10 crore. As part of the initiative, the railway division will use only solar-based emergency lighting systems at level-crossing gates.

“This will be on trial. If it proves successful, it will be implemented in other areas,” the officer said. Bengaluru-Jolarpet, Bengaluru-Dharmavaram and Bengaluru-Tumkur sections have been selected for the pilot project.
The budget has proposed to set up 72 mw-capacity windmill plants in the state, besides Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. There is a proposal to introduce mobile emission test cars to measure pollution levels of diesel locomotives. This will help research efforts in introducing environment-friendly practices, the officer said.

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/sw-rly-plans-green-stations-200

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/548089_439773726044135_1484001414_n.jpg





Kuch hi dino mein Suvarna soudha karnataka rajya ko samarpith kiya jayega.Iskae chalte logon mein kaafi utsuktha jagi hai.
Log sadan shuru hone se pehle ek bar apni ankhon se is emarath koh dekhna chahatein hain.Log din bha din padhar rahe hain....

Baaki mein suvarna soudha ki vishesthaein ke bare mein likha hai... :cheers:

Thanks a lot Akash. Will post detailed report about my trip in the Karnataka discussions thread later.

Thanks a lot Akash. Will post detailed report about my trip in the Karnataka discussions thread later.

Barr :)

Road is fantastic i.e. SH 88,this is what happens when you don't visit Karnataka highways thread regularly.Yogendra has posted fantastic pics of SH 88 madikeri-mangalore section.Minor works like culvert were underway few months back which i suppose are over by now.

I went on a drive last weekend on SH 88, and I'm in love with that road :lol: Its an absolute beauty, added to it the monsoons, I had a gala time :banana:

Motorists take over cycle tracks in Jayanagar

Schoolchildren are scared to cycle on City’s roads, bicycle enthusiasts are bullied by motorists and those driving powered vehicles believe that they rule the road.
But things may be changing *- at least on paper.

http://www.deccanherald.com/images/editor_images1/2012/07/03/cycle-lane-parking.jpg

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261457/motorists-take-over-cycle-tracks.html

:lol: one more opportunity for traffic police to make more money

I went on a drive last weekend on SH 88, and I'm in love with that road :lol: Its an absolute beauty, added to it the monsoons, I had a gala time :banana:

thogo..though nandan does not visit karnataka forum threads he atleast visits spots in karnataka.Gentem avare?Neevu? :) SH 88 is by far the best State highway in karnataka with scenic settings.

^^ Sulya-Puttur-Mani stretch of SH-88 is not so lucky though current CM's native village Mandekolu is in Sulya.

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/newuploads/sjsrk.jpg
-- Udayavani 3-7-2012

^^ That is what i wanted to ask, mani-puttur road doubling... Seems it is far from over

thogo..though nandan does not visit karnataka forum threads he atleast visits spots in karnataka.Gentem avare?Neevu? :) SH 88 is by far the best State highway in karnataka with scenic settings.

sh 88 good only from mysore-madikeri, madikeri-mangalore is kesaru gadde... i visit various spots in karnataka, let me remind you bangalore also in karnataka :lol:

Indian Institute of Science goes green with cycles, electric buggies

BANGALORE: Birds chirping and squirrels squeaking. Very soon, those are the perhaps the only sounds you'll hear in the sprawling 400-acre Indian Institute of Science (IISc) with its authorities all set to ban the movement of motorized vehicles on the 100-year old campus.

Kickstarting the green movement will be Namma Cycle, a project under which primarily students and visitors can rent bicycles at the gate and go to their destination. Operated through a mobile-operated software, the first thirty minutes will be free of cost. Then, for one hour, she has to pay a rent of Rs 2 and if it's for two hours, the charge will be Rs 7. Starting with 50 cycles from four different stations, project managers will closely look into cycle design and technical issues in the initial days. "We're going to monitor the movement of bicycles and maintain the fleet. The entire system will be integrated to a primary server so that there's accountability," said Murali Ramanath, director of the project.

Electric vehicles

Next, it'll be the turn of electric vehicles (commonly seen on golf courses). They'll be procured from a private firm and the IISc administration will take take the vehicles against a nominal operational sum. Depending on the response, it'll decide on buying them. "These will all be either eight seaters or twelve seaters and initially we'll get 12 vehicles. These buggies will be placed at entrances to pick up and drop visitors to one of several designated stations on campus," said an expert closely working on the project.

"We have submitted the proposal and are awaiting the final clearance for electric vehicles," said Prof TG Sitharam of IISc who is coordinating this project.

Studentspeak

* This is the most welcome green movement in recent times. No other campus in my knowledge has been able to declare their premises motorized vehicle-free and it's sure to add to the beauty of our beautiful campus. Vehicles pollute and even congest the campus and this will also help authorities keep it clean.

Sreevalsa Kolaphayar | final-year PhD student

* As of now, 60%-70% students use bicycles on campus and 10% use private vehicles. With the introduction of electric vehicles and bicycles, they'll have an alternative to motor vehicles inside the campus. It'll be wonderful to see electric vehicles and cycles go around our green campus.

Pankaj Jain | PhD student

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Indian-Institute-of-Science-goes-green-with-cycles-electric-buggies/articleshow/14661177.cms

SIT students design ‘wall plastering machine’

A team of mechanical engineering students from Srinivas Institute of Technology (SIT), Valachil, have discovered a wall plastering machine which is expected to solve the labour problem to a great extent.

The students, Lohith K V, Mahesha P K, Prashantha Raj K V and Syed Umar told in a press conference on Tuesday that the machine being easy to transport and simple in construction, reduces a lot of human effort and saves time. For instance, a wall of 5x4 sq feet area can be plastered within a few minutes, using the machine.

The sheet metal tray slides along the vertical guide ways present in the wooden tray. The free end of the tray containing cement mixture, which is placed close to the wall, helps to adjust the thickness of plaster.

The machine is designed to move vertically, making use of chain pulley mechanism, which cuases the tray to move linearly on the guide ways of the frame.

As soon as one portion of the wall is plastered, the whole equipment can be slided over to the next portion of wall to be plastered.

The equipment designed by Srinivas Institute of Technology students has been displayed in many exhibitions and has won rewards including state level exhibition ‘SRISHTI -2012’ conducted by Akhila Bharata Vidyarthi Parishat (ABVP), said Professor and Mechanical Engineering department Head Dr Dilip Kumar K. Professor Neelakantha V Londhe, under whose guidance the project has been carried out, were present in the press conference.


source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261669/sit-students-design-wall-plastering.html

3 airports may become bird-strike free

Unmanned micro vehicles to clear skies in Hubli, Mysore, Mangalore airports

Mysore, Hubli and Mangalore airports may well become the country’s first bird-strike-free airports if the Bird Strike Research Group of India has its way.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261709/3-airports-may-become-bird.html

Bangalore shows the way in recycling

http://newindianexpress.com/incoming/article558040.ece/ALTERNATES/w460/04shows.jpg

The IT hub of Bangalore generates more than a thousand tonne of electronic and electric waste every month, but how it dispose off and recycle it is a big question mark. The mounting e-waste and absence of proper scientific disposal has necessitated the introduction of new regulations and the need for setting up of e-waste recycling units.

Till date, only two recycling units, one in Dobbespet and the other in Kumbalgod have come up in the city while rest of the sanctioned units are still on paper.

With the E-wastes (handling and management) Rules, 2011 coming into effect from May this year, it becomes very necessary to address this complicated issue and make the producers and bulk consumers more responsible.

Till now, discarded items like television sets, refrigerators, washing machines, air-conditioners, telephones, mobile phones, computers, laptops, printers, and other IT and telecommunication equipment used to find their way to the scrap dealers and finally to the landfills in the aftermath of its dismantling in the most unscientific way. But now with the introduction of the new regulations, more people and corporates have to come forward to tackle the recycling issue that involves handling of hazardous chemicals.

In this regard, one such company, Cerebra who has been till now handling collection, dismantling and refurbishing of e-wastes has proposed to set up one of India’s largest recycling plant at Narsapur near Bangalore with the company planning to make it fully operational by March, next year.

What are recycling products ?

How many of us are aware what goes into the making of an electronic or an electrical equipment like mobile phone or a computer ? And, after the product has served its purpose, it is considered dead, ready for dismantling and recycling. If these metals can be extracted and recycled, we can address the problem of scarce raw materials, tackle indiscriminate mining and meet the demand for electronic and electrical products. “Why do the mining when it is readily available on the surface of the earth in the form of E-waste and that can meet the ever growing needs of the E & E industry,” says an expert.

For example, a mobile phone is made up of these rare earth and precious metals

* 250 milligrams of Silver

* 24 milligrams of Gold

* 9 milligrams of Palladium

* 9 grams of copper

* 3.8 milligrams of Cobalt

While, a Laptop is made up of :

* 1000 mg of Silver

* 220 mg of Gold

* 500 grams of Copper

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article558041.ece

Kurosawa rocks Kolar

KOLAR: Off the highway, at the entrance of Kolar, a narrow stony road meanders to reveal a luxury of rock-cut ruins, a sprinkling of villages, until you arrive at Adima Angala nestled atop Jinke Rammaiana Gudda. Several Bangaloreans had taken time off work on Wednesday to watch legendary Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa's classics in this heady environ.

Founder of Adima, Kotaganahalli Ramaiah, was thrilled that Kurosawa had lured so many film enthusiasts to Kolar on a working day. "We launched the fest on Tuesday, as part of our 74th moonlight celebrations. The chief guest of the event, filmmaker Girish Kasaravalli, was amazed by the turnout for the screening of Kurosawa's Ran --- 300 people from the surrounding villages had gathered here. Today, we have doctors, engineers, software professionals and students come here to soak in Kurosawa's works," he said.

MS Shastri, software professional and businessman, was happy with his decision to take time off work for the screenings. "What first attracted me was that the fest was about Kurosawa's films. I am a great fan of the filmmaker. When I read that it was being screened in Kolar, I wondered why. When I arrived here this morning, I was in awe of Adima Angala, the screenings and the ensuing discussions have been invigorating. I am returning here tomorrow to watch more Kurosawa films," he said.

Uma Mahesh, a software businessman, was thrilled with the idea of Kolaradalli Kurosawa."I'm glad I drove down from Bangalore for the fest. Many Kurosawa films are not available and these screenings and the ensuing discussions have been very exciting. I am looking forward to watching the Hitchcock fest here next month," he said.

NRI Sunny Gowda too came to watch the flicks with wife Lalitha. "I used to watch Japanese films back in the US, this Kurosawa fest aroused my curiosity and so I drove down here this morning," he said.

If the intention of the minds behind Adima Angala was to generate cultural discussion among diverse communities, their Kurosawa formula seems to have struck the right chord. As Mohit Kaycee, who works with Adima said: "These screenings are great because they allow for a lot of people to get together and put forth their ideas. The turnout has been much better than what one would expect in Bangalore. Between the villagers, local doctors from Kolar and professionals from Bangalore, the diversity has added punch to the discussions."

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Kurosawa-rocks-Kolar/articleshow/14682092.cms

‘City needs Hemavathi water ’

Basavanagudi councillor Sathyanarayana suggested that the BBMP should join the state government in diverting water from Hemavathi River to Thippagondanahalli Reservoir, as it would reduce drinking water problems in the city. He said every ward faced water problems. With increase in population, problems would also rise, as the city’s population is expected to reach 130 lakh by 2020.

“We are only telling the BWSSB about our problems, but are not following-up. If the water board comprises BBMP councillors, we can communicate our problems,” he opined.

He also said the state government would need Rs 500 crore to divert water from Hemavathi River to Thippagondanahalli Reservoir. “We shall seek help from IT/ BT companies and make them buy water bonds. We can help the state government,” he said.

source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article558838.ece

India, historic father: CERN

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/article_horizontal/article-images/5god.jpg.crop_display.jpg

The discovery of a new sub-atomic particle that is crucial to understanding how the universe is built, announced in Geneva on Wednesday has a significant Indian connection.

Top-notch Indian physicist, Prof Bikash Sinha, who was associated with the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) one of the 100-odd scientists drawn from across the country who worked on the discovery best summed up the elation sweeping across Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics and Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre, Kolkata, one of four Indian research facilities that worked closely with Geneva on the project nicknamed Atom’s Shadow. “One of the greatest this century, if not of all time,” Prof. Sinha, former director of SINP said. SINP developed a new chip, Manas, for the high-profile project at CERN.

The Indian link to the world’s ambitious experiment was also reflected in comments ahead of the announcement. “India is like a historic father of the project,” said Paolo Giubellino, spokesperson of Geneva-based European Organisation for Nuclear Research, famously known as CERN.

source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/india-historic-father-cern-819

‘City needs Hemavathi water ’



source:http://newindianexpress.com/cities/bangalore/article558838.ece

How is the rain harvesting project going on?

Before diverting Hemavathi water the government should generate suitable alternative employment for all farmers of Hemavathi basin who badly depend on that water.

How is the rain harvesting project going on?

Before diverting Hemavathi water the government should generate suitable alternative employment for all farmers of Hemavathi basin who badly depend on that water.

I saw one guy digging sump in his front yard :) compulsory for 60x40 site people to make rain harvesting. no news of cauvery stage iv phase 2 that will increase water supply to city by 50% :ohno: hope july end we will get extra water

Rahul Belagali, Chikkaballapur, July 4, 2012, DHNS:

Restriction in bio-diversity region may dash hopes of people in dryland
The declaration of the Western Ghats as a world heritage site by Unesco has evoked a mixed response from local people, elected representatives and organisations in the district.

However, people in the dryland region, under which the district comes, are a little worried that the heritage tag may derail the project to provide permanent irrigation facilities to the region, for which they have been fighting for more than a decade now.
The people in the districts of Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Tumkur, Bangalore Rural and others had been living in the hope that the excess water from the Netravathi river would be diverted for irrigation purposes in their region.

However, the State government has been showing more interest in pursuing the Ettinahole lift irrigation project in Sakleshpur.

A leader of the permanent irrigation facility agitation committee said that the likely restriction on projects in the region, following the heritage tag, may put a spoke in the wheel of the permanent irrigation project. The people in the region have held bandhs several times demanding implementation of the project. They had even gone on a padayatra to the Vidhana Soudha, pressing for the same.

He argues that the Ettinahole project may provide drinking water for towns and cities, but the rural areas and agricultural activities will not benefit. The leader said they would intensify their agitation in the days to come.

Irrigation expert G S Paramashivaiah, whose report is the basis for the permanent irrigation project plan, said it was important that the flora and fauna in the Western Ghats region should not be harmed. But, at the same time, there should be some easing of restrictions as far as the permanent irrigation project is concerned. The lives of humans are more important than those of animals, Paramashivaiah said.

A day should not come when the dryland region becomes barren, what with the depleting levels of groundwater, he said.

DHNS (http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261961/heritage-tag-western-ghats-may.html)

I hope there will not be much problem for Shiradi Ghat tunnel as it returns back more land to Westernghat as I have posted earlier. We have to see the effect on proposed railway lines and other road expansion projects. Already widening proposal of NH-169 to twolane (10 meters from current 3 to 5 meters) is held up due to objection from forest department.

Govt opposes Unesco tag for W Ghats (http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261932/govt-opposes-unesco-tag-w.html)

Bangalore, July 4, 2012, DHNS:

The State government is in no mood to give the Western Ghats-Unesco tag matter a rest.

It has raised serious contentions against the Centre for taking the matter into its own hands and renominating the Ghats in this year’s Unesco Convention at St Petersberg, Russia, ignoring the ‘stiff opposition’ by the State government.

Forest Minister C P Yogeeshwara said on Wednesday the State government would oppose the tag conferred on the Western Ghats by the Unesco’s World Heritage Committee.

Addressing mediapersons after discussions with Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda, he accused the Centre of taking a unilateral decision in getting the biodiversity hotspot a world heritage site status without considering the stand of the State government. The status would be accompanied by more guidelines and restrictions, which would clash with the existing laws, resulting in ‘unwanted confusion’, he added.

“We will write to the Centre, explaining the same. We have also decided not to sign the Unesco agreement. There is life in the Western Ghats, and it cannot be taken for granted. According to the guidelines of the Unesco, even sinking borewells or setting up cottage industries will require prior permission. The chief minister has consented to our decision,” said Yogeeshwara.

He said the opposition to the tag was not just from Karnataka. “Barring Gujarat and Goa, other five states housing the Ghats have opposed the tag. We do not wish to take hasty decisions; the matter needs to be approached and resolved scientifically.”

Yogeeshwara also claimed that the world heritage site status for the Western Ghats would hamper development activities in the region which could result in the risk of spurring naxal activities. “Unemployment will rise if development activities are stopped. Naxal and other illegal activities, which have made inroads into the region, can only aggravate,” he warned.

Western Ghats Task Force chairperson Ananth Hegde Ashisar said the chief minister had categorically said that henceforth no permission would be given to mining and mini-hydel projects in the Ghats.

He said the chief minister had agreed to include the task force recommendations in the 10th Year Working Plan.


Karnataka opposes world heritage tag to Western Ghats (http://www.deccanherald.com/content/261803/karnataka-opposes-world-heritage-tag.html)

angalore, Jul 4, 2012, (PTI) :

Karnataka today said the state was against UNESCO declaring 10 spots in Western Ghats as world heritage sites as it would affect development work.

Minister for Forest C P Yogeshwar told reporters here that though the state had opposed the proposal, the Centre has gone ahead with the notification.

Development efforts will be hit if these places were declared as world heritage spots and people living there would face hardship, he said.

Yogeshwar said he would discuss the issue with the Chief Minister later in the day.

BJP MLA D N Jeevaraj, who hails from Chikmagalur district, located in the Malnad region of the state, which passes through the western ghats, also opposed the UNESCO decision.

The state had last year written to the Centre that the spots falling in western ghats in Karnataka should not be declared as heritage centres.

UNESCO's World Heritage Committee included India's 1600-km Western Ghats mountain chain in its list of world heritage sites recently for being one of the eight "hottest hotspots" of biological diversity.

How is the rain harvesting project going on?

Before diverting Hemavathi water the government should generate suitable alternative employment for all farmers of Hemavathi basin who badly depend on that water.

Well you can provide alternative employment.. BUT what about the food we eat..?:ohno:

Looks like jagadish shettar will replace sadanada gowda as CM.....Feel bad for sadananda gowda who is being replaced for no wrong reasons of his:ohno:,BJP high command is in a deep shit and has done a big miscalculation by bowing to the corrupt and tainted ministers i.e. BSY faction.

Looks like jagadish shettar will replace sadanada gowda as CM.....Feel bad for sadananda gowda who is being replaced for no wrong reasons of his:ohno:,BJP high command is in a deep shit and has done a big miscalculation by bowing to the corrupt and tainted ministers i.e. BSY faction.

Chamcha of Devegowda -Sadanandgowda no charishma at all.
Look at Railway projects he got for state this budget.
Jadagish Shettar is better for NK
and BSY is not proved corrupt yet.

Chamcha of Devegowda -Sadanandgowda no charishma at all.
Look at Railway projects he got for state this budget.
Jadagish Shettar is better for NK
and BSY is not proved corrupt yet.

Jagadish shettar - ve charisma one shoud say,sadananda gowda atleast has his nice smile around.

Don't worry, Even if Jagadish Shettar is made CM - he will last only till 2014 or December early elections only.

CBI, work under congress footsteps. They should have arrested BSY by now. Congress is deliberately making use of this situation to get Bad image to BJP.

Instead of all this high drama. BJP should have thrown BSY permanently from BJP. That would have put Full stop to his Political Career.

Don't worry, Even if Jagadish Shettar is made CM - he will last only till 2014 or December early elections only.

CBI, work under congress footsteps. They should have arrested BSY by now. Congress is deliberately making use of this situation to get Bad image to BJP.

Instead of all this high drama. BJP should have thrown BSY permanently from BJP. That would have put Full stop to his Political Career.

+1

Instead of all this high drama. BJP should have thrown BSY permanently from BJP. That would have put Full stop to his Political Career.

Cant say full stop. He is aggressive with respect to being active in politics. If they had thrown him out, altogether a different saga would have happened. May be he would have started a party with many ministers resigning from BJP. Most importantly, they want him in the party for the votes from his community.

I have a feeling if they do not get majority of his community's votes in the upcoming lok sabha election, they will actually throw him out.

Looks like jagadish shettar will replace sadanada gowda as CM.....Feel bad for sadananda gowda who is being replaced for no wrong reasons of his:ohno:,BJP high command is in a deep shit and has done a big miscalculation by bowing to the corrupt and tainted ministers i.e. BSY faction.

foul-mouthing own party leaders is good enough reason to take head :bash: good riddance

Don't worry, Even if Jagadish Shettar is made CM - he will last only till 2014 or December early elections only.

CBI, work under congress footsteps. They should have arrested BSY by now. Congress is deliberately making use of this situation to get Bad image to BJP.

Instead of all this high drama. BJP should have thrown BSY permanently from BJP. That would have put Full stop to his Political Career.

CBI cant arrest him because last week yeddy got anticipatory bail from high court http://www.ndtv.com/article/south/bs-yeddyurappa-granted-anticipatory-bail-in-graft-case-234441

Chamcha of Devegowda -Sadanandgowda no charishma at all.
Look at Railway projects he got for state this budget.
Jadagish Shettar is better for NK
and BSY is not proved corrupt yet.

Mr. Shettar has already failed as Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister .. Ask any govt employees of RDPR, they will explain the disaster of the department after he joined RDPR portfolio :bash:.... They would say shobha Karandlaje is far more better than this waste shettar:).

CAUVERY STAGE 4
Give power bill, get water supply (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Submit-power-bill-get-water-connection/articleshow/14698707.cms?)
Aparajita Ray TNN

Bangalore: Here is some good news for the 26 lakh Bangaloreans living in the newly added areas of the city. You can get water connection by producing your electricity bill. Hitherto, RR numbers were not the gateway to get a water connection.
Ahead of the commissioning of Cauvery Water Supply Scheme (CWSS) stage 4 (phase 2) by July-end or early August, BWSSB has initiated the project to enable citizens get their water connection in a smooth manner.
“It is very difficult to find illegal connections. The number is growing alarmingly causing problems to those with legal connections. The illegal takers, including slum dwellers, draw more water by inserting suction pumps in the water line or by drawing an illegal line. The new system will help us trace the illegal connections,” BWSSB officials said.
In the new process, you can also produce sale deed documents of the property, telephone bill, general power attorney (GPA) documents or ration card along with an affidavit in prescribed format on stamp paper worth Rs 20 from the owner or the occupant, stating that‘in caseof any dispute,legal problemsin respectof the property,Boardcan take action todisconnectwater supply/sanitary house service connection without further notice’.
Theboardhasdirected allsub-divisionalengineers and officials to collect the RR numbers and other documents from consumers, which will help them identify the illegal connections too.

SUPPLY BY AUGUST?
BWSSB minister S Suresh Kumar reviewed the
progress of the Cauvery Water Supply Scheme (CWSS) stage 4 (phase 2) on Wednesday and hinted that the water supply can be started partially by August.
BWSSB said all purification units and pumping stations were installed and 12 out of 24 filter beds were ready. The work on water lines between Shiva Ballistic reservoir and TK Halli is nearly complete. The motor installation works in the pumping stations at TK Halli, Harohalli and Tataguni are ongoing and the minister expected they would be completed between August 6 and 7.

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOIBG/2012/07/06/3/Img/Pc0031400.jpg
GEARING UP: The pumphouse of Cauvery Stage 4 scheme

University of Agricultural Sciences top draw among foreign students

BANGALORE: Foreign students are flocking to Bangalore, and increasingly to the University of Agricultural Sciences spread over 200 acres in Hebbal. While 45 overseas students joined courses here in 2011-12, the varsity expects more than 60 such students to join various under-graduate and post-graduate courses this year. "We've already admitted 36 foreign students this year. But the number is expected to touch 60 as admission is still on. We expect more students to walk in by the end of this month," said HV Nanjappa, registrar, UAS.

The varsity has been getting queries from foreign students since 2004 but only four joined the varsity that year. Officials say the number has been steadily increasing. "Most of the students who come from countries like Afghanistan, Iran, Vietnam and Rwanda are on deputation. The increase in number can be attributed to the good performance of UAS. The varsity has managed to get a position among top three agricultural universities in the past few years and thus international exposure," said KT Prasanna, foreign students' advisor, UAS.

R S Deshpande, director, Institute of Social and Economic Change, pointed out several reasons for this. "The main reason for the varsity becoming popular among foreign students is that the courses offered are more attractive and have scored high on international lists. Moreover, opting to study here is far more affordable than in many other places. Finally, UAS courses provide hands-on experience, which is vital for a good job," he said.

Popular picks

According to K Narayana Gowda, vice-chancellor, UAS, the BTech course in food processing is in great demand among foreign nationals. "These days, secondary agriculture is getting a lot of importance. Processed food and ready-to-eat food are becoming very popular and so is the demand for the food processing course," said Narayana Gowda. Other courses popular among foreign students are Agri Economics, Agriculture Extension, Seeds Technology and Agri Business Management.

Comfortable stay

Given the increasing number of foreign students, UAS has come up with an international hostel for them. "We have a separate building with 46 rooms to accommodate foreign students. Apart from single-occupancy rooms, we've also provided a kitchen and wi-fi enabled environment. The hostel is full now and many foreign students live outside the campus. We're planning another international hostel on campus," said HV Nanjappa.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/University-of-Agricultural-Sciences-top-draw-among-foreign-students/articleshow/14698731.cms

Govt to build museum for Roerich's works

BANGALORE: The works of Russian painter Svetoslav Roerich, who made Bangalore his home, will soon be housed in a world-class museum, modelled on Amsterdam's Van Gogh Museum, at his Tataguni estate on the outskirts of Bangalore.

The museum is expected to have the studio, Roerich's graves and all paintings and documents of his family spread over 25 acres. The department of Kannada and culture has also prepared a blueprint to preserve the house where Roerich and his wife Devika Rani Roerich lived.

The horticulture department will set up a rose garden on 25 acres. The government done this after the Supreme Court in November 2011 upheld the constitutionality of the Roerich and Devika Rani Estate (Acquisition and Transfer) Act, 1996 and ordered that the land acquired be utilized only for what it was acquired.

Following the controversy that erupted after Roerich's death in January 1993 over management of the 468-acre estate, the state government in 1996 through an Act established a trust to preserve the paintings, art objects and carvings and also flora and fauna there. The chief secretary was appointed trust chairperson to administer the estate.

"A sub-committee was constituted under the chairmanship of additional chief secretary after the meeting of board of trustees. The sub-committee was asked prepare a plan for development to preserve and maintain the estate," official sources told TOI. "The remaining 418 acres will be handed over to the forest department to preserve the flora & fauna," the officer said.

Moving to Bangalore

Svetoslav Roerich, though Russian by birth, made India his home, along with his multifaceted father Prof. Nicholas Roerich. After his marriage to Devika Rani, then first lady of the Indian screen, the Svetoslavs shifted to Bangalore from Kulu Valley, Himachal Pradesh.

They became cultural ambassadors of Russia, fostering friendship and understanding between the two countries. Initially, the couple leased a house in Gavipurarm Extension. Before shifting to a centrally located house on Edward Road, they bought the sprawling Tataguni estate on Kanakapura Road. The estate was developed with several aromatic trees and shrubs, a spacious farm house and a studio where he painted some of his later works. The studio housed Svetoslav's creations, his priceless collection of art, artifacts and curios, including some masterpieces of father and son.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Govt-to-build-museum-for-Roerichs-works/articleshow/14698699.cms

'Mysterious' ad to support Gowda

BANGALORE: Karnataka chief minister D V Sadananda Gowda seems to have some 'mysterious' supporters. An advertisement in a vernacular daily on Thursday by anonymous persons left many wondering.

The ad has no name of the persons or the organizations, but only says 'Pragnavantha Mathadararu' (meaningConscientious voters). In the ad, 10 questions have been asked to the BJP high command. It refers to the proposed change in leadership in the state. It is in favor of the CM, criticizes the BJP high command and former CM B S Yeddyurappa.

Some of the questions:

· You claim your party to be disciplined and cultured. Your own men have let down your party, but you have been a mute spectator. Aren't you embarrassed?

· What crime has Gowda done to replace him? Is it because he is a Vokkaliga? Did you assume power only with the support of the Lingayats? If you dislodge Gowda, won't you antagonize the Vokkaligas?

· Have you received gratification from some people? Are you being blackmailed? Is that the reason for your helplessness?

· Your former CM BS Yeddyurappa has gone to the prison and he still faces several cases. One former minister is in the prison, while many other ministers are fighting cases in the court. Your legislators were caught watching porn in the assembly. What is the necessity to bow before such people?

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Mysterious-ad-to-support-Gowda/articleshow/14693124.cms

Focus is on developing Mysore: D V Sadananda Gowda

MYSORE: Chief minister D V Sadananda Gowda has said that to avoid rush in Bangalore, the government is concentrating more on developing cities like Mysore. The government has already earmarked 2,000 acres of land and notified 1,500 acres in Mysore to facilitate investors.

Speaking after inaugurating various development projects atop Chamundi Hill here on Friday, Gowda said a swimming pool of international level will be built at a cost of Rs 3.2 crore at Chamundivihar Stadium. Importance will be given for the development of lakes in Mysore.

Gowda also gave a nod for a proposal to constitute tourism, heritage, exhibition and Nada Habba Authority covering Mysore and five other neighbouring districts. On Mysore Airport, he said discussions are going on to increase number of flights from Mysore to other places.

District minister S A Ramdas said that Srikanteshwara temple in Nanjangud has received ISO certification.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mysore/Focus-is-on-developing-Mysore-D-V-Sadananda-Gowda/articleshow/13003356.cms

BJP should not Remove Sada till next election .What will new CM achieve in 8 months apart from felicitation in Hubli -dharwad? Hope supreme Court Cancels BSY bail plea and take him off to prison where he can meet his X-Cabinet Minster Reddy

Manu Aiyappa | TNN

Bangalore: Though a change of guard appears imminent in the ruling BJP,the opposition Congress is hoping against hope that DV Sadananda Gowda somehow continues in the CMs gaddi.For they know that the BJP strategy to replace Gowda with a Lingayat leader (Jagadish Shettar) as CM spells trouble for them in the upcoming assembly elections.
The Congress,routed in a series of byelections largely because of the JD(S) eating into its vote share,has been making all out efforts to evolve new caste combinations (Lingayat-Kuruba-Dalits and Minorities ) in its favour.
A few months ago,the party had launched a Mission Lingayats campaign and taken a slew of measures: from roping in Congress president Sonia Gandhi to attend a religious function in Siddaganga mutt to appointing MLC SR Patil as opposition leader in the Karnataka legislative council.
The sudden focus on the community is no surprise.Lingayats account for 17% of the states population and could make or mar the fate of candidates in 95 of the 224 constituencies,falling under the Mumbai and Hyderabad-Karnatak regions.Whoever wins more than half these 95 seats can occupy the CM's chamber.
A BJP vote bank,the Lingayats were unhappy over the treatment meted out to their leader former CM BS Yeddyurappa.So the Congress perceived it a good time to approach the Lingayats,which is keeping a safe distance.
In this course,18 Lingayat MLAs of the Congress,headed by 80-year-old Shamanur Shivashankarappa,had made a desperate bid for the KPCC chief's post.The party received bad press after party MLA BC Patil attacked KPCC president G Parameshwara,in support of Shamanur.
But all these efforts appear wasted with the BJP leadership applying the Lingayat-Kuruba-Gowda (LKG) formula.

THEY DIDNT CASH IN

Things have gone wrong for the Congress,with the senior leadership responsible for the state of affairs.The Congress did not make any attempt to cash in on the ruling partys bad phase.Many people have started believing that the Congress is not willing to take advantage of the BJPs vulnerability

NS Patil | FORMER POLITICAL SCIENCE PROFESSOR AT KARNATAK UNIVERSITY

http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/mobile.aspx?article=yes&pageid=4&edlabel=TOIBG&mydateHid=06-07-2012&pubname=&edname=&articleid=Ar00403&format=&publabel=TOI

Do Entire Community Vote for a Single Party?

BWSSB to regularise water connections


http://www.deccanherald.com/page_images/thumb/2012/07/06/262191_thump.gif

The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is planning to regularise illegal water connections in the City.

The BWSSB has relaxed existing rules to regularise water connections and has directed officers to collect documents and to issue RR (Revenue Register) number as a proof.

Consumers with unauthori*sed connections have been told to submit documents like sale de*ed of the property, general power of attorney, telephone bill, electricity bill, ration card along with an affidavit on stamp paper of Rs 20 from the owner/occupant to get their water connections regularised.

The BWSSB is also playing safe in case of disputed property, as the board has reserved the right to disconnect water supply connection without further notice. There is no last date to submit the documents to regularise the connection, but if the BWSSB finds any unauthorised connection, they will either disconnect or give time to regularise it.

According to BWSSB officials, nearly 36 per cent of water supply is recorded as unaccounted for water (UFW) as a large portion of the water supply is drawn through unauthorised water connections. There are existing pipelines meant to supply borewell water and there are high chances of illegal drawal of water through these lines.

The BWSSB is also gearing up to supply water from Cauvery IV stage II phase from August this year.

source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/262191/bwssb-regularise-water-connections.html

Hassan to get country’s first bio fuel bunk

Karnataka is all set to open the country’s first bio-fuel distribution bunk of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd in Hassan. Speaking at an event organised by the State Biofuel Development Board on Thursday, its Executive Chairman Y.B. Ramakrishna said, “We have several biofuel-related projects going on. We already have a Green Fuel Park at Madenur village, which produces about 300 litres of biofuel and Bharat Petroleum will open a green fuel outlet within the next three months in Hasan”.

Stating that there is vast scope for producing bio fuel in the country, Mr Ramakrishna said the Centre should come out with a bio fuel policy which can not only address fuel needs, but also save crores in foreign exchange which is spent on import of crude oil.



source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/hassan-get-country%E2%80%99s-first-bio-fuel-bunk-126


State eyes second position in country in ethanol output

Sets target of increasing production capacity from 150 to 200 million litres

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/karnataka/article3606754.ece

RTE mandates move to the new system

Beginning this year, State-syllabus schools in Karnataka will also be adopting the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) system from Class 1 to 9 on the lines of what the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has been following.

The CCE system has also been introduced for I PUC from this academic year. The Right to Education (RTE) Act, being implemented in Karnataka from this year, mandates the shift to the new system of continuous evaluation of a student’s performance rather than year-end exams.

Disclosing the details of the new system, H.S. Ramarao, Director of the Department of State Educational Research and Training (DSERT) told The Hindu that the system could involve formative and summative assessments. Under the CCE, performance of children in extra-curricular activities such as music and dance, in addition to core academics, will be evaluated, he added.

DSERT is already in the process of preparing manual and training material to equip teachers to adopt this method. “Karnataka already has Nali Kali system in the primary classes, which involves continuous evaluation. Now classes 4 to 9 will also have the CCE,” said Mr. Ramarao.

State Project Director of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Tushar Girinath, said that the process of printing progress reports for the new method of evaluation was under way. “Teachers were trained in the new method of evaluation last year,” he said, adding that there will be more training sessions. The DSERT, as per the rules framed by the State on the RTE Act, has the responsibility of “preparing suitable guidelines for implementation of the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation from Class 1 to 8.”

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/article3602982.ece

Let’s all scream for ice-cream!

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01134/05bgmBelgianWaffle_1134531g.jpg
Indulge in this And head straight for sweet nirvana

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01134/06bgmFlowerBlossom_1134532g.jpg

Flower Blossom

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01134/06bgmFondue_jpg_1134533g.jpg
Fondue

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Paradise

Eating out The Häagen-Dazs Lounge redefines desserts with its wicked delicacies


When it comes to desserts, ice cream is an all time favourite. Irrespective of your age, these chilled treats are something that not many can resist. The city too is brimming with outlets that cater to pamper us with these sinful delights. The latest to lead you to temptation is the Häagen-Dazs Lounge in 1 MG Road.

The lounge is on the ground floor and has glass walls. So you can sit in the cosy ambience with the aroma of melted chocolate or vanilla sensually wafting past while you wait for your order.

A look at the menu sends your head spinning as you are spoilt for choice. The menu with beautiful pictures make you want to try them all. So, after contemplating for quite sometime, we zero in on the lovely fondue. What a treat it is! A large ceramic tray with melted chocolate in the centre, a tiny bowl placed on a candle, it is surrounded with frozen strawberries, cookies, cream, chocolate chips, Belgian chocolate and fruits of the season. Must say, every bite is tantalisingly blissful. The frozen strawberries dipped in hot chocolate is something to die for.

Then we try the Cafe Belgian Mocha. Priced at Rs. 250 this tall glass of Belgian chocolate ice-cream with steamed milk, whipped cream, chocolate fudge and a shot of steaming espresso is again a great combination of the hot and cold. By now, though our faces are stuffed with enough chocolate, the soul still yearns for more.

So we decide to seal our treat with the Belgian waffle dream. It comes with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream, a scoop of coffee ice cream, which is then topped with warm Belgian waffle maple syrup and fresh whipped cream! All these are placed on a crunchy waffle.

The servings are really large. It is better to make it a meal in itself rather than a treat after a meal if you are on the other side of the age mountain. However, if you have a healthy metabolism, then my advise is to let go and enjoy.

Häagen-Dazs Lounge can be contacted on 22086516.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/metroplus/article3606269.ece

Karnataka: Govt permits BBMP to raise Rs 1,000 cr loan

http://news.oneindia.in/img/2012/07/06-bbmp-logo.jpg

Bangalore, Jul 6: Karnataka Government today accorded permission to Bangalore city corporation to borrow Rs 1,000 crore loan from banks and financial institutions in the wake of it facing financial crunch.
The state cabinet approved the proposal Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP)for permission to raise Rs 1,000 crore loan to fund infrastructure projects in the city during 2012-13, Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Vishweshwara Hegde Kageri told reporters here.
The BBMP which is ruled by BJP has already pledged the high rise Utility Building for Rs 1,000 crore loan, a measure that has come under flak by opposition parties.
The Corporation recently presented a budget of Rs 9500 crore and has been pleading the state government for financial assistance.
The cabinet approved implementation of Rs 221 crore Quality Improvement in technical institutions sponsored by the HRD ministry.
The programme will be taken up in en reputed engineering colleges including two run by the government for which the Centre extends 75 per cent assistance and the state contribute 25 per cent cost.
In the wake of criticism over permitting development of 13 horticultural farms in PPP (Public-Private-Participation), the cabinet today decided to cancel it and now go in for Joint Venture to develop all the 410 farms which have 15,732 acres of land, Kageri said.
A special purpose vehicle-- Karnataka State Horticulture Development Agency-- will soon be created for the purpose.
The meeting cleared three railway projects-- Bagalkot-Kudachi estimated to cost Rs 816 crore, Rs 68 crore Kolar-Chikkaballapur gauge conversion and Bidar level crossing with Rs 5.80 crore cost. The state and Railways have an agreement for implementing railway project on cost sharing basis.

source:http://news.oneindia.in/2012/07/06/govt-permits-bbmp-to-raise-rs-1000-cr-loan-1030653.html

Gowda turns emotional; lists govt's achievements

Kolar: Amid reports that he may be replaced, an emotional Karnataka Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on Thursday listed his government's achievements in the last eleven months and said he gave a clean and corruption-free administration.

"I have given a clean and corruption-free government to the people in the last eleven months of chief ministership. My government has not faced any scams during my tenure so far. I take pride in it," he told reporters at a function here.

"I am fully satisfied with my work and tried to do something for betterment of the people," he said.



On his future, Gowda said he would work for the party and government. Replying to a query, Gowda said he would abide by any decision taken by the party's central leadership over leadership issue.

"I and some other leaders have explained the present developments within the party and are waiting for the outcome," he said.

Gowda said the present political crisis was due to some leaders not being accommodated. There are reports that BJP central leadership might replace Gowda with Rural Development Minister Jagdish Shettar next week and a decision was expected shortly.

The B S Yeddyurappa faction is propping up Shettar to replace Gowda as Chief Minister

source:http://zeenews.india.com/news/karnataka/gowda-turns-emotional-lists-govt-s-achievements_785782.html

Advani factor delaying change of guard in Karnataka

BANGALORE/NEW DELHI: It's a waiting game for all BJP camps in Karnataka as the party's central leadership is busy tying up loose ends which includes bringing patriarch L K Advani on board to announce Jagadish Shettar as the new CM.

At the same time, former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa's camp is not overly exuberant over having succeeded in replacing D V Sadananda Gowda as CM. Till the BJP's parliamentary board meets and formally announces a change of guard, it's keeping its fingers crossed over any possible sabotage by some ginger groups who could play a spoilsport by resigning from the assembly and creating a constitutional crisis.

The delay in convening the parliamentary board meeting - it might happen over the weekend - is said to be due to Advani's reservations over replacing Gowda. The former deputy PM is reported to have questioned party leaders Nitin Gadkari and Arun Jaitley, who met him on Thursday evening, on how they believe Yeddyurappa won't create trouble again. Its learnt that the national leaders are trying to convince Advani to give his consent as they don't want to take any decision by overriding him.

Advani is learnt to have pointed out that Gowda was Yeddyurappa's choice for the chief ministership. If the same problem crops up a few months from now, the party would suffer badly in the assembly elections due in less than a year.

Sources say Advani's apprehensions are justified. After the BJP's rout in the UP assembly polls, he had criticized the party's decision to induct tainted leader Babu Singh Kushwaha, its tacit support to controversial NRI businessman Anshuman Mishra in the Sabha elections, and its poor handling of the Karnataka crisis. While Shettar taking over as CM looks certain, there is unlikely to be a deputy CM's post. Gowda might be rehabilitated with a post at the national level or in the Rajya Sabha.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Advani-factor-delaying-change-of-guard-in-Karnataka/articleshow/14726591.cms