For the first time in the history of Indian Railway, a woman has been appointed as a guard for goods train, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.
Forty Three-year old D Mohini Kumari was appointed as the woman guard on freight trains by the South Central Railway (SCR) on the other day.
Kumari, a graduate who was appointed a clerk in SCR on compassionate ground in 2006 after the death of her husband, took charge of her new assignment here Friday.
According to railway sources, she qualified for the post of guard in a departmental examination and later underwent training at Secunderabad.
Talking to PTI, Mohini said she is prepared to face any kind of challenge in her new job, where women are rarely appointed.
She advised women to break new grounds and be ready to face challenges in life.
— BERNAMA
source: http://www.bernama.com.my / National News Agency of Malaysia / Home> World> News / by Press Trust of India / Vijayawada – July 20th, 2013
With the completion of one year in the city, Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel is betting big on the online platform to corner business this year.
“At present we get around 25% of our business from the online platform but in the coming six months we are targeting about 30% of the business from the online platform. The idea is to attract the youth as they are increasingly using web based services for their day-to-day activities,” Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel Hyderabad general manager Nishan Silva said, adding, the hotel will also be launching its food and beverage (F&B) app on the android and ios platforms in the next 15 days.
The hotel that was launched in July 2012 achieved breakeven in January this year, he said.
Stating that the hotel draws almost 45% of its business from the F&B segment and the rest from rooms, Silva said that the hotel will host two month long food festival to boost its revenues from the F&B segment.
“We will have a two month long food festivals that will have Maharaja, Bohri and Sizzling South food festival,” director of sales and marketing Pavan Kakar said.
The hotel that has a current occupancy level of about 55%, is also eyeing a good business in the third quarter of the year when major business conferences are set to kick off in the city.
Silva pointed out that the major challenge of running a hotel business in the city was the rising operational cost due to a steep hike in power tariff and shortage of water.
Source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Times of India / Home> Business> India Business / by Swati Rathor, TNN / July 17th, 2013
B. Balagangadhar of Razole in East Godavari and M. Naga Aswini of Kothagudem in Khammam district with the awards.
Kalanta-2013, exhibition and fashion show of handloom varieties, which was held in Hyderabad recently attracted visitors and fashion lovers.. B. Balagangadhar of Razole in East Godavari district and M. Naga Aswini of Kothagudem in Khammam district won the ‘Best Collection of the Year’, ‘Best Embellished Collection’ and ‘Best Collection of Surface Interest’ awards.
Fashion designers Priya Katariyapuri and jewelry designer Suhani Pittie gave away the awards. Balagangadhar and Aswini said they were invited by Priya to Hawaii Islands, USA, to showcase their talent.
Neeta Lallu, popular fashion designer, and Ajitha Reddy of Hamstech have congratulated them.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by Staff Reporter / Rajahmundry – July 17th, 2013
Lanco Hills Technology Park Ltd has signed up with a BPO and technology management services Apollo Health Street.
Lanco Infratech today said its subsidiary has leased 80,000 sq ft of office space in its IT special economic zone (SEZ) at Hyderabad to BPO firm Apollo Health Street.
Lanco Hills Technology Park Ltd has signed up with a BPO and technology management services Apollo Health Street, a group company of US-based Sutherland Global Services for 80,000 sq ft of SEZ space.
“We have entered into our first leasing agreement with Apollo Health Street for 80,000 sq ft of office space in our IT SEZ. Another 1.5 lakh sq ft will be leased in few days time,” Lanco Hills Technology Park CEO S Pochendar said.
The SEZ, with a leasable area of 4 million sq ft, is part of 100 acre project comprising 20 million sq ft area being developed at an investment of Rs 5,000 crore, he added.
Besides SEZ, he said the project comprises of six million sq ft of residential, three million sq ft of non-SEZ office space and seven million sq ft of retail and hospitality.
Commenting on the deal, Lanco Hills Technology Park Vice President D V Prasad said: “We have provided excellent infrastructure which is going to yield rich dividends to companies setting up their operations. It is in the IT hub of Hyderabad, Gachibowli, and will soon emerge as a destination of choice for most of the companies”.
Sutherland Global Services is a global provider of business process and technology management services offering an integrated portfolio of analytics-driven back-office and customer facing solutions that support the entire customer lifecycle.
Sutherland is one of the world’s largest independent BPO company employing over 30,000 professionals.
source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> Companies> News / by Press Trust of India / New Delhi – July 02nd, 2013
Deputy Commissioner of Labour Esuf Shaik and LIC Senior Branch Manager B. Gopi Prasad exchanging MoU papers on implementing insurance scheme for auto drivers, in Vijayawada on Saturday. / Photo: V. Raju / The Hindu
Labour Department inks MoU with LIC of India
For the first time in the State, the Labour Department has introduced insurance facility for auto drivers under ‘Aam Aadmi’ scheme. The Labour officials entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India in this regard on Saturday.
Krishna District In-charge Deputy Commissioner of Labour Esuf Shaik, LIC Senior Branch Manager B. Gopi Prasad and Pilot Project Nodal Officer K. Vijaya Bhaskar Reddy signed on the papers and exchanged them. A total of 3,015 auto drivers would be benefited under the scheme, which would be in force up to one year from June 29, 2013, said Assistant Commissioner of Labour (ACL) D. Anjaneya Reddy.
Speaking on the occasion, the Labour Department officials said about 92 per cent of the people are working in unorganised sectors in the State and the government has proposed to extend welfare schemes for these workers. As part, the State government is implementing insurance scheme for auto drivers, under pilot project in Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh.
The beneficiary has to pay Rs. 100 and equal amount would be borne by the Unorganised Workers Social Security Board. Government will pay Rs. 30,000 for the beneficiaries in case of natural death, Rs. 75,000 for accidental death, Rs. 75,000 for permanent disability and Rs. 37,000 for partial disability.
A scholarship of Rs. 1,200 would be paid per annum to the children studying ninth and tenth classes and intermediate of the auto drivers, who registered under ‘Aam Aadmi’ scheme. Besides, the board is proposing to extend medical expenses, maternity and pension benefits to the members, said Mr. Vijaya Bhaskar Reddy.
The State government has identified about 47 professions, which come under unorganised sector. Plans are afoot to extend the scheme to drivers, mechanics and cleaners who are in transport department soon. The implementation of ‘Aam Aadmi’ Scheme in Vijayawada was a success, said Mr. Anjaneya Reddy.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by Staff Reporter / June 30th, 2013
Tailor Sheikh Sattar in his mobile tailoring unit in the foreground and also seen is Syed Baji in his mobile unit on the Patamata High School Road in Vijayawada. / Photo: V. Raju / The Hindu
If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old, said Austrian-born American management consultant Peter F. Drucker. The duo K. Syed Baji and Sheik Sattar do not have any idea who was Peter F. Drucker and also never came across the management guru’s teachings and quotes.
Tailors by profession, the duo appears to follow Drucker’s quote in its spirit in real life unknowingly. Both tailors by profession, they have moved away from the stereotyped operation from shop to mobile platforms. They are tailors on the move. Penury forced them to innovate, said Syed Baji. I managed a tailoring shop for about 15 years, but mounting establishment cost such as power bills, material cost and salaries forced me to close down my shop, he said.
After closing the shop, Syed built a covered trolley with foldable doors on all four sides and set up his sewing machine on it. He parks his mobile tailoring unit on the High School Road near Patamata Ryhtu Bazaar and operates on a daily basis from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
They specialise in alteration and do not take up stitching of new clothes as the space does not permit this task, said Sattar.
The business model was simple, the duo point out. “Women come to the ryhtu bazaar and before entering the bazaar they give us the clothes that need to be altered and collect them back on return.
“This way they save time and we earn our livelihood,” said Syed.
On an average we chip in about Rs.300 to Rs.500 on a daily basis and that is sufficient to keep the fire burning at home, he added. While Syed set up his mobile unit about four years ago, Sattar’s venture is just one-year old. Syed has two daughters whom he got married and a son who works at a star hotel in the city.
Sattar has a school-going daughter and a son. “I want them to take up higher studies of their choice and for which I would not mind working a few extra hours a day. The alteration business has no season and the flow is good throughout the year,” observed Sattar.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by Sumit Bhattarcharjee / July 18th, 2013
“In a way, the accident made me realise that my purpose was to serve people”- G. Janaki Sharmila (left). “I do feel a sense of security in this service, and a sense of responsibility to handle the challenges” – East Zone DCP R. Jayalaksmi (right).
Fighting cyber crime
Tech-savvy additional DCP of Central Crime Station, Cyberabad, G. Janaki Sharmila, cracks down on cyber criminals and helps women in peril.
The absolute highlight of G. Janaki Sharmila’s career was when, as Kovvur Deputy Superintendent of Police, she went to Mumbai and rescued 21 girls, including six minors, from a redlight area along with CID officials.
After coming to Hyderabad as additional DCP of Cyberabad Central Crime Station, Sharmila is today rescuing girls and women targeted by cyber criminals. She has also cracked down on many cases of economic offences and other cyber crimes.
An MBA graduate from Sri Venkateswara University, Sharmila was an employee in the Andhra Pradesh Women’s Co-operative Finance Corporations before her fateful entry into the police department. A tragic car accident in 2004 near Nagarjunasagar had claimed her 10-month-old daughter and left her and her family injured. That was when she decided to serve the people as a cop.
“I always had great respect for the police department. In a way, the accident made me realise that my purpose was to serve people,” she says.
Sharmila then cracked the APPSC group exams in 2007. She served in Kovvur as DSP and Rajahmundry as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) before being transferred as the first additional DCP of CCS in Cyberabad. When she took charge as OSD in Rajahmundry, notorious rowdy gangs were at war. With continuous efforts, Sharmila and her team rounded up the history-sheeters and brought peace to the area.
The tech-savvy cop with a B.Tech degree, Janaki also supervises major cases in which women are victims. She thinks that any challenges that are faced by women police officers can be dealt with if they are confident. “My family and higher officials always have given me that confidence,” she says.
Right in middle of all the action
From factionists, kidnappers and rioters, East Zone DCP R. Jayalaksmi has seen it all.
R. Jayalakshmi came in as Deputy Commissioner of Police of East Zone, Hyderabad, which was the hotbed of Telangana agitation last year. And even before she could adjust to the new office, she was thrown into the thick of the tragic Dilsukhnagar twin blasts too.
She was also constantly rushing to Osmania University and EFLU where T-agitations and student suicides were causing chaos. Despite agitators threatening to rock the two famous campuses, she and her team stood firm and soon took the situation under control.
A science graduate from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Jayalakshmi, a native of Selam, was determined to crack the Civil Services exam without a “push” from her family. “I realised that IPS and IAS were much-sought-after government services and it was entirely my decision to write the Civil Services exam and then to go for the police service,” she says.
The IPS officer of the 2006 batch, who has been assistant Superintendent of Police in Kadapa, Siddipet and Ongole, thinks that the most conspicuous matter for a woman police officer is the sense of protection she enjoys. “I do feel a sense of security in this service, and a sense of responsibility to handle the challenges. These facts motivate me in the career,” she points out.
Before being transferred as DCP in the city in November 2012, she was Superintendent of Police in Krishna district. During her tenure, she had to deal with factionists in Kadapa, and when she was transferred to Siddipet in 2009, the area was chaotic with the ongoing Telangana agitation.
Jayalaksmi thus had the pulse of Telangana, Rayalaseema and Andhra before she took charge in the city.
When she was SP of Krishna district, she made headlines for her stunning performance of hunting down an abductor who had kidnapped a woman medico, and rescuing the victim within 24 hours.
As the only woman Zonal DCP in Hyderabad, Jayalakshmi believes that a determined woman can fulfil her professional and personal duties with ease. But she agrees that a woman cop has to face bigger challenges.
“Working women, especial women police officials, may face tougher challenges sometimes than their male counterparts,” Jayalakshmi confesses, adding that she handles such challenges with the support extended by her higher officials and colleagues.
source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Lifestyle> Offbeat / by DC / July 01st, 2013
Ambassador of Thailand Pisan Manawapat, along with a team of airline officials, would visit Vizag on July 13.
The Vizag Development Council will host the delegation and a hold a meeting with all the leading tour operators, hotels, Visakhapatnam Air Travellers Association, airport officials of Airport Authority of India, Visakhapatnam.
The ambassador’s visit has been scheduled in the wake of Union minister D. Purandeswari’s appeal to him and officials of Thai Airways and Thai Smile Airlines to start a direct flight from Visakhapatnam to Bangkok as it can promote trade, commerce and tourism.
source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> News> Current Affairs / DC / June 27th, 2013
The Gurudwara at the entrance of the Gurunanak Colony in Vijayawada. ./ Photo: Ch. Vijaya Bhaskar / The Hindu
Visitors to Gurunanak Colony are welcomed by tidy roads, greenery, and serenity
Many new colonies have come up on the Ring Road in the city, but Gurunanak Colony has crated a niche for itself. There is no name for the road from Ramesh Hospital junction to Autonagar, but people tend to call it Gurunanak Road.
A Gurudwara at the very entrance of the colony provides a pleasant ambience. The neat and tidy roads, greenery, and serenity not only enthral the visitors but also evoke a thought that they too should have a house in a colony like this.
Eye-catching
The humble Punjabis don’t claim credit for the eye-catching development. Despite being one of the posh areas of the city, strikingly, it doesn’t have a private security.
“Development is possible just because of the cooperation from the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC), the police, and the State government. We would not have achieved it had there been no cooperation from officials. The colony doesn’t require any security, as the police vigil is enough,” the residents say.
Gurudwara president Kanwaljit Singh recalls that the residents’ welfare society has earmarked half-acre for a swimming pool, which is presently maintained by the VMC. They have plans to develop it further and bring it under society management.
With a vision
The society also has plans to prohibit smoking in the colony, he says. The foundation for the colony was laid way back in 1980s. Sikh leaders had a vision that every member of the community in the city should have a roof over their head. The leaders, however, were not narrow in their plans. They provided an opportunity for others too such as Sindhis and Marwaris. Their broadmindedness was not limited to it. They even earmarked a place for construction of a temple in the colony.
While the Gurudwara situated at the entrance welcomes the visitors, the Ramalayam at the other end of the road marks the boundary of the colony. There are 65 plots in the colony and, barring a few open plots, most of them have dazzling houses.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by G.V.R. Subba Rao / July 15th, 2013
The group’s Hyderabad facility (called Process Centre Staples) has a capacity to handle 10,000 tonne per month.
Diversified company Reliance Industries Limited’s retail business arm, Reliance Retail , is confident of meeting the growing demand for quality staple consumables in the country. In this regard, the company had invested huge amounts in the retail back-end infrastructure, said a senior official at the company’s Hyderabad processing facility.
The official said their processing centres, currently numbering three at Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Pataudi (Gurgaon), equipped with in-house laboratories and latest equipment have been ensuring safe, clean and unadulterated staples with a long shelf-life for its 13 million consumers country-wide.
“As part of its business model, the company had been procuring quality foodgrains and pulses from pre-qualified vendors, mostly local farmers at competitive prices, in accordance with the standards set by the Food Safety Standards Authority of India and the company’s product specifications,” he said.
The group’s Hyderabad facility (called Process Centre Staples), with a capacity to handle 10,000 tonne per month and more than 120,000 tonne per annum staples and pulses is catering to the entire South India, Maharashtra (including Mumbai) and Odisha.
The company’s internal quality processing checks include a five-stage process, encompassing bulk supply by vendor, product quality checks, product fumigation, cleaning, upgrading and packaging.
The retail food arm with 1,500 stores spanning 130 cities across India also sells products like Reliance milk, vegetables, FMCG goods of other major brands.
source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> Companies> News / by BS Reporter / Chennai-Hyderabad June 26th, 2013
