School alumni make their promise good

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Inspiration /Positive News and Features, Records, All
MLA P.G.V.R. Naidu unveiling a plaque to mark the inauguration of a stage at ZP Girls' High School at Gopalapatnam on Wednesday.
MLA P.G.V.R. Naidu unveiling a plaque to mark the inauguration of a stage at ZP Girls’ High School at Gopalapatnam on Wednesday.

The resolve of SSC 1974 batch students of Gopalapatnam ZP High School has quickly materialised into a permanent asset for the Girls High School.

The batch announced that it would create an asset for the school during its golden jubilee in February 2015. The golden jubilee was celebrated for three days with Visakhapatnam West MLA P.G.V.R. Naidu, being himself an alumnus of the school, taking a lot of interest and organising the event in a big way.

Though the contributions of 1974 batch were then only Rs. 70,000, they committed themselves to spending Rs 1 lakh. When they had approached headmistress Swarnalatha on the amenities lacking, she wanted a permanent stage to be constructed.

However, when work was taken up the cost for the stage with roof rose to Rs. 2 lakh. Pursuing the work a few old students had begun it and completed it in a few months.

Inaugurating the stage on Wednesday, Mr. Naidu said the fruits of golden jubilee were tangible much quicker than expected. He hoped other batches of old students would follow the example of 1974 batch that was expressing their love for the alma mater after a full 40 years.

Several old students participated.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Visakhapatnam / by G. V. Prasada Sarma / Visakhapatnam – July 23rd, 2015

Civils Ranker Felicitated

Education, Records, All

Vijayawada  :

Venkata Ramakrishna Teja, an alumni of Narasaraopeta Engineering College in Guntur district, who secured 66th rank in the Civil Services exam was felicitated by the college management Saturday.

Teja had completed Computers Science engineering from the college 2009. A native of Chilakaluripet of Guntur district, he was an active and hardworking student.

Speaking on the occasion, Teja said students from rural background can also achieve success in the civils exams.

College chairman Mittapalli Koteswara Rao said the college is proud of Teja, who will now be an IAS officer.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Express News Service / July 12th, 2015

At 80, he still paddles

Inspiration /Positive News and Features, Sports
Vizag's octogenerian paddler D. Kesava Rao in action at the Futureall 1st AP State Table Tennis Championship at Vijayawada Club on Sunday. Photo: CH. Vijaya Bhaskar
Vizag’s octogenerian paddler D. Kesava Rao in action at the Futureall 1st AP State Table Tennis Championship at Vijayawada Club on Sunday. Photo: CH. Vijaya Bhaskar

D. Kesava Rao, a retired railway employee with the South Eastern Railways, has been passionately playing table tennis for more than five decades and he is the oldest paddler playing in the Futureall 1 Andhra Pradesh Veterans Table Tennis Championship.

Weighing just over 50 kg, the pencil-thin octogenarian paddler is a cynosure for all at the Vijayawada Club. This veteran table tennis player from Vizag is yet to wear spectacles and he is not stricken by either blood pressure or the dreaded diabetes.

Meet D. Kesava Rao, a retired railway employee with the South Eastern Railways, who has been passionately playing table tennis for more than five decades and he is the oldest paddler playing in the Futureall 1 Andhra Pradesh Veterans Table Tennis Championship.

Fit as a fiddle, Mr. Rao is a regular feature at the Port Stadium and at the Railway Institute at Visakhapatnam. He fondly interacts with the sub junior players, passing on his expertise and experience to the next generation.

“I am healthy owing to table tennis. For more than five decades I am sweating it out for three hours. In fact I travel with a TT racquet where I go,” says the eternal-lover of ping pong.

Mr. Rao, as a youngster broke his hand while playing football and he was forced to look for a safer game. “The noise the ball made on a table at the Railway Institute drew me closer to the game and from them on we (table tennis) are together,” says the former signal and telecommunications employee.

Mr. Rao is an inspiring face of the Vizag table tennis circuit and he has represented South Eastern Railways in several inter-railway championships. “I won several medals in the veteran championships. I also took part the Asian Veteran Championship at Chinese Taipei in 2007,” he recollects.

Mr. Rao is a worried man when it comes to the unhealthy habits among the youngsters. “Youngsters must learn how to sweat it out it in a playground. They should take up some game and should burn calories. In fact the eye sight will improve by playing some game or the other.”

The ageing process is yet to douse the spirit of the paddler as he bounces on ball to unleash a forehand smash with the enthusiasm of a teenager.

“I am an aggressive player and I believe that a ball is meant to be hit.”

The affable veteran preferred the old format of 21-points as he felt it gave the player an opportunity to bounce back. “The 11-point format is ruthless. If you lose the initial momentum then you are in trouble.”

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by J.R. Shridharan / Vijayawada – July 13th, 2015

Goddess Gayatri Devi’s footprint discovered

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All

 

Vedic pandit Telakapalli Raghurama Sarma applying turmeric near Sangameswara Temple in Kurnool district.
Vedic pandit Telakapalli Raghurama Sarma applying turmeric near Sangameswara Temple in Kurnool district.

A footprint of Sri Gayatri Devi, who, according to scriptures, appeared in the form of Gomatha to sage Viswamitra during his penance in Tretayugam, was discovered in the Viswamitra cave atop a hillock on the banks of Krishna at the Sri Sangameswara temple in Atmakur forest division in Kurnool district.

Quoting the ‘Skanda Puranam’, Telakapalli Raghurama Sarma, Vedic pandit of Sri Sangameswara temple, said he had discovered the footprint, applied turmeric to it and offered prayers to the idol of Sri Rama in the cave.

Recounting history, Sarma said the government had initially proposed the construction of an anicut for the Srisailam project at Siddheswaram in 1948, but subsequently built the dam at Srisailam in 1963. “As many as 100 villages were submerged following the construction of the project,” he added.

As water depleted in the reservoir this year, the footprint surfaced in the cave, Sarma said. On sighting the footprint on a stone near Chajratheertham, the pandit applied turmeric on it improving its visibility.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Telangana / by Special Correspondent / Kurnool – July 12th, 2015

Expo of Coins at Bank Anniversary

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy

Visakhapatnam  :

The exhibition of artefacts, old coins and stamps of various countries, organised by the Sri Kanakamahalakshmi Co-operative Bank Limited at Akkayyapalem here received good response.

On the bank’s 16th anniversary, the management organised the expo by displaying various artefacts and a large number of  vintage items.

Bank CEO K Syam Kishore explained the various schemes.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Express News Service / July 11th, 2015

Overwhelming Response to Art Expo

Arts, Culture & Entertainment
A family has a look at the paintings on display at an art exhibition organised by the Vijayawada Art Society at the Culture Centre in Vijayawada on Thursday | P Ravindra Babu
A family has a look at the paintings on display at an art exhibition organised by the Vijayawada Art Society at the Culture Centre in Vijayawada on Thursday | P Ravindra Babu

Vijayawada : 

Art is not a kaleidoscope of colours, but an expression of deeper feeling and sensitivities on different aspects of life. It is unveiling an emotion of the artist on the canvas. A group of artists have displayed their masterpieces at the Culture Centre of Vijayawada, which drew a good response from art-lovers in the city.

Around 500 art-lovers, including about 200 schoolchildren, have visited the group show by Vijayawada Art Society, that concluded on Thursday. The five-day exhibition has showcased some select  masterpieces of art by around 30 artists.

The art expo, which had paintings done in various media including water colours, oil paints and pastels was on different themes. Some were traditional and some modern, but each and every one of them had held the attention of the visitors. One of the painting at the show was done by Vemula Kameswara Rao, the 94-year-old artist, revered by art community in the region as grand old man of paintings.

The artists, who had their works displayed at the art  expo included N Babu Rao, K Gandhi,  A Appa Rao, A Sunil Kumar, A Rambabu, NS Sarma, M Syama Sundara Rao, A Giridhar, Mallik and several others. They hailed from different places from across the state and also from Hyderabad. Art and the desire to promote the art in the new capital of the State, which had always been the cultural capital of the region has brought them together.

“It has given me an intense satisfaction to have the art of several artists displayed at one place. It not just exposes the great effort put in by the artists in their works, but also inspires the budding talent to pursue art,” said A Giridhar, general secretary of Vijayawada Art Society. He said it is the beginning and in future more such shows will be held in Vijayawada.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Express News Service / July 10th, 2015

First village museum to come up at Mukkollupadu

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All
Local residents collecting objects of historical importance at Mokkollupadu.— Photo: T. Appala Naidu
Local residents collecting objects of historical importance at Mokkollupadu.— Photo: T. Appala Naidu

The School of Planning and Architecture (SPA), Vijayawada, in support of the IIT-Mumbai’s Design and Innovation Centre is developing the country’s first village museum at Mukkollupadu of Nuzvid mandal in Krishna district.

The villagers, led by Vijayawada Police Commissioner A.B. Venkateswara Rao, on Sunday collected a range of sculptures and other artefacts lying in and around the village to preserve them at the museum. The historically important remains collected for the museum include those belonging to the period between the 2nd century B.C (Pre-Satavahana period) and the 6th Century AD.

“India’s first participatory village museum will be built and opened for public by the end of August. The villagers have started collection of historical important relics and statues on Sunday,” SPA-V Director Professor N. Sridharan told The Hindu .

“Enthusiasm among the locals to realise the dream of developing the museum is inspiring us,” added Mr. Sridharan and his team.

The Mukkollupadu Panchayat authorities have spared a piece of land for the museum, in which locals have assembled several sculptures found at a burial ground belonging to the Palaeolithic period.

Mr. Venkateswara Rao, who adopted the village, monitored the task of assembling of a few red-stone sculptures at the proposed museum site on Sunday.

“We will be geo-tagging the sculptures and maintaining a data and history of the relics as a part of conservation and promotion of the local history,” Mr. Venkateswara Rao told The Hindu .

The SPA-V experts, who are designing the museum, will also welcome the Nuzvid Veena makers to put their works at the museum to revive the art form from its slow death.

India’s first participatory village museum will be built and opened for public by the end of August.

N. Sridharan / SPA-V Director

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by T. Appala Naidu / Mukkollupadu (Krishna) / July 07th, 2015

Centre recognises students’ start-up firm

Business & Economy, Inspiration /Positive News and Features

The Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs has recognised a start-up company, Runway Labz Private Limited, started by students of the Aditya Institute of Technology and Management-Tekkali, as the youngsters could successfully begin training programmes in Robotics and Embedded Systems for the schoolchildren.

The students of the college have also started other start-up companies as such as Heartnote, Flashmart, Me-Developers, Donors4U, Indian Springs, PCNM Tutorials and Indian Automation with the support of the State government which has been promoting start-up programmes as part of developing engineering graduates as entrepreneurs.

AITAM College director V.V. Nageswara Rao said that great personalities like Ratan Tata were investing in start-up companies to encourage the youngsters who began new companies with innovative thoughts.

“Flashmart start-up concentrates on local business and Heartynote social media website aims to record all the memorable events. These new start-ups are expected to be recognised by the Union government very shortly,” he added.

Principal of the college K.V. Madhu Sahu and Leadership Foundation head P. Sai Vijay said that the new ideas of the students have been encouraged by setting up incubation centre in the college. “Academic knowledge has to be converted as entrepreneurial skills. So, start-up companies will make them as business leaders in future,” Mr. Madhu Sahu said.

The college management has decided to provide more financial assistance to the students to do more research on innovative thoughts and converting them as start-up companies.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by Staff Reporter / Srikakulam – July 08th, 2015

Bhattam Srirama Murthy passes away

Leaders
Bhattam Srirama Murthy was responsible for getting better compensation package for VSP-displaced persons.
Bhattam Srirama Murthy was responsible for getting better compensation package for VSP-displaced persons.

Former Minister, MP, and freedom fighter Bhattam Srirama Murthy passed away at a private hospital here on Monday. He was ailing for some time. He was 89 and is survived by a daughter and a son.

Bhattam Srirama Murthy was a politician known for his shrewdness and taking on big leaders and running long battles with a few of his contemporaries.

He was a good speaker, a well-read man, and a writer. He also worked on the desk for some newspapers in his early days.

Bhattam Srirama Murthy was initially with the Socialist Party and later joined the Congress. He was elected to the Assembly four times. He was Minister three times. He was elected to the Lok Sabha from Visakhapatnam on the Telugu Desam ticket in 1984 at a time the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant was taking shape. He later went back to the Congress.

He was responsible for appointing M.S. Subbulakshmi official State singer and also of the TTD. He was born at Dharmavaram in Vizianagaram district on May 12, 1926.

He was State general secretary of the Socialist Party in 1957 and later joined the Congress. He was elected to the Assembly from Vizianagaram from 1957 and 1962 and from Parawada in 1972 and 1978. Later, he joined the TDP and was elected to the Lok Sabha.

Bhattam’s last rites were performed late in the afternoon with State honours.

MLC M.V.S. Sarma, MLA P.V.G.R. Naidu, former MLAs Dronamraju Srinivasa Rao and S.A. Rehaman, former Mayor Sabbam Hari, CPI(M) leaders Ch. Narasinga Rao, K. Lokanadham, and G. Ganga Rao, president of Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisations of AP and Telangana G.S. Chalam, and a large number of people visited Bhattam’s residence and paid floral tributes to his mortal remains.

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, president of YSRC Y.S Jaganmohan Reddy, Minister for Panchayati Raj Ch. Ayyanna Patrudu (in a statement from the U.S.) and HRD Minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao, MP T. Subbarami Reddy, and others and organisations like the Uttarandhra Journalists’ Front mourned the death of Bhattam Srirama Murthy.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> Cities> Visakhapatnam / by Special Correspondent / Visakhapatnam – July 07th, 2015

Jain memorial being planned at Konakondla

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, World Opinion

With the State government refusing to spend any funds on researching further into the Jain inscriptions at Konakondla and develop the village into a tourist attraction, the Bharat Varsheeya Digambara Jain Thirthakshetra Committee (BVDJTC) has come forward to develop the same spending crores of rupees.

A congregation of over a hundred people belonging to the Jain community at the village in the Vajrakaruru mandal of the district has decided to build a memorial in the name of Acharya Kondakunda besides the construction of a residential vidyapeeth (a place of learning) to teach, research and propagate his teachings.

Speaking to The Hindu , Mr R.V. Chakravarthi, credited with finding out these Jain religious places almost five decades ago in Konakondla, said that Acharya Kondakunda, who wrote the Jain religious texts — Pachastikayasara, Pravachanasara, Samayasara, Niyamasara and Barasanuvekkha — was also the author of the famous Tamil treatise ‘Tirukkural’, otherwise known to be written by famous Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar.

“Since Kondakunda, also known as Padmanandi, born in this village (Konakondla) was a Digambara, of no less a stature than that of the famous Gomata in Shravanabelagola in Karnataka, he sent his disciple Tiruvalla Nayanar to present the treatise to saints including that of the famous Avvaiyar of Sangam period, who mistook Tiruvalla Nayanar to be the author of the treatise,” said Mr Chakravarthi, speaking to a rapt audience at Konakondla.

The Bharat Varsheeya Digambara Jain Thirthakshetra Committee decides to build a memorial in the name of Acharya Kondakunda besides the construction of a residential vidyapeeth (a place of learning) to teach, research and propagate his teachings at the village

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by V.K. Rakesh Reddy / Anantapur – July 07th, 2015