Karnataka First

The IIT-D plans to establish physical infrastructure for the adoption of clean energy (solar, wind and bioenergy) solutions to improve the lives and livelihoods of rural communities.

Unnati Sakhis of Karnataka are not just setting up their own businesses, but also hand-holding other women with an enterprising spark.

It is a small step for the entrepreneurs, but a giant leap of faith for the women of Kandavara Gram Panchayat in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka. What started as a 250 sqft ‘fish podi, pickles and snacks stall’ at the Mura Junction, Mangaluru, last December, has now evolved into a full-fledged eatery called Sri Sangam Canteen, all set to open at Mangaluru’s Zilla Panchayat Office, come February.

With Shashikala Shetty leading a group of four women entrepreneurs—or, mahila udhyemaru—the facility can cater up to 300 meals a day. “The 10-minute group exercise we did in October 2022 as part of project Code Unnati encouraged us to come up with a business idea together,” she says.

Shetty is one of the 125 women, or ‘Unnati Sakhis’, across three districts of Karnataka—Bengaluru Rural, Dakshina Kannada and Raichur—who were chosen for project Code Unnati, a programme started by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and SAP Labs India in 2021 to identify and hone rural women entrepreneurs.

In March 2021, UNDP India and SAP Labs India began looking for local women who have an entrepreneurial spark. They would impart free training to help start a business or scale up an existing one to earn livelihoods. After an orientation class to identify promising candidates, the project picked women in phases to train them intensely for a week. Although the project does not fund the startups, it facilitates women to access financial linkages through government schemes, banks and microfinance institutions.

“By the end of March, this year, UNDP will start a business development service in the rural districts to help more newbie entrepreneurs with registration, market linkages, product branding, packaging, labelling, etc.,” says Govindaraj Jeya Chandran, State Project Head (Karnataka), UNDP India.

In Raichur, 580 km away from Mangaluru, another entrepreneurial story is unfolding. “I want to fly high, rather zip across the Ashapur Road fast and furiously to make a living,” quips J Sasikala, who works with a network of driving schools where she teaches gearless two-wheeler riding to women.

She has trained over 300 women in the last two years. Sasikala confesses to being a tomboy who learnt to ride a bike as a teenager. The programme taught this 40-plus mom of two to use this skill to earn a living by not only being a trainer, but also as a delivery executive for her fledgling masala and pickle business. Her dream is now to earn enough to be able to run an ambulance while also teaching motor driving to women.

It’s not until you see the pace at which Jayashree Hiremath makes jowar rotis on a busy weekday morning that you realise why residents of Manvi town in Raichur gave her the moniker, the Swiggy of Raichur. Hiremath can flip 200 rotis in five hours at her eight-month-old Roti Kendra, a homestyle catering unit. “Had I started the kitchen five years ago, I would not have had to sell my two-acre farm and borrow `10 lakh on an exorbitant interest to treat my ailing husband,” she says.

Buoyed by the pace and profits of the business, she recently named her business Sri Chinmaya Roti Kendra and even got 300 business cards printed with the words mahila udyami (women entrepreneur) under her name.

At the five-day intensive training session as part of the project in Raichur—with follow-up classes scattered across six months—Hiremath learnt that she could earn 10 times more if she hired just one help—or, sakhi—and directly catered food to the locals. “The programme taught me how to price the product, work out the packaging, get orders, link it to a UPI payment gateway, etc.,” she says.

February is peak wedding season in her town and she hopes to hire many more sakhis for her catering unit and make them shepreneurs too. Looks like sisterhood has a new definition in 2023.

newindianexpress.com

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.