Monthly Archives: August 2012

Helping change the world

Nri's / Pio's, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Dr Sandeep Kishore is an everyday guy. Except for the fact that the Hyderabadi has been profiled by Scientific American as one of the nine leading global leaders, alongside former American President Jimmy Carter, himself a Nobel Prize winner (Peace, 2002). So, how did a guy who calls Mehdipatnam home get elevated to such an elite club? Here’s the story of dedication, ambition and a plan for the entire world.

Tell us about your Hyderabad connection..
My parents, Dr Anand Kishore and Dr Lakshmi Kishore are from Mehdipatnam. They studied at Osmania University’s Medical College. When I visited, I gave lectures at the OU and government schools.

What’s your big idea?
For the past three years, I’ve been building a community of youth — now 1100 from 80 countries — to change the course of health in this century.

We are currently focusing on the determinants of the health issues accompanying urbanisation and industrialisation — tobacco, poor diets, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol. The Young Professionals Chronic Disease Network has organised 15 “glocal” youth communities to petition for societal change.

What was the most difficult part of completing a PhD?
A PhD is tough work as you must deal with failure… lots of it. Ninety-nine per cent of your experiments don’t work. But you must persevere. You must keep thinking differently. As Einstein said, “No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.”

What plans do you have for India?
I plan to complete my medical training to become a doctor. The biggest challenge I see are that of chronic diseases. Issues such as depression, diabetes, cancer, heart disease are difficult to tackle — and they strike at how we live, age, work and play. In the Indian context, there is much work to be done on developing a strong system of public health to prevent (rather than just cure) by focusing on the “causes of the causes”. I want to participate in the re-imagining of India.

source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> Tabloid> Glam Sham / by Babli Yadav, DC / August 03rd, 2012

London Olympics: Parupalli Kashyap and Saina Nehwal make history

Records, All, Sports

Parupalli Kashyap and Saina Nehwal.

Parupalli Kashyap created history as he became the first Indian male badminton player to enter the quarter-finals at the Olympics.

Indian badminton has become synonymous with Saina Nehwal, but Kashyap too has caught the eye in London, and on Wednesday, he defeated Sri Lankan Niluka Karunaratne 21-14, 15-21, 21-9.

Later in the day, Saina too made it to the quarter-finals of the women’s singles, with a 21-14, 21-16 victory over Jie Yao.

The world No.5 tired out the Chinese-born Dutch by engaging her in rallies and executed her strokes with perfection in a 40-minute match.

After two easy matches in the group stages, it was a good workout for the 22-year-old, who will take on two-time All England champion Tine Baun of Denmark. Baun progressed after her opponent, Sayaka Sato of Japan, retired.

Before Kashyap, the best performance from an Indian man came at Barcelona 1992, when Dipankar Bhattacharya made it to the pre-quarter finals.

“I cannot express how happy I am,” said the 25-year-old Kashyap at the Wembley Arena.

“It was a very tough match, tougher than what the scores suggest. I am happy that I was able to keep my concentration and focus. I never imagined I would be in the quarter-finals of the Olympics. I am still hoping my parents will be able to come and see me play as they are waiting for their visas.”

Interestingly, Kashyap is not too bothered even as he plays World No.1 Lee Chong Wei (Malaysia) next. “Right now I am not bothered about my opponent. It is the quarter-final of the Olympics and things get much tougher from now on,” he added.

In the first game, it was Niluka who raced to a 7-4 lead with some stinging smashes and delectable drops. Thereafter, Kashyap came into his own with powerful smashes to level the score at 9-all before jumping to a 17-11 lead. He eventually won the game 21-14.

In the second game, Niluka did not give up. Realising that the Indian played at a fast pace, Niluka slowed down the game by engaging the Indian in long rallies.

That resulted in Kashyap making unforced errors. Though the Hyderabadi managed to save eight game points, he went on to lose the game 15-21.

There was no mistaking Kashyap’s superiority in the decider. He stepped up the pace with some scorching smashes and was the master at the net. He opened up an 8-3 lead and then sealed victory at 21-9.

source: http://www.indiatoday.intoday.in / Home> Sports> Olympics 2012> Latest News- London Olympics 2012 / by S. Kannan / London, August 02nd, 2012

SBI loans for entrepreneurs

Business & Economy

JRD Tata Best Entrepreneur award being presented to Bharat Biotech International Ltd. Chairman and Managing Director Krishna M. Ella in Vijayawada on Monday. /  Photo: Raju V. / The Hindu

State Bank of India will sanction loans for deserving entrepreneurs, promised the Assistant General Manager of the Bank S. Jayarami Reddy on Monday.

State Bank of India will sanction loans for deserving entrepreneurs promised the Assistant General Manager of the Bank S. Jayarami Reddy on Monday.

Speaking at the “J.R.D. Tata Memorial Lecture” organised by the J.R.D. Tata Industrial Estate Association in Vijayawada he said that South Indians were generally service oriented and do not take the risks of investing in a business. He opined that it was time this changed and that people take inspiration from persons like J.R.D. Tata, start a business and in turn provide employment to many others. The programme conducted to celebrate the 108 Birth Anniversary of J.R.D. Tata, started off with an address by the Chairman P. Ravi Kumar. He gave a brief introduction of the Association, started in the year 1999, it has 3,000 members at present. He announced that they had applied for Rs.7.7 crore which they plan to utilize for social welfare activities like drains, roads betterment etc.

Former Andhra Pradesh State Minister for Agriculture Vadde Sobhanadreeswara Rao, Chief Guest for the programme spoke on this occasion.

A special award “J.R.D. Tata Best Entrepreneur Award” was given to the Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Biotech International Limited Krishna M.Ella on this occasion. He gave a special lecture where he emphasized the importance and need for more entrepreneurs in India.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by Staff  Reporter> July 31st, 2012

Katrina Kaif unveils new collection at Gitanjali Jewels – Punjagutta showroom

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy
Katrina Kaif, the queen of Bollywood visited Gitanjali Jewels, Punjagutta showroom to unveil the new wedding collection by Nakshatra. Present at the occasion was the Channel partner (Somajiuda) – Mr. Prem Agarwal along with Mr. Karthikeyan Vishnu (VP – Gitanjali Jewellery Retail Ltd).
Gitanjali Jewels Somajiguda showroom showcases the newly launched Nakshatra wedding jewellery collection keeping in mind the upcoming Wedding and festive season.  This collection would be available in all of its 75 showrooms spread across India.
The Showroom also showcases designs and collections that are modern yet contemporary and very elegant, something that would appeal to women of all age groups.
Commenting on the occassion, Bollywood diva & brand ambassador of Nakshatra, Katrina Kaif said, ‘The journey with Gitanjali as a brand ambassador of Nak shatra has been a wonderful experience and I am glad to be here today to unveil the wedding collection by Nakshatra in the city of royalty.
Product range and designs has been the strength of Gitanjali Jewels which offers over 50,000 designs through its vast network of 75 showrooms across India.
Gitanjali Jewels – Somajiguda showroom has completed almost 2 years of serving Hyderabad Nawab  customers with an extensive range of products that are personifications of elegance and grandeur; designed to celebrate the enigma of a woman.
Gitanjali Jewels focuses on Quality, Purity, Variety and Exceptional Customer Service which enhances the jewellery buying experience for the customers. The authenticity of the products is ensured with third party certifications (IGI certification for diamond jewellery and BIS 916 Hallmark for goldjewellery), a result of which the Hyderabadis have been comin g back for more.
Gitanjali Group is th e world’s largest integrated branded jewellery manufacturer-retailer with an annual turnover of over USD 2.5 billion.
The Group pioneered jewellery retail revolution in India by launching Gili way back in 1994. Gitanjali today owns and distributes eight out of the top ten jewellery brands in the country including Gili, Nakshatra, Asmi, D’damas, Sangini, Diya, Nizam & Parineeta.
At an International level, Gitanjali enjoys direct access to the US retail market through 110 high end stores under Samuels Jewelers Inc. which is a specialty retail chain in the US. acquired by the group in 2006.
Some of the famous Gitanjali Brands are endorsed by renowned celebrities like Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif, Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Bipasha Basu, Sonakshi Sinha and Anushka Sharma to name a few.
Today the Group’s activities are spread across the entire value chai n from rough diamond sourcing, cutting, polishing and distribution, and jewellery manufacture, to jewellery branding and retail, as well as global lifestyle brands, in India and abroad.
source: http://www.DiamondNe.ws / Home> Company News / by Pauline / July 31st, 2012

 

Eptisa has been awarded their first project in India

Business & Economy, Science & Technology

The project consists in performing a safety audit for the Hyderabad Metro

Eptisa (in consortium with Info Trans Engineers Pvt. Ltd.) was awarded with their first contract in India consists in carrying out a “Safety Audit for the Hyderabad Metro”. The project was financed by the “Hyberabad Metro Rail Limited” for a budget of 12.954.684 INR (Indian Rupees), equivalent to 184.479,22 Euros.

Hyderabad, the capital city of the Andhra Pradesh state, has one of the fastest growing metros in India. The strategic geographical location of this multilingual cosmopolitan city as well as the pro-active policies of the state government are making of Hyberabad an attractive destination and a flourishing centre for trade and commerce. However without a comfortable and efficient public transportation system, traffic and transportation in Hyderabad become a matter of concern.

The existing public transport in the city is mainly constituted by buses, which are run by Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC). The rapid growth of the city, rising income levels and lack of a good public transport system have resulted in a huge increase in the number of private vehicles, with subsequent consequences such as frequent traffic jams and high pollution levels in the city.

Based on the figures from the Traffic and Transportation surveys carried out by various agencies, the Government of Andhra Pradesh has approved the development of the Hyderabad Metro Rail (MRTS) in three high density traffic corridors covering over 71 km:

  • Corridor I: Miyapur – LB Nagar : 28.87kms; 27 stations.
  • Corridor II: JBS – Falaknuma : 14.78 kms; 16 stations.
  • Corridor III: Nagole – Shilparamam : 27.51 kms; 23 stations.

As part of this project Eptisa will undertake the safety audit of the designs and drawings, the Design Basis Reports (DBRs) and other documents prepared by the concessionaire, L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Ltd (L&TMRHL) and various consultants on safety aspects including the elevated viaduct (flyover-like structure accommodating the tracks), the rail alignment, stations and other elevated structures of the metro rail system.

source: http://www.eptisa.com / Home> News / July 26th, 2012