Seventy per cent of the city’s population are non-vegetarians and there are nearly 3,000 retail meat shops to cater to their needs – these include 960 mutton shops, 681 beef shops, 1,077 dressed chicken outlets and 241other outlets which sell eggs, pork and fish.

Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) Commissioner Somesh Kumar revealed this during the seventh Mayors conference on Friday.

He said that simultaneous modernisation of all the five slaughter houses were taken up at a cost of Rs.69.24 crore, including a rendering plant for solid waste treatment.

Work on the fifth abattoir at Jiaguda was postponed due to delay in getting clearance from the Pollution Control Board. Mayor Majid Hussain requested Joint Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries (FPI), Government of India, Siraj Hussain, to release funds for the Jiaguda project.

Mr. Siraj Hussain regretted that no State Government had come forward to seek grants available under the central government scheme to modernise private meat shops and urged the Mayor to encourage private slaughter houses to make use of the grants for modernisation.

“I will take up the issue with private meat shop owners,” the Mayor said and added that the new abattoirs will not cause any hike in prices and also ensure livelihoods are not affected.

A report on ‘Greening of meat and poultry processing Sector in India’ was released and MoUs were signed by the National Meat & Poultry Processing Board with the Sri Venkateshwara University, Tirupati, and the National Research Centre on Meat, Hyderabad, during the meeting.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Staff Reporter / Hyderabad – March 01st, 2014

Services of former trade union leader of VPT recalled

The concept of development had been redefined by former trade union leader of Visakhapatnam Port Trust Abdul Rahman, who passed away 15 years ago.

But his selfless contributions to the port employees in many forms were something to be remembered for a lifetime, senior journalist and editor of monthly magazine ‘Veekshanam’ N. Venugopal has said here on Sunday.

Recalling the expertise of Abdul Rahman on the occasion of his 15 death anniversary at an endowment lecture on the theme ‘Development and its alternate perspectives’ hosted by Abdul Rahman Memorial Committee here at Visakhapatnam Public Library, he said: “Development per se doesn’t have any relevance if it is not in line with people’s welfare. In the modern day context, the definition of development has taken a new dimension and is often confined to individual’s growth in the form of assets and other privileges. However, for Abdul Rahman it was beyond personal and professional preferences.”

His associates and others recalled that Rahman dedicated his life in service to society.

Several political and societal issues were discussed.

Former Union Energy Secretary E.A.S. Sarma highlighted how people’s views should never be ignored in a democratic country like ours. He said that before setting up any unit, it was important to draft policies in an inclusive manner.

“It was a privilege to work under the leadership of Abdul Rahman.

Till his last days, his focus was always on employees’ welfare. He was an epitome of hard work and perseverance who had led by example,” said convener of the committee P.V. Ramana.

With the first annual event inaugurated by former Mayor D.V. Subba Rao, committee members said that the annual feature will have experts speak on different subjects that would have a positive impact on society.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Visakhapatnam / by Staff Reporter / Visakhapatnam – February 17th, 2014

With the industry of film making in India opening up to more and more independent directors who think outside the box, film schools have become coveted of late. And with studying abroad adding a good cultural mix to one’s repertoire, foreign schools have come knocking on our doors as well.

In an effort to build on India-UK collaborations, the GREAT Britain Roadshow was conducted recently by the British Deputy High Commission, and the London Film School (LFS) was a part of the bouquet of opportunities presented. With at least a tenth of their annual film releases being Indian, the effort only seems natural.

Pointing out the importance of collaborating with other countries not just through virtual platforms, Kate Hughes, head of marketing, LFS, says, “I think the phenomena of learning from other markets is really fantastic. One can interact virtually to a certain extent but it is a smart move to bring people together for face-to-face communication.”

India and UK, as it turns out, already share a connect with quite a few Indian film makers having enrolled in their school. Writer-director and co-producer of Land Gold Women, Avantika Hari (who won the National Film Award for best feature film), writer-director of Malayalam movie Manjadikuru, Anjali Menon and Anu Menon, director of the Bollywood movie London, Paris, New York are all alumni of LFS.

“We aim to chart out plans for exploring the collaboration on the lines of co-production, sharing of technology, unexplored locations, and most importantly we are interested in the amazing story ideas from Bollywood,” further explains Kate.

So why London Film School one might ask, and Kate promptly replies that formal training is important for those looking at traversing lesser explored terrain. With over 25 years spanning corporate affairs, international sales and distribution of films, the lady speaks from experience.

Exhaustive training

The two-year filmmaking course offered by LFS, one of the oldest film schools of UK, appears promising as students are encouraged to test the waters and ‘learn from their own failures.’

Students make a minimum of six films and with each passing semester, the difficulty level is increased to make it more challenging. The graduation film can be of any budget, any length and shot anywhere in the world.

“We are not interested in teaching students to make a bunch of commercial romantic flicks; we encourage them to think outside the box and make movies about culture, societies and so on,” says Kate.

Also, while graduating, one is usually focused only on the creative part of the movie making and a student seldom thinks about the other variables of filmmaking. However, when they leave the school, they need some extra skills like pitching a project to financiers or producers.

“These too are taught at LFS in the form of various courses,” says Kate, adding that the focus at LFS is to make students industry-ready.

Behind-the-scenes

Although, about 70 per cent of the students walk in wanting to be writer-directors, they don’t just learn to write or direct, they learn all the crafts required for filmmaking. It is the multidisciplinary way of teaching that gives students at the school the extra edge.

“I love films but I know am not a maker. So, I get great satisfaction in making sure that creative work gets an audience,” she says.

However, knowing the skills and graduating from a top-notch school doesn’t set one up for success. The key for such a career which deals with a lot of post-production as well is perseverance, informs Kate, as each film differs from the other, making it tricky to identify financiers, the right crew and the market.

Filmmaking is not just about writing and directing, there are avenues which can be taken up only when one knows their calling.

“And most importantly, you need to really believe in what you are doing,” the marketing head stresses.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Ayesha Minhaz – Hyderabad / February 17th, 2014

Hyderabad :

The tourism department is mulling a slew of measures to resuscitate the Night Bazaar ( Shilpa Sandhya Vedika) at Shilparamam which has failed to attract denizens even after two years of operation.

According to official sources, the department is planning to improve footfalls and occupancy of stalls by keeping the bazaar open till 1 am on weekdays and 3 am on weekends, for which Cyberabad police has given its nod. Presently, the bazaar is officially slated to operate till 12 am on all days. However, many stalls close by 10 pm due to lack of patronage.

“The bazaar was set to remain open till 3 am when it was envisaged. However, it could not remain open as we did not get police clearance. Now the Cyberabad police have given its nod to keep it open till 3 am on weekends,” an official said, adding that a proposal for a police outpost was mooted and a place has already been earmarked by the tourism department.

The department also appointed an officer on special duty (OSD) to manage daily affairs of the bazaar. An order that was released earlier this week said that the officer has been entrusted with the responsibility for transforming the bazaar into a “happening place.” “Plans are being drawn up to improve arrivals at the bazaar in a couple of months,” said V Madhusudan, who was appointed as OSD at the night bazaar.

It was also learnt that the tourism department plans to organize cultural programmes to attract crowds, largely from the IT hubs of Madhapur, Gachibowli and surrounding areas.

Officials added that tenders for several stalls will be recalled in the coming days as many bidders backed out due to lack of demand for the stalls. There are 100 stalls, organized in four theme-based categories which largely deal in apparel, handicrafts and food services. Sources said as food stalls account for the maximum number of unoccupied stalls, efforts are on to renegotiate terms with existing bidders. The bazaar was planned in 2006 with an outlay of Rs 11 crore but took nearly five years to be completed at a cost of Rs 25 crore.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / TNN / February 01st, 2014