Chennai discussions II

[karkal]

Civil Services rank holders proud of Chennai connection



M. Sundaresh Babu, R. Ramachandran, T. Sreejith and K. Sasikumar attribute their success in the civil services exam to the positive environment in the city — Photo: K. Pichumani

City was stepping stone for over 70 aspirants who cracked the exam this year

For over 70 candidates who cleared the Civil Services Examination 2011, Chennai has been the stepping stone for Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussoorie, where the foundation course for fresh recruits is held.

Most of the successful students find the city of Chennai “slow” but reliable when it comes to achieving great goals in life. The 11 rank holder Neeraj Kumar Singh, who hails from Raipur in Chhattisgarh, used Chennai's facilities in his pursuit of bureaucratic excellence.

When he started preparing for the Civil Services exam two years ago in Chennai, his friends and family were happy for he was just 20 and had many more years before the ‘last attempt.' But Mr. Singh hit the target in his first attempt; he was determined not to spend years preparing in the event of his being unsuccessful. While becoming an IAS officer was not his childhood dream, he delved into preparations in Chennai's unfailing network for the civil services preparation.

Mr. Singh's decision to pursue the IAS aspiration was the culmination of a long-term plan to be exposed to different perspectives. “Choosing to pursue a humanities course at IIT-Madras known for its technical excellence was part of that too. By the end of fourth year, I was sure it is implementation where we go wrong, and I decided I wanted to be part of policy making and implementation,” says the young professional, who graduated from the institute last year and is now working as an economics consultant in New Delhi.

“As part of NSS work at IIT-Madras, we, a mixed group of B. Tech and Humanities students, went to villages, analysed problems scientifically and even gave demonstrations of solutions wherever possible. If I had studied in a college offering only a humanities course, the approach would have been very different,” he says. “And I liked Chennai; it is slightly slow but suits me,” he adds.

M. Sundaresh Babu, ranked 38, did B.Sc. from Agricultural College and Research Institute, Madurai. The city's contribution to this 26-year-old's success has been “immense.” Mentors, study material and vibrant facilities for information on the changing dynamics of the examination make Chennai unique, the native of Bodinayakkanur in Theni district says.

R. Ramachandran, 115 Rank, says the friends the city gave him, helped sustain his “spirit of perseverance, determination and hard work even after five attempts.” The city helped him actualise the inspiration he received from his father, who was the PA to the Collector of Dharmapuri. The commitment and determination of many IAS officers in the city has made them his role models, he adds.

For T. Sreejith, 506 rank, from the southernmost district in peninsular India, “Chennai is the hub of civil services preparation in South India.” Sreejith did his internship at The Hindu after his masters in Mass Communication from the University of Madras in 2004.

According to K. Sasikumar, 440 rank, Chennai's collective consciousness on empowerment of weaker sections of the society has contributed towards his resolve to fight against discrimination.

[bonoslack7]

Amazon - SP Infocity, Perungudi - 180000 sqft
Mindtree - Ramanujan IT Park, Taramani - 100000 sqft
GE Converteam - Converteam building, Guindy - 66000 sqft
Barclays - DLF IT Park, Manapakkam - 63000 sqft
Citibank - SP Infocity, Perungudi - 60000 sqft
Cambridge Technologies - TVH Agnitio Park, Kandanchavadi - 60000 sqft
Bank of New York Mellon - DLF IT Park, Manapakkam - 50000 sqft
Emerson - Ascendas, Taramani - 18000 sqft
Shriram Value Services - Individual Building, Mylapore - 18000 sqft
Mitsubishi - Prestige Palladium, Greams Road - 12000 sqft

[karkal]

Signalling a sea change



CHUGGING AHEAD The Chennai team with its autonomous underwater vehicle (foreground) that won the NIOT contest

Having won NIOT's underwater vehicle contest, five city students are headed for a bigger challenge in San Diego

Five engineering students from Chennai have designed a machine of the first water — an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) that won a national design competition for students conducted by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT).

NIOT is sending the famous five — Anand Sunderasan, R. Rajesh and M. Saroj from Panimalar Institute of Technology, B. Prassanna from SSN Engineering College and S.V. Kaushik from SMK Forma — and their magnificent machine to an international AUV design contest at San Diego, being organised from July 17-22 by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and the United States Office of Naval Research.

The AUV has a completely water-sealed pressure hull where a dedicated system is lodged. “Our system contrasts sharply with those of our competitors — most of them chose to install laptops instead of designing their own systems,” says Prassanna.

All the major components, barring the five thrusters — which were imported from the U.S. — are placed within the pressure hull. The instruments include a pressure sensor for calculating depth, an inertial measurement unit for studying the AUV's orientation and three image-processing cameras for safe navigation. A grabber, which holds objects in response to signals sent by the computer based on inputs from the image-capturing unit, is another remarkable feature.

“With relevant enhancements, the vehicle can be deployed in missions to study oceanic eco-systems,” says Anand.

The 24-kg AUV, weighing one kilogram in water, operates on the principle of negative buoyancy, whereby the thrusters help dunk it to the bottom, and a kill-switch is employed to bring it to the surface. “For real-time applications, involving seas and oceans, an acoustic modem will replace the kill-switch,” says Kaushik.

In the NIOT contest — called ‘SAVE 2012' — this Chennai team survived three rounds. Sixty teams made it to the first, Preliminary Design Report. Twenty were in the second, Conceptual Design Report. “From the second round, the competition was intense. We faced a panel of eight scientists, including one from DRDO,” recalls Anand. “Two trials were conducted in the final round,” says Prassanna.

Eight teams were in the finals, called ‘prototype only', but only five produced their vehicles. Crossing the choppy waters of stiff competition, the five boys from Chennai finished first ahead of IIT Kharagpur and Ambedkar Institute, Delhi.

“Looking back, the eclectic composition of our team gave us an advantage — three of us are ‘triple E' students and the other two are mechanical and computer engineers in the making,” says Prassanna.

A smiling Anand adds, “We have won the battle, but can rest only after we win the war. We are looking at improving our underwater vehicle for the big contest at San Diego.”

[saysenthil]

Around the world in one day

On display are the replicas of the Taj Mahal, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Statue of Liberty, Christ the Redeemer, the Great Wall of China, the Egyptian Pyramid, and the Roman Colosseum.



Jules Vernes took us on an 80-day tour around the world in his book. Imagine how long and how much it will cost to go on a similar trip today? Seems beyond the reach of your purse? Don't worry. Now all you need is just one day to go on an expense-free visit to the must-see places around the globe. Want to know how?

No, it does not involve a time-machine or any such thing. The ‘Seven Wonders of the World' are themselves making a special appearance for Chennaiites at the Island Ground. The Summer Fest, formally inaugurated on May 1, has been organised by Spellbound, a Chennai-based event management company, in collaboration with the Tamil Nadu Tourism Department.

On display are the replicas of the Taj Mahal, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Statue of Liberty, Christ the Redeemer, the Great Wall of China, the Egyptian Pyramid, and the Roman Colosseum.

‘Dream project'

Calling it his ‘dream project,' Redin, the CEO of Spellbound, says, “Though this type of show has been done abroad, the concept is new in India. The unique thing about it is the sheer size of the replicas we have put up. The Eiffel tower stands at 97 feet (tallest of the seven), the Statue of Liberty at 80 feet, the Colosseum and the Pyramid at 70 feet each, Jesus Christ at 75 feet, the Taj Mahal at 80 feet and the Great Wall of China is 800-feet wide.”

The exhibition, spread over 1.80 lakh sq-ft, took shape within a span of 25 days. Though it was scheduled to begin by April 14, the opening was delayed as the replicas were not ready. “We got the ground only on April 4 as some other exhibition was already going on there. That we were able to finish putting up the replicas in such a short period is a wonder in itself.”

Spellbound roped in carpenters working in the cine field, moulders, painters, and welders for setting up the show. “Our labourers worked round the clock to get the show on road,” Mr. Redin says.

Best attraction

Stating that the Taj Mahal will be the best attraction of the show, Mr. Redin says he expects over five lakh people to visit the fare.

Alongside the exhibition, a lot of other events have also been planned. “Dance competitions will be held every day, on weekends we will have a light music concert, and we will also hold a hip-hop dance championship.”

The 100-day long exhibition will be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends and from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays. The entry ticket for adults is Rs. 150 and for children Rs. 100.

The fare will also have around 120 stalls offering various products. The Polar Express, on its second visit, is expected to be a crowd puller. Spellbound is also brining its popular Ice-Age Snow Ball and Mirror House back for the event.

After the exhibition, the replicas will be dismantled and the show will be taken to metros such as Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi.

A dancer by profession, Redin started his own dance and event management company four years ago and ever since has been trying to bring such unique exhibitions to the people.

For next year's summer fest, he plans to bring Walt Disney to Chennai. So, without any visa hassle, lavish spending, or long leave people can experience the fun of visiting these wonders right where they live.

[karkal]

Hamlet fears losing homes to sea erosion

Over 900 residents have been petitioning Water Resource Department to extend sea wall

[karkal]

‘Vimaanaas' makes VIT flag fly high in U.S.

The team “Vimaanaas”, a group of students from VIT secured the fourth spot in design score in aero-design competition held at Van Nuys, California in March. The four part competition, consisting of design report, oral presentation, viva voce and flight score, was organised by organised by Society of Automotive Engineers, USA. The VIT team who developed a small aircraft with the use of a plastic bottle and lightweight wood, were adjudged to be the best team from India.

N. Aakaash, a third year electronics and communication engineering student and one of the team members, said the competition had intended to provide engineering students with a ‘real-life engineering challenge'. “Our team was formed with a vision to build a formidable aeronautical team to excel in engineering, design and manufacturing of micro-aircraft so as to participate in the SAE Aero-Design competition.”

Vimaanaas contested in the micro-class category. The main aim of this class is to design and fabricate a detachable unmanned aerial vehicle and launch system within specified packaging requirements so as to attain the highest payload fraction possible, while simultaneously having the lowest empty weight. “We started working on the aircraft from September last year. 90 per cent of the parts were fabricated and assembled by hand. Our team had to be innovative and calculative in design. For example, we chose a normal rectangular water bottle as the fuselage of the aircraft. During flight rounds, a licensed pilot flew our aircraft ,” Aakaash said.

Another member and a second year mechanical engineering student, Aman Deep Singh said, “Since it is the first time for many members, we had to experiment a lot with the structure for stability and performance. We had some constraints in our category as specified by the guidelines. The design should be fixed wing aircraft, two members should be able to assemble it in 3 minutes, it should land in the designated grass field of 200 metres in length and the aircraft should be hand launched.” Sadhana Mishra, another team member, said the team spent about Rs 1 lakh for the project and built the aircraft without any guidance. “It is our own study and effort in coming out with the design and development, which made our endeavour successful,” she said.

[vinodgopal]

Originally Posted by karkal

Software engineer sells furniture on pavement

avan veyila ozhaikaradhu innum konjanaala AC room la coola okkandu software programmer agarathukku. appo veyil la yaaru inumey ozhaipanga?

[krishnaswamy]

1. Legal wrangles, red tape leave building unused
2.Motorists in T. Nagar taken for a ride
3. Desilting project in four lakes yet to take off

hm.. HAWKERS-a move panna mattanga.. people who cheat on Parking meter-kandukka mattanga.., Lake Desilt panre project hold...

either they do half baked projects or delay the project itself...

[venkatm]

Yeah. It's extremely disappointing to see things happening in glacial pace/not at allhappening/watered down in Chennai.

1. Take the example of bus terminus improvements - the planners and so called consultants are more focused on commercial aspects rather than providing vast spaces for parking of buses/cars/2 wheelers. Did they think about ROI when they gave away mixies or TV's? Bangalore has so many modern bus terminus' with parking and our T Nagar/Tiruvanmiyur terminus looks the same from the late 70's

2. Same is the case for lake deepening - the PWD guys should be shot for ruining all lakes and rivers by allowing plots to come up. Now they want contractors to pay them 66 crores for sludge! They should be thankful if the work gets done in a revenue nuetral way

3. Hawker and slum resettlement - this is a stage 4 cancer and will never get cured

4. land acquisition and road widening - they are talking about MTH road and ECR widening for about 10 years now with zilch results

[vinodgopal]

indha anniyayatha thatti kekka oruthan kandippa porappan. Avan summa gilli madhiri parandhu parandhu adippan. Suma sivakasi pattasu madhiri vedippan, avana kanda summa adhirudhu illa nu kekkaramadhiri pesuvan.

Avan ezhaikellam sondhakarana iruppan. Smile pannina namma superstar rajini madhiri irukkum, avan vela seiya arambicha vellakaran madhiri.

dont worry sir that day is not far.

[kongutamizhan]

cinema vula assistant director a senthuteengala? sooper. appadiyae kandukonden kandukonden ajit maadiri edaachum paavadai pidikkura assistant velai irundha en pera konjam recommend pannunga

[satchitananda]

Originally Posted by vinodgopal

indha anniyayatha thatti kekka oruthan kandippa porappan. Avan summa gilli madhiri parandhu parandhu adippan. Suma sivakasi pattasu madhiri vedippan, avana kanda summa adhirudhu illa nu kekkaramadhiri pesuvan.

Avan ezhaikellam sondhakarana iruppan. Smile pannina namma superstar rajini madhiri irukkum, avan vela seiya arambicha vellakaran madhiri.

dont worry sir that day is not far.

I didnt know you have a gudugudupandi avatar.. nalla kalam porakuthu.. jakkama solra... athai govalu vayala solra.. nalla kalam porakuthu..

[chennaidesi]

Today Chennai banner is looking nice.

[ranga]

Naper Bajra grass can generate substantial power for Tamil Nadu

The government is helping in setting up a 10 MW power project

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper...cle3402520.ece
.
At a time when Tamil Nadu has been reeling under a severe power crisis for over three months, and the problem may have eased with the arrival of wind power over the past week, the existing demand-supply can possibly be addressed through alternate sources.

One such solution lies in tapping the right renewable green resource like the humble Napier Bajra grass also called as NB CO-4 hybrid or Emperor grass.

Good biomass

“Released by Tamil Nadu Agriculture University (TNAU) during 2008, CO4 exhibits phenomenal biomass yield,” says Dr. G. Kumaravelu, senior Scientific Adviser for Biomass and Bioenergy programme of an international Chennai based business conglomerate called Archean group and former full time member, State Planning Commission.

This grass can be grown in most soil types, except in heavy clay, highly alkaline and water logged areas.

The slips for growing this grass are being produced by the Agricultural/Veterinary University and interested farmers.

Tonnage

“To verify its utility for power production, 5 to 6 months old, mature grass crop was harvested and weighed. The yellow mature stem, with more fibre and lignin content yielded around 200 dry metric tonnes per hectare.”

An appropriate practice package has been arrived at, within a year, by our trials using biofertilizers, nutrients, biochar and chemical fertilizers with drip irrigation to ensure sustained high yield.

About 2,000 acres of grass cultivation can supply raw material to run one 10 MW biomass electric power mill, continuously, all through the year without break,” says Dr. Kumaravelu.

Area to be covered

Archean — a multinational company — is going to grow this grass along with another fast growing tree, Melia dubia, as intercrop in several hundred acres in different parts of Tamil Nadu.

“I had demonstrated last year, that about 100 metric tonnes per hectare of biomass could be harvested from one year drip irrigated melia dubia plantations. That again is a comparable world record for tree species.This woody biomass also releases energy of over 4000 Kcal / Kg.“Together, both these highest biomass yielders could be used to generate substantial power for our State,” he explains.

The State Government, accepting the innovation in principle, announced in the Assembly, that they would help in setting up a 10 MW power project using this grass.
“With Government’s logistic support, we plan to complete planting of 2,000 acres within 12 months time, and erect 10 MW power mill in 18 months time,” he says.

In a 15 hectare area in Virudunagar district, borewells run on solar pumps will be commissioned for fertigation, and crops will be raised under the packages developed by Dr. Kumaravelu.

Demonstration plots

High yielding clones of Melia dubia will be planted as a shade crop for the grass and expected to function both as source of planting material and a demonstration plot.

“The clones of Melia dubia evolved by me have been found to be admirably suitable for match splits and plywood veneer. The current demand is around 20 lakh tonnes per year and this could only be met by replicating our model all over the State. Therefore, by cultivation of these two, one lakh rupees per acre per year can be ensured for the farmers,” says Dr. Kumaravelu.

Therefore, apart from electricity production from stem, the team plans to establish a dairy unit utilizing the leaf as fodder for cows.

Twin benefit

The cow dung and urine will be recycled to the plantation. Fodder for the free mulch animal scheme announced by the Government can be benefited from this fodder.

This grass is nutritious and relished by cattle and has enhanced milk yield from 1 to 2 litres per day.

The waste biomass and leaves can be used to generate methane gas, similar to gobargas.

The high sugar content of this grass makes it an excellent raw material for the production of 2nd Generation cellulosic biofuels like Ethanol and Butanol.

Farmers income

Dr. Kumaravelu argues that “if such 10 MW green power mills are established in each of the 300 suitable Panchayat blocks by the Government, it could generate 3000 MW of electricity continuously. Farmers can earn a minimum of Rs.75,000 per acre a year.

Willing farmers cultivating the raw material can also be made as shareholders with the power mills to which they supply on the same lines as sugar mills.

If facilitated by the Government this is sure to create a cascading effect on rural development,” he says.

[karkal]

Chennai-based Perfint gets biotech award

Kalam presents award on National Technology Day

Chennai-based health equipment company Perfint Healthcare Corporation has won the Department of Biotechnology's Biotech Product and Process Development and Commercialisation award for this year.

A citation noted that the company was a world leader in planning and targeting solutions for image-guided interventional procedures with emphasis on oncology and pain care.

It pointed out that the company's products, PIGA CT and ROBIO, are used by radiologists around the world for biopsy, drug delivery, ablation, drainage and fine needle aspiration.

“Perfint's newest product MAXIO is set to change the world of interventional oncology. MAXIO will allow clinicians to visually plan, execute and validate ablation procedures on a single system and all in 3D. MAXIO has been designed to make complex, multi-probe ablations simpler, which will help to make these life-saving procedures available to more cancer sufferers than ever before,” the citation said.

The award was presented by the former President, Abdul Kalam, on the occasion of National Technology Day.

Mr. Kalam also presented the Department of Science and Technology's national award for Technology Business Incubators for 2011 to the SIDBI [Small Industries Development Bank of India] Innovation and Incubation Centre at IIT, Kanpur.

[karkal]

Murugappa Group mulls banking foray

Chennai-based diversified Murugappa Group is contemplating starting a bank, provided the regulations favour its three important criteria, one of it being the group having a majority control in the bank like it does in other businesses.

A Vellayan, executive chairman, Murugappa Group, said, “We are interested in starting a bank. If the government opens it up for industrial houses like us, we will apply for the licence. It all depends on how the regulation pans out. When it comes to a bank, the key is the reach and trust, which the group enjoys across the society. The other major criteria should be, just like other businesses in the group, we should have a majority control.”

The Murugappa Group has its origins in 1900 and a majority of its business portfolio mirrors the economy. The businesses include agriculture, industry and financial services.

The group’s Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company has reported a 46 per cent growth in top line at Rs 1,784 crore. The non-banking finance company (NBFC) arm of the group recorded a better-than-industry growth rate with its customer- focussed market approach, both in terms of increased product portfolio and reach in Tier-II and Tier-III centres.

The company is currently focussed on vehicle finance assets and home equity loans. It is also into gold loan business. Aggregate disbursements of the company for the year ended March 31, 2012 was Rs 8,889 crore, as against Rs 5,731 crore in 2010-11, an increase of 55 per cent. Overall, the total assets under management rose 40 per cent year on year to Rs 14,643 crore.

Net profit up 11% in FY12

The Murugappa Group has reported a 10.8 per cent growth in net profit to Rs 1,304 crore for the year ended March 31, 2012, as compared to Rs 1,182 crore in the previous year. The group’s total turnover rose 31 per cent to Rs 22,314 crore. The growth was led by Coromandel International Limited, which reported a 30 per cent growth in turnover to Rs 9,879 crore, followed by Tube Investments of India Limited (Rs 3,866 crore), Carobrundum Universal Limited (Rs 2,057 crore), EID Parry (India) Limited (Rs 2,635 crore), Chola Investment and Finance Company (Rs 1,784 crore), Chola MS General Insurance (Rs 1,347 crore) and others (Rs 745 crore). The group is planning to invest around Rs 1,000 crore in 2012-13. This includes green field plants by TII and Coromandel International. The two companies will invest around Rs 780 for both brown and green field expansions. The other major investments will be by EID Pary (Rs 50 crore), CUMI (Rs 85 crore) and others (Rs 85 crore). The investment will be funded through debt and internal accruals.

[karkal]

Indian households expect inflation to accelerate

[karkal]

Why Oriyas find Chennai warm and hospitable

CHENNAI: On Friday, Vijaykumar Sahu and his wife Mamata were up with the sun. For the couple, along with more than 100 other Oriya daily wage labourers, had to travel from beyond Gummidipoondi to get a glimpse of Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik.

"It's really exciting that he has come down to Chennai. None of us went to work today," said Sahu, smiling. "We celebrate Utkal Dibas every year but this time it has become really special. Sahu was one of the 3,000 Oriyas who crammed the centenary auditorium at the University of Madras. For the community, seeing the chief minister of Tamil Nadu along with the CM of their home state was symbolic of the strong bond the two states share.

"Chennai and its suburbs are home to about two lakh Oriyas," said Santanu Kumar Jena, joint secretary of The Utkal Association of Madras. "We have people from all walks of life, from TN chief secretary Debendranath Sarangi and Chennai police commissioner JK Tripathy to doctors, engineers and a large number of labourers," said Jena, who has been living in Chennai for the last 25 years.

Many Oriyas came down to the city to join the engineering colleges here. "In the 1970s, a lot of young boys came down to Chennai to study as there were hardly any engineering colleges in Odisha," said Dr Purnendu Misra, principal officer and joint director general of the ministry of shipping.

"It is easy to integrate with the society here as people are very accepting and there is not much difference between the two cultures," said Misra. "Some even got married to women here." With plenty of job opportunities in Chennai, many found employment and settled down in a city they found warm and accommodating.

According to old-timers, the link between Chennai and Odisha goes further back. "What we call Odisha today was formerly Utkal and before that Kalinga," said Jena. "The Kalinga Province covered up to Vijayanagaram Province and part of Madras Province, so there is a strong connection. Also, the Gajapati of Puri married Padmavati, Princess of Kancheepuram." Certain pockets in the city are becoming strongholds of the Oriya community. "There is a significant number of Oriyas in Velachery and parts of Nanganallur," said Misra. Naganallur has its own Oriya association.

Vishwanath Debarta, who came down to Chennai in 1988, feels at home here. "My daughter is married to an Oriya, who is settled here," he said. But occasions like these are a time for people like him to remember and honour their roots. "We like to preserve our cultural identity and such events help us keep in touch with our community."

[monkey1]

Originally Posted by karkal

Why Oriyas find Chennai warm and hospitable

This is very disturbing indeed. No wonder it is difficult to find a Tamil speaking person in Chennai' streets nowadays.

[ranga]

Tamils in large number can settle in other states but Tamilnadu is only for tamilians.Excellent narrow minded attitude.Are tamils in TN are so incapable that they are afraid of people from other states coming here and that they elbow out the locals.Don't be apprehensive unlike other states not many outsiders are settling in TN.