AP govt unveils policy for life sciences sector

Business & Economy, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

The Andhra Pradesh government today unveiled an exclusive policy for the life sciences sector aiming at USD 13.5 billion market by 2019 with an emphasis on biotechnology, medical devices, bio-services, pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals.

“This policy will lead to Rs 20,000 crore of new investment and skilled employment opportunity to 50,000 people besides augmenting exports to Rs 60,000 crore by 2019,” the policy that was unveiled during the inaugural session of ‘BioAsia-2014’ said.

The major initiative of the policy is to declare lifesciences sector as an industrial category with a set of steps that will ease compliance of procedures through single window system and provides power at industrial tariff which are hitherto being levied commercial tariff.

Providing uninterrupted power supply for life saving drugs is also one of the steps in the policy, it said.

As a part of infrastructure development, the policy envisages certain projects which are critical for the development of the sector under PPP mode such as Vivarium, vaccine testing facility, animal quarantine and bio-security facility, medical devices park, dedicated life sciences clusters in the form of Genome Valley, parks and institutions, it further said.

K Pradeep Chandra, principal secretary (industries), said that with initiatives mentioned in the policy, the state will become a major attraction for the life sciences industry in the coming years.

source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> PTI Stories> National> News / by Press Trust of India / Hydreabad – February 17th, 2014

Teen fish-seller looks to conquer the waves

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All, Sports
Nikhil Kumar at his shop selling fish./ The Hindu
Nikhil Kumar at his shop selling fish./ The Hindu

Fifteen-year-old S. Nikhil Kumar, who took to sailing three years ago, is back from Hong Kong after a training stint under renowned Polish sailing coach Marek Nostitz Jackowski

Fifteen-year-old S. Nikhil Kumar has made rapid strides in the sport of sailing since he took it up about three years ago on the waters of the Hussainagar Lake. His family is in the business of selling fish and when he is not studying or sailing his boat, he too puts in his share of handling the household chores which includes selling fish.

Recently Nikhil had the privilege, along with a few other boys from India, to go to Hong Kong to attend a sailing course conducted by Marek Nostitz Jackowski, the well-known Polish sailing coach based there.

Marek had come to Hyderabad a few months ago following an invitation by Suheim Sheikh, founder of the Yacht Club of Hyderabad. On that occasion Nikhil’s skills in handling his craft had caught the eye of this experienced coach.

Marek had asked Nikhil to come over to Hong Kong for further coaching and recently Nikhil managed to make the trip.

The training was provided free by the coach and YCH paid other expenses. It turned out to be a very exciting and valuable experience for this young lad from Hyderabad.

“Marek sir provided me with very good advice. I was among a group of 16 sailors from different countries. Our coach put us through some tough sailing exercises on the water. Every day we trained for about seven hours. The way he trained us was an eye opener to me in many ways. After my trip, I can truly say that I have emerged a far better sailor and I am sure I will do even better in the days to come,” says Nikhil.

Nikhil Kumar during a sailing session. / The Hindu
Nikhil Kumar during a sailing session. / The Hindu

High on confidence

“Sailing in the sea was quite a different experience from sailing on the Hussainsagar Lake which is an inland venue. Coping with wind speeds, changes and shifts and also handling boats under simulated competitions gave me a lot of confidence in my own abilities. Now I am sure I will do well in the national meets that I am planning to take part in, during the coming year,” Nikhil says.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Abhijit Sen Gupta / Hyderabad – November 20th, 2013

CITY MUSINGS : Naye Masjid a point of confluence in Machilipatnam

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All
A view of Naye Maszid at Rajpet in Machilipatnam. / Photo: T. Appala Naidu / The Hindu
A view of Naye Maszid at Rajpet in Machilipatnam. / Photo: T. Appala Naidu / The Hindu

Renovation of the architectural beauty of 1920s is now under way

Idyllic living conditions help peaceful existence of people from different religious practices in Rajpeta area. This peaceful atmosphere of co-existence justifies it to be called ‘Jewel by the sea’ in the port town.

Renovation of Naye Masjid, an architectural beauty of 1920s, is now underway and it is bound to become the most sought-after location for the people in the town in the coming years. Naye Masjid, with two minars, each standing 108 feet tall, has been the sole sacred place for the estimated 700 families belonging to Muslim Sunni sect.

An integral part

Every resident from five streets around it – Rajpeta, Nooruddinpeta, Varregudem, Pathullahbad and the National College Street – need to pass in front of the Masjid everyday as part of their routine. Having a look at the Masjid has become an integral part of the people’s daily lives, irrespective of their religious practices.

“Construction of Masula’s one of the multi-speciality hospitals is on in our area. People from the entire town will appreciate the beauty of the Masjid when they visit the hospital after it goes functional,” feel the Rajpeta residents. The proud locals claim that renowned educational institutions such as The National College and Krishna University were situated in its vicinity.

The Committee Secretary Sheik Hussain with his son. / Photo: T. Appala Naidu / The Hindu
The Committee Secretary Sheik Hussain with his son. / Photo: T. Appala Naidu / The Hindu

“Muslim families in Rajpeta area contribute funds for completion of the ongoing beautification and renovation works of the Naye Masjid. However, people from all other religions take pride in having such a structure,” Naye Maszid Committee Secretary Sheik Hussain told The Hindu.

This landmark construction is visible from majority of the areas in the district headquarters town.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada> City Musings  / by T. Appala Naidu / Machilipatnam – February 17th, 2014

BS Southern Region corporate quiz: Hyderabad team comes first

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Records, All

It was after six challenging rounds and after 35-40 questions that the Sai Mitra Constructions team from Hyderabad won the trophy as well as a gift cheque of Rs 25,000 in the Business Standard Quiz : Southern Region Finals.

The quiz was held on Saturday at Vels University in Chennai. The main sponsor was global watch brand Victorinox and Vels University was the associate sponsor with Coca-Cola being the beverage partner. Hair and beauty salon chain Naturals, silk saree manufacturer and retailer RmKV and Cookie Man were the gift sponsors.

The winning team bagged Rs 25,000 and the first and second runners-up, both from Infosys, received Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000, respectively.

Naveen Kumar and Phani Mahesh, the duo from Sai Mitra, said they faced a tough fight from the first runner-up team, comprising Vivek Venkatesan and Senthil Kumar P K from Infosys.

In total, 82 teams from 61 colleges and 21 companies, from the four southern states have participated in the quiz. Each team had two representatives.

The participants included an interesting mix of educational institutes such as the Indian Institutes of Management -(Trichy and its Chennai campus; Kozhikode), Indian Institute of Technology (Chennai), Great Lakes, Bharathidasan Institute of Management, SRM, Veltech, and LIBA, among others, and corporates such as Infosys, TCS, Caterpillar, India Cements, HSBC, ICICI Bank and Indian Overseas Bank.

Quizmaster Gaurav Sri Krishna, who is the leader for Asia-Pacific, India and MEA (Middle East and Africa) region in TCS, was at his best as he challenged the teams with the best of his questions, said one of the participants.

One question that stumped all the finalists was: As an individual contributor, to whom can one submit a BION and what does it mean? While nobody on the stage answered it, one of the participants off-stage came up with the right answer: It is a Believe It Or Not (BION) story sent to Ripley Entertainment Inc. The staff at Ripley’s world headquarters is always searching for new stories of the odd and unusual. Every day, they receive dozens of phone calls, hundreds of posted letters and thousands of emails from people with incredible stories of outlandish feats, amazing works of art, or unexplainable phenomena. It is owned by the Jim Pattison Group, which is Canada’s largest privately-held company.

The first runners-up team from Infosys said it was a googly with a simple answer while they were suspecting it as something associated with the digital currency, bitcoin.

The winning team said that all the questions were impressive and of good quality. “We have been waiting for the Southern Quiz to happen from the time we heard about the BS Quiz which was held in Mumbai,” said Kumar of Sai Mitra.

The quizmaster said the teams were very good and experienced, which could be seen from their performance.

He added the tough question according to him was: This company in the early 1900s undertook every imaginable means of unfair competition, in all probability including physically assaulting competitors’ employees. Its field force consisted of Knockout Salesmen who fanned across the US selling machines that were copies of competitors’ machines, but did not work. Finally in 1913 its top executives were indicted for violating the Sherman Antitrust Act and were sentenced.

However, before he could finish reading the question, which appeared on the screen, the winner team came up with the answer: National Cash Register (NCR). The quizmaster explained that its founder John H Patterson and Thomas J Watson (Sr) who was the sales head were two of two-dozen executives of the company who were indicted and sentenced to a year in jail.

K Sekhar, vice-chancellor of Vels University, said the event has improved in several notches and it was evident from the performance of the teams. “Seeing the corporate participants contesting in the event would also motivate our students to come,” he said. R Mathialagan, registrar of the university, added: “This gives us a good platform to connect with the corporates.”

The second edition of Business Standard quiz is one of the largest quiz competitions held in this part of the country. The first edition was held in Chennai last year in association with Vels University.

In this year’s quiz, 82 teams representing various colleges from all disciplines and corporates from the four southern states participated. Participants travelled from various corners of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

Around 300 students from the Vels Institute of Business Administration, Vels University and faculties from other colleges have witnessed the Quiz.

Business Standard also conducts written rounds of BS Quiz in various colleges across all disciplines.

source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> Current Affairs> News> National / by BS Reporter / Chennai – February 17th, 2014

The Business of Film Making

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy

film-makingHF24feb2014

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

Chemical-free anti-rat solution being developed for Rlys

Science & Technology

City-based Hyderabad Science Society has said it is in the process of developing a new chemical-free technology to deal with the problem of rats and other rodents on the trains.

It uses high pressure compressed air mixed with sand to kill rats, HSS Director Sanjar Ali Khan said today.

Media reports about the rodent problem on trains prompted the organisation to take up this project, Khan said.

“To attract rats, we have prepared a special chamber and the moment a rat enters this chamber its movement is detected by an electronic circuit and there will be a sudden blast of sand mixed with high pressure air directed into the chamber which kills the rat instantly,” he said.

The system can kill four rats every minute, he added.

source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> PTI Stories> National> News / by Press Trust of India / Hyderabad – February 16th, 2014

Triple gold for star lifter Rahul

Records, All, Sports
Ragala Venkat Rahul
Ragala Venkat Rahul

Wins three medals in the 77 kg category in the Youth National Championship in Guwahati; creditable performance by AP lifters

Ragala Venkata Rahul, the 17-year-old weightlifter from Andhra Pradesh Sports School, ensured that the year 2013 ended on a high for him on the personal front, when he won three gold medals in the 77 kg category in the Youth National Championship in Guwahati.

For someone who was adjudged ‘best weightlifter’ in the recent Commonwealth Championship in Penang, it may not be a big surprise when this Andhra boy has achieved a similar feat in this National also in the youth category. Earlier, B. Vishnuvardhan settled for two silver medals and a bronze in the 94 kg category with a combined effort of 252 kg (111+141).

For the record, visually-challenged Parapati Ramesh had already stunned the critics with a silver medal in the 50-kg category to become the first-ever visually-challenged from the State to win a medal in an open national.

By all means, it has been a creditable performance by the weightlifters from Andhra Pradesh in the Youth category as the girls Deexitha won three silver (53 kg), Sindhu three bronze (58 kg) and M Ooha Sai three bronze (69 kg +). This feat also enabled the State team to finish second overall in the girls section.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Special Correspondent / Hyderabad – December 26th, 2013

Tribal girl fights her way back to school

Education, Inspiration /Positive News and Features

Nizamabad :

A tribal girl, Danawat Nirmala,12, has finally succeeded in her battle to go to school. Nirmala had threatened her parents that she would commit suicide if she was not allowed to continue her studies.

Nirmala, who hails from Pallebogada thanda under Bollaram gram panchayat limits of Nagireddypet mandal in Nizamabad district studied up to Class IV. She was not allowed by her poor parents to study further and was asked to work in agricultural fields to supplement the family’s income.

However, Nirmala is now back in school with the help of officials of the National Child Labour Project. National Child Labour Project officials who found her working in agricultural fields on Thursday was told by the girl that she was not allowed to go to school. The officials then spoke to the girl’s parents and convinced them about the need to send their child to school.

NLCP project director P Sudhakar Rao said that the girl’s father Devuja initially refused to send Nirmala to school despite being threatened with a jail term under the child rights protection act. Devuja wanted officials to ensure that his son, Mohan passed the SSC examination. Mohan had failed public examination last year.

Nirmala then threatened to commit suicide following which Devuja finally agreed to allow her to study further. Nirmala attended school on Friday for the first time since the academic year began in June last year.

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

Bust cancer myths and live life, say doctors

Science & Technology

Visakhapatnam :

Utter the word ‘cancer’ and it immediately conjures up images of death in the minds of people. This misconception prevails, despite doctors’ assurance that in 85-90% of cases, cancers are curable if detected at an early stage. Quite relevantly, the worldwide theme for this year’s World Cancer Day (February 4) is ‘Debunking myths and misconceptions about cancer’.

Despite medical and surgical advancement in the field of oncology, the most common myth associated with cancer is considering it synonymous with death besides other myths and misconceptions related to the availability of treatment, cancer drugs and their side effects and so on.

Dr P Ravi Mohan, associate professor at Andhra Medical College (AMC) and consultant medical oncologist averred, “Patients and their families still can’t accept cancer as any other ailment. They should understand that cancer is very much curable if diagnosed and treated at an early stage. Even in advanced stages, certain types of cancer can be cured. They also think there’s no point taking proper treatment as death is inevitable and worsen the situation by visiting quacks. Thirdly, there’s a misconception among most people that cancer affects only the old. However, age is no determinant and even an infant, youngsters or centurions can be affected by cancer.”

Myths and misconceptions surround the mode of treatment and medicines too. For instance, it’s believed that all cancer drugs are costly, toxic and have tremendous side effects. However, only around 20-25% cancer drugs have some side effects and not all drugs are expensive. “Further, the myth that cancer is contagious prevails usually among rural people with limited literacy. Genetic predilection can be a risk factor in certain types of cancer but no cancer is contagious. Most patients, especially those of breast cancer, are also traumatised at the thought that the affected organ has to be removed if cancer strikes. But nowadays, with advanced medical and surgical procedures, it’s not required and even in case of partial removal, reconstruction can be done,” added Dr Ravi Mohan.

Summing up the misconceptions related to cancer, Dr Lalit Varadapande from Queen’s NRI Hospital said, “Patients feel there’s no need to talk about cancer, cancer displays no signs and symptoms, nothing much can be done about cancer and patients don’t have right to access proper cancer care. Awareness is the most important requirement so that early screening and diagnosis can facilitate treatment at stage one or two.”

As per recent data provided by the Indian Council for Medical Research, more than 10 lakh people are affected by cancer in India annually. In 2012, more than 5.55 lakh people have died due to cancer in India.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Visakhapatnam / by Sulogna Mehta, TNN / February 04th, 2014

Book on legends, anecdotes of Hyderabad launched

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

Hyderabad :

‘Lengendotes of Hyderabad,’ authored by noted expert on history and culture of Hyderabad Narendra Luther, was launched in the in the presence of historians, academics, artists and heritage activists on Thursday. The book is a collection of legends and anecdotes which the author terms ‘Legendotes.’ The articles, based on documentary evidence, interviews and personal experiences, try to capture the 400 years of history and socio-cultural developments of the that symbolizes tolerance and love.

Historian Aloka Prasher Sen, dean, School of Social Science at UoH, who did not approve of some of the footnotes in the book since they are based on personal interviews and not hard scientific evidence, said that the bits and pieces of history that are found beyond the gamut of concrete proof too should be acknowledged as credible source. Speaking as the chief guest at the function, she said Luther’s book has been published at a time when there is serious debate over the inclusion of oral history and other sources as essential elements in history writing.

She was of the opinion that Luther’s book falls in the category of such historical narratives that provide a context and explanation to events and developments in given periods of time. Luther conceded that he is not a historian in the traditional sense of the term. “I do what I like best-to capture moments in their true spirit,” he said.

The book contains tales of about 70 legends, anecdotes and personal accounts beginning from the beautiful rocks of the Deccan plateau to Bhagamati, to the developments during the era of Nizams and beyond.

The continuation of evolution and fusion of cultures even captures the glimpses of modern times when T Anjaiah or N T Rama Rao ruled as chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / TNN / January 31st, 2014