Month: January 2023

Known as the finest pilot of his squadron, the officer had led the team of pilots who brought the first fleet of Rafale aircraft to India.

A pall of gloom descended on Belagavi when one of its brave sons Wing Commander Hanumanth Sarathi (36) died in a tragic air crash involving another fighter aircraft near Gwalior Air Base on Saturday.

Known as the finest pilot of his squadron, the officer had led the team of pilots who brought the first fleet of Rafale aircraft to India.

“Co-pilots and officials working with him always spoke highly of him and his piloting skills. For us schoolmates, he came across as the most humble guy with no attitude. He was smart in school and joined the National Defence Academy (NDA) soon after clearing his class 12 exams,” recalled a batchmate of the Wing Commander in Kendriya Vidyalaya in Belagavi.

While his father served in the Indian Army, his elder brother Praveen Sarathi is a Group Captain in the Indian Air Force (IAF). Praveen’s wife also serves in the IAF.  The Wing Commander is survived by his wife and two children. Group Captain Praveen Sarathi reached Gwalior to receive the mortal remains of his brother, who was killed while flying a Mirage 2000 fighter aircraft.

Born on October 28, 1987 in Belagavi, Hanumanth Sarathi underwent  NDA training in Khadakwasla Centre in Pune before joining the IAF.

Pilot’s mortal remains to be brought today

The pilot was commissioned as a flying officer in the IAF in 2009. He was residing at Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh with his wife and children, while his parents stay in Belagavi. Though the family hails from Maknur village in Haveri, they settled in Belagavi after the wing commander’s father Revanasidappa retired as honorary captain in the Indian Army.

The officers of Airmen Training Centre, Belagavi, and Army personnel from MLIRC, Belagavi, visited the residence of the officer at Sena Colony in Ganeshpur, Belagavi and met the family members. Dr Jagadish K, his brother-in-law, said, “The parents are shocked. It is hard to digest that Hanumanth is no more.

We’ve been told that his mortal remains will be brought to Belagavi by a special IAF plane on Sunday. The funeral will be held in Benakanahalli near Ganeshpur in Belagavi with full military honours’”. Nitesh Patil, DC, Belagavi, said he is in touch with IAF officials.

newindianexpress.com

The Konkani Bhas Ani Sanskriti Prathistan, World Konkani Centre, Mangaluru, has selected B. Shantharam Baliga and Lavina M. Noronha for Basti Vaman Shenoy Vishwa Konkani Seva Puraskar – 2022 for their outstanding contribution in service to society.

Dr. Baliga has been selected for the award considering his contributions in the neonatal critical care sections in the district hospitals which has resulted in the reduction of infant mortality ratio and contribution in malaria control in the region. He is a practicing pediatrician and Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at Kasturba Medical College, Mangaluru. He has rendered selfless service to the public health sector by going beyond the call of duty. He has put in over 40 years of pioneering service towards improving neonatal care and child care in the public health sector in the region and State.

Ms. Noronha has been chosen for her contribution to the terminally ill and Alzheimer’s patients by setting up Ave Maria Palliative Care Hospice and Susheg Jivith Neuro Care Centre in Mangaluru. Ms. Noronha has been efficiently managing the 15-bed hospice with utmost professionalism, taking along an equally dedicated team of doctors, nurses, care givers and volunteers. Earlier, she had served as an associate professor and director of the MSW Programme at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas, USA.

In all, 241 nominations had been received for the award, a release from the foundation said.

The award was established in 2014 on the occasion of the 80th birth anniversary of late Basti Vaman Shenoy, founder of the World Konkani Centre by chief patron of the centre T. V. Mohandas Pai. So far 16 distinguished personalities have been bestowed with the award.

thehindu.com

Udupi Deputy Commissioner M. Kurma Rao, Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Kumara and Rama Marathi, Technical Programmer from the office of Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner, are among the 27 government officials selected for the State-level awards for activities undertaken as part of Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation Programme (SVEEP).

The awards will be given during the National Voters’ Day programme to be held at the Town Hall in Bengaluru on January 25.

In a letter dated January 23, P.S. Vastrad, State SVEEP Nodal Officer, asked the District Electoral Officers to send the awardees for the function on January 25.

thehindu.com

The cooperative to organise the celebrations in Puttur from February 10 to 12.

The Central Arecanut and Coca Marketing and Processing Cooperative Ltd., (CAMPCO), established in 1973, will celebrate the Golden Jubilee of its formation from February 10 to 12 in Puttur, said Cooperative’s president A. Kishore Kumar Kodgi on Friday, January 27.

Mr. Kodgi told reporters here that Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah was expected to attend the celebrations on February 11. He would lay the foundation stone for the proposed Agri Mall on one acre land near the Mahammaya Temple and digitally inaugurate the coconut processing plant (coconut oil Kalpa) at the chocolate factory premises in Puttur and the godown at Bhadravathi.

The celebrations would feature mega agricultural machinery fair as well as dream house exhibition. Being organised on the Puttur Vivekananda Engineering College premises in association with the Vivekananda Vidyavardhaka Sangha and Arecanut Research and Development Foundation, the exhibition would feature over 300 stalls under various categories. Campco had organised four such exhibitions, starting from 2009, 2012, 2015 and 2019.

This year’s exhibition, Mr. Kodgi said, would feature latest agricultural machinery from India and abroad, self-made machines by innovative and progressive farmers, seminars on modern agricultural technology, display of medicinal and other plants etc.

On the other hand, the dream house exhibition was being conducted with an objective of bringing the latest technology of construction to the common man.

Late Varanashi Subraya Bhat along with like-minded people founded Campco on July 11, 1973, to help arecanut growers to come out of the marketing crisis that was witnessed during 1970-71, Mr. Kodgi said. Campco now has 1.3 lakh members and conducts ₹3,000 crore business annually. It earned a net profit of ₹63 crore last fiscal.

Campco functionaries Krishnaprasad Madthila, Keshava Bhat, Dayananda Hegde, Mahesh Chowta, Managing Directgor H.M. Krishna Kumar and others were present.

thehindu.com

Valedictory of a three-day International Workshop on Yoga Teachers Training for Korean delegates had been organised by Department of Human Consciousness and Yogic Sciences and Dharmanidhi Yogapeetha.

Yoga being a significant part of the Indian tradition, it is fast becoming a Korean as well as a global tradition too, said Jong Soon Seo, a professor from South Korea.

Prof. Seo was speaking at the valedictory of a three-day International Workshop on Yoga Teachers Training for Korean delegates organised by Department of Human Consciousness and Yogic Sciences and Dharmanidhi Yogapeetha, Mangalore University at University headquarters in Mangala Gangothri on Friday, January 27.

Expressed gratitude for the warm hospitality, Prof. Seo lauded the collaborative spirit between the two departments during the workshop. She stressed that yoga is for everyone because it enhances mental, spiritual as well as physical health.

University Vice Chancellor P. Subrahmanya Yadapadithaya stressed the importance of self-discipline and attitude to harmonise the mind, the body and the spirit. He expressed hope of continued nourishment of India-South Korea relationship.

The 3-day workshop began at 7.30 a.m. with yoga practical sessions and ended at 5 p.m. every day. The sessions included Kriyas, Asana practices, Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga practices, Bikram yoga practices, yoga therapy practices, Bandha and mudra, pranayama, meditation and relaxation practices. Yogic food system was followed throughout the 3-day workshop.

Lecturers H. Thirumaleshwara Prasada ahd K. Udayakumara, faculty Vinayaka Krishna and others were present.

thehindu.com

In all, 150 bird species belonging to 18 orders and 56 families were recorded during the bird exploration conducted in and around the university campus from 2013 to 2021.

A nine-year study on the avifaunal diversity on the Mangalore University campus has revealed that the campus supports three near threatened species mentioned in the red list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and also five species which are endemic to the Western Ghats.

The study report titled ‘A checklist of avifauna of Mangalore University’ by five researchers – K. Maxim Rodrigues, K. Vineeth Kumar, Vivek Hasyagar, M. C. Prashanth Krishna and Deepak Naik – was published in the Journal of Threatened Taxa, a monthly peer reviewed and open access international scientific journal on conservation and all associated fields, on January 26.

It said that a total of 150 bird species belonging to 18 orders and 56 families were recorded during the bird exploration conducted in and around the university campus from 2013 to 2021.

“…As per IUCN Red List (IUCN 2021), the campus supports, three Near Threatened (NT) species — Ciconia episcopus, Threskiornis melanocephalus, and Brachypodius priocephalus — and the remaining 146 species are under Least Concern (LC). The campus also supports five species namely, Brachypodius priocephalus, Rubigula gularis, Argya subrufa, Sturnia blythii, and Dicaeum concolor which are endemic to the Western Ghats …,” the report said.

It added: “… The feeding guild analysis revealed that the insectivorous group had the highest number of species (53 species). The study provides baseline data for monitoring the avifauna in the campus and demonstrates the importance of the area in bird conservation…”

An analysis of the feeding guilds of these birds revealed that 35% (53 species) were insectivorous, 28% (42 species) omnivorous, 23% (34 species) carnivorous, 6% (9 species) granivorous, and 4% (four species each) were frugivorous and nectivorous, respectively, the report said.

During the study period 124 bird species were reported as residential (R), followed by 13 species long distance migratory (LD) and 13 species local migratory (LM).

The bird survey was conducted in February for four days between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.. The species were recorded for 15 minutes by covering the transect length at a slow pace, it said.

“Our study provides important baseline information and the importance of species presence; this will help in the long term monitoring of birds in the campus besides acting as an essential document in planning conservation efforts in the camp,” they said.

There have been few ornithological studies carried out in Dakshina Kannada (Shivashankar et al. 2011). Previously, (Ramitha & Vijayalaxmi 2001) reported 56 species of birds belonging to 31 families. However, in their study they covered University campus along with some adjoining areas like Pavoor, Assaigoli, Someshwara and Netravathi bridge. Except for this earlier report, no detailed long-term studies have been made on the diversity of birds in the study area. In this context, the present study was undertaken to highlight the status, composition, feeding guilds and diversity of birds of Mangalore University campus, the report mentioned.

Mr. Hasyagar told The Hindu that the tenth annual Mangalore University campus bird count has been planned in February, 2023.

According to the report, Mr. Rodrigues is an avid bird watcher from Kasaragod and founder of Kasaragod Birders team, who works on wildlife studies and conservation mainly through birds in Kasaragod district through citizen science.

Mr. Kumar is currently engaged in education and research. His core research interests include ecology and behaviour of amphibians and aves. In specific urban ecology and biodiversity, acoustic behaviour, migraton in birds etc.

Mr. Hasyagar is a researcher/ PhD scholar, working on earthworm ecology in the Department of Applied Zoology, Mangalore University also an avid birdwatcher and interested in wildlife aspects.

Mr. Krishna currently working as R & D chemist is keen about bird watching and photography. Mainly focuses on documentation of birds in and around Kasaragod and Dakshina Kannada districts.

Mr. Naik is currently guest faculty in the Department of Applied Zoology, Mangalore University. His research interests includes- understanding the butterfly communities and ecology in different landscapes also interested in birds and other taxa.

thehindu.com

The report ranked 55 global cities based on their ability to attract and foster high-potential women entrepreneurs (HPWE) who want to start and scale a business.

Dell Technologies’ new study ranked Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai among the top global cities for women entrepreneurs. This is the first time Bengaluru ranked fifth in the top 10 operating environments list, ahead of Paris, Washington DC and other cities. The city provided market size, cost, access and policies that can benefit and accelerate the growth of women entrepreneurs, said the report.

The report ranked 55 global cities based on their ability to attract and foster high-potential women entrepreneurs (HPWE) who want to start and scale a business. Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai were featured among the top 50 in this list, indicating these cities provided a beneficial business environment for women entrepreneurs, Dell said on Friday.

Swati Mishra, Director and GM, Small Businesses, Dell Technologies India, said, “The report not only illustrates the rise of women entrepreneurs in India but also addresses the gaps in access to resources and opportunities to truly unleash their full potential.’‘

thehindu.com

The life cycle of a satellite depends upon its fuel capacity.

With air-to-air refueling proving the capability of enhancing long-haul flights, an Indian  is now eyeing to take a similar technology to the next level — space. With an increasing number of satellites orbiting Earth, an entrepreneur-cum-researcher at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is developing an in-orbit satellite refueling technology with an orbital fuel station and servicing centre in space. This would be the first such venture in the world.

Chikkaballapur has turned sacred as the Sadhguru has constructed the Adiyogi statue and performed spiritual pujas which will ensure growth, the CM said.

A man should be true to his conscience, birth and death are just moments, and living sincerely will give peace, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said, after unveiling a 112-ft Adiyogi statue in Avalagurki village, 7km from Chikkaballapur, late Sunday evening.

Not only the people of Karnataka, but those across the nation and universe are blessed to receive the darshan of Adiyogi in Chikkaballapur, said Bommai, adding that he wants to change the name “Sadhguru” to “Sadaguru” as his vision is in the interest of the nation and unity.

Chikkaballapur has turned sacred as the Sadhguru has constructed the Adiyogi statue and performed spiritual pujas which will ensure growth, the CM said. “Our nation is sacred, all we want is unity, a good atmosphere and prosperity, and the state government is committed to sacred programmes,” he said.

Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr K Sudhakar said this is the second Adiyogi statue in the nation and through Isha Foundation, more such activities will be promoted in the district and across the state. The unveiling of the statue is a fitting finale to the eight-day Chikkaballapur Utsav on Sankranti, he added.
Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev said by doing yoga, a person holds all the controls of the mind and can achieve everything.

newindianexpress.com

Star Air was the first airline to begin flights from T2. Other domestic and international airlines are expected to start their services to and from the new terminal in a phased manner.

The Terminal 2 (T2) of Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) started domestic operations on Sunday, with Star Air being the first airline to begin flights from the new terminal.

The inaugural Star Air flight to Kalburgi took off from T2 at 8.40 a.m., and the turnaround flight from Kalburgi landed at 11.25 a.m.

Other domestic airlines are expected to start their services to and from T2, followed by international airlines, in a phased manner over the next few months, BIAL said.

“We welcomed customers of Star Air at KIA’s new terminal T2, today. The terminal will soon welcome passengers of other airlines as well. This will be done in a phased manner when the facilities and processes for the smooth transition of airlines from T1 to T2 are completed. The opening of T2 has been much awaited not just for us at the airport, but also for Bengalureans and passengers travelling from different cities. We want to make passenger journeys truly memorable by offering the best experience to them,” said Hari Marar, MD & CEO of Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL) which operates the airport.

Access to T2

The KIA expansion plan included the construction of T2 and the associated infrastructure such as access roads and utilities. To provide easy accessibility to T2, a 4.4 km-long additional access road called the Terminal Boulevard was inaugurated earlier this week.

It connects to T2 departures and also leads to T2 arrivals, allowing for a comfortable drive without any traffic signals. Passengers arriving at T2 can be picked up by their cars at the parking area. Complimentary shuttle services are also available between T1 and T2 at regular intervals.

Referred to as the Terminal in a Garden, T2 is a tribute to the Garden City of Bengaluru. BIAL said that the terminal is meant to be a “walk in the garden”, with passengers travelling through 10,000+ square metres of green walls, hanging gardens, and outdoor gardens built through indigenous technology. Located on the north-eastern side of Terminal-1, T2 spans 255,661 square meters of area and is equipped to handle 25 million passengers annually.

Staff at Terminal 2 (T2) of Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), which began domestic operations, welcome air passengers in Bengaluru on January 15, 2023. |

“T2 promises to provide travellers with a unique terminal experience, offering them the highest level of comfort and enjoyment. These facets make the newly inaugurated terminal a valuable addition to the airport, not only as a transit hub but also as a memorable destination in itself,” BIAL said.

thehindu.com