Category Archives: Inspiration / Positive News and Features

Saina outshines Sindhu, emerges the golden girl

Agriculture, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Sports, World Opinion

Women’s singles gold medallist Saina Nehwal of India poses with her medal and Borobi plush doll. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Saina Nehwal won a second Commonwealth Games women’s singles title in style at the Carrara Sports arena here on Sunday.

The former World No. 1 displayed sheer determination and was aggressive all through as she put to shade the challenge from compatriot and current World No. 3 P.V. Sindhu at 21-18, 23-21 in 56 minutes to grab the gold medal, a feat she first achieved in New Delhi 2010.

However, K. Srikanth could not celebrate his ascent to World No. 1 ranking with a gold medal as he had to be content with the silver after going down to the legendary Lee Chong Wei 19-21, 21-14, 21-4.

Early lead
Saina took to an early lead and built upon it to outfox her rival. The first set saw Saina take a 9-4 lead, paralysing Sindhu at the net and coming up with deafening smashes. It was soon 20-14 and though Sindhu showed signs of revival, she couldn’t salvage the set.

In the second, Sindhu was her usual self and even threatened to take the match into the decider. Sindhu was ahead for most part, but Saina never allowed her to widen the gap before levelling at 20-all.

A tired Saina hung on bravely, overcoming Sindhu who saved one match-point before returning a smash wide. Saina instantly threw her hands up in the air in exultation.

“I will really put this along with my Olympic medal and my World No. 1 ranking. It’s a very emotional moment. I have been waiting for that one great victory after the disappointing loss in Rio 2016 where I had to retire because of my injury and had to go through surgery on my right knee,” said Saina.

On the other hand, Sindhu was happy that it was an all-India final, “The prospect itself was exciting and it is nice that it came true. The second was anyone’s set. I thought I could win it, but it was not to be. However, it is a good game overall and I am happy I tried my best.”

Srikanth began with a sequence of unforced errors and was down 0-5 before rallying his way ahead to eventually take the first set at 21-19. But the Indian was unable to keep up the momentum as he committed silly mistakes to go down without much fight.

Reflecting on the match, the Indian said: “When you are playing against such a great player, you have to be at your best, throughout the match. I started well by taking the first set but I made too many mistakes in my defence in the second and third. I gave him that early lead which I should have avoided.”

Satwik-Chirag bag silver
It was also a silvery finish for Satwik Rankireddy and Chirag Chandrasekhar Shetty in the men’s doubles, as they lost to England’s Marcus Ellis and Chris Langridge 21-13, 21-16.

Satwik, in partnership with Ashwini Ponnappa, had lost the mixed doubles bronze medal match on Saturday to Malaysia’s Chan Peng Soon and Guo Liu Ying 21-19, 21-19, and not as reported in these columns on Sunday.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sport> Other Sports / by A. Vinod / Gold Coast – April 15th, 2018

7-year-old Hyderabad boy climbs Mt. Kilimanjaro

Amazing Feats, Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Sports, Travel, World Opinion

Hyderabad :

A 7-year-old boy from Hyderabad scaled the highest peak in Africa, Uhuru peak of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.

Samanyu Pothuraju, along with his coach, unfurled the Tricolor at a height of 5,895 meters above the sea level on April 2.

Speaking with ANI, the boy said, “The day was rainy and the road was full of stones. I got afraid, I had leg pains, but I took rest and completed it. I like snow a lot and that is the reason I went to Mt. Kilimanjaro. Pawan Kalyan is my favourite hero, my mom promised me that she will make me meet him if I try the world record, now am eagerly waiting to meet him. I will go to Australia peak in next month ending and want to make a record.”

Pothuraju was accompanied by his mother Lavanya, coach Thammineni Bharath, a fellow mountaineer Shangabandi Srujana, and another woman, all hailed from Hyderabad. A local doctor from Tanzania also accompanied them.

Pothuraju’s mother said “I am really very happy as my son tried to achieve a world record. After reaching there, I stopped in my halfway because of my health condition but my son didn’t quit unless until he reaches the destination. I was very much tensed and worried as there were different climate conditions. Our next target is Australia, 10 peaks in May ending and that will also be the record of my son.”

The trek began on March 29 when the team started from the base point. It took about five days for the team to reach the peak.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Hyderabad News / ANI / April 16th, 2018

Mess worker’s son scores 991 in Inter exams

Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All

His mother is a vegetable cutter in the same mess he eats but that didn’t stop him from securing the second highest marks in MPC in Telangana this year.

Student of Narayana College, Hayatnagar, Venkata Sai Chandra with 991 marks is certainly an inspiration for those who come from underprivileged backgrounds to achieve against all odds. A student of Narayana College, Hayathnagar, he said seeing his mother working in the college mess was a big inspiration to study better rather than a let down, which many youngsters consider.

College principal Rama Rao said Sai Chandra was given free education and he proved his worth. Hailing from Mothe mandal near Suryapet, he is now waiting for IIT results and is confident of making it.

Narayana Educational Institutions have recorded highest pass percentage in both junior and senior Intermediate exams with as many as 8 students scoring the State highest mark of 467 in first year and 67 students securing 466 marks in the MPC stream.

In a statement here, director of the group Sharani Narayana said that in the second year exams 3 students scored 992 out of 1000 marks, six scored 991 while 20 students scored 990 marks. In the BPC stream 991 was the highest mark and 13 students scored marks above 988, she said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Special Correspondent / Hyderabad – April 13th, 2018

Hyderabad puts the ambulance on faster wheels

Amazing Feats, Business & Economy, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Science & Technology, Travel

Prabhdeep Singh, originally from Chandigarh, and with work experience in Hyderabad, Antoine Poirson of France, and Jose Leon, a Costa Rican – OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

A trio of MBAs launches a service that’s taking patients and their families across State borders.

They were from three continents and they met at a business school in France. Their idea: simplified medical transport as easy as ride-hailing for patients and caregivers. Prabhdeep Singh, originally from Chandigarh, and with work experience in Hyderabad, Antoine Poirson from France, and Jose Leon from Costa Rica, came up with StanPlus.

The year-old Hyderabad start-up opened with an offer to send an ambulance in under 15 minutes.

It got the most unusual requests. An ailing man was transported from Hyderabad to Guwahati – a 2,500 km drive –after his doctors informed his family that he was at the end of his life and suggested he be taken to his native place. The patient’s son turned to StanPlus and was even prepared to face a crisis en route. Mr. Singh, the CEO, says, “We arranged for an ambulance equipped with a body freezer and two drivers. Luckily, the person reached home alive.”

It recently ferried a four-hour-old baby from Hyderabad to Vizianagaram, a distance of 700 km. The vehicle had an incubator and a facility for light therapy. “A few days back, a lady gave birth to twins in an ambulance .”

The idea originated when Mr. Poirson, working with an energy major in Rajasthan, saw his colleague die in an accident because no ambulance was nearby. Mr. Singh, with his healthcare stint, saw the demand for a responsive ambulance service. The company is plugged into real-time live tracking, aided by a call centre. “We are not in the pay of hospitals, so the patient takes the call. The option is to go to the nearest hospital and charge per km,” he says. Hyderabad also has the emergency-only “108” ambulances. Only 20% of ambulance calls are emergencies, says Mr. Singh, who runs 300 vehicles.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Serish Nanisetti / Hyderabad – April 04th, 2018

City man to train Olympiad aspirants

Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, World Opinion

Rahul Chakravarthy, a city-based businessman, who works in the field of education content, has been selected to train a team of students that would represent India at the International Mathematical Olympiad.

The training camp, run by Homi Bhaha Centre for Science Education, is running a training camp in Mumbai from April 18 to May 16, for which a faculty team is being put together.

Mr. Chakravarthy has been selected as one of the faculty members.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> City> Hyderabad / April 04th, 2018

City taekwondo champ on a kick

Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Sports, World Opinion

B. Sai Deepak is gunning for six more world records this year.

Sai Deepak giving his all to qualify for 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Being a son of an auto-rickshaw driver was never an impediment for 22-year-old B. Sai Deepak, who was the youngest to set two Guinness World Records in taekwondo recently, to give his all to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Deepak’s desire to make it big in the world of sports began when he watched ace shooter Abhinav Bhindra stand on the podium with the gold medal in 2008 Beijing Olympics.

“Since then, I have always been chasing the dream of representing India in Olympics,” the engineering graduate, who is now pursuing MBA, told The Hindu.

Deepak set his first Guinness record in full contact with alternate elbows (142 in 60 seconds) in November 2017 and then another full contact with knee strikes (though he did 205 in three minutes, it was ratified at 175 itself) in December last.

A trainee under renowned taekwondo expert M. Jayanth Reddy from the city, who himself has set many world records, this fitness freak is now gunning for six more world records this year starting in March trying to beat Pakistan’s Irfan Mehmood’s single elbow strikes record of 128 in 60 seconds.

A silver medallist in the nationals, Deepak’s biggest achievement was a gold in the Indo-Nepal International Taekwondo Meet last May.

Ironically, this gifted taekwondo expert couldn’t make it to the U.S. Open Championship for want of financial assistance.

What is the route to Olympics? “It’s a demanding task. You have to win at least two medals in two Grade-II events featuring more than 60 countries and it’s never easy. But thanks to Jayanth Reddy sir, we are training with that specific goal of getting the qualifying mark,” says Deepak, a resident of Krishna Nagar.

“I am determined to achieve another first by making it to the Olympics by working hard despite all odds,” he signs off.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Telangana / by V.V. Subrahmanyam / Hyderabad – March 24th, 2018

Forest officer saves trees and dignity of his department too

Green Initiatives / Environment, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Nature

Braving odd: The gutsy Indhanpalli Forest Range Officer R. Srinivas Rao who saved several trees braving immense political pressure. | Photo Credit: S_HARPALSINGH

Refusing to succumb to official pressure, gutsy FRO chalks out alternative road diversion plan in Kawal Tiger Reserve

The likes of R. Srinivas Rao, the Forest Range Officer (FRO) of Indhanpalli range in Kawal Tiger Reserve (KTR), are a rare species in the State. As many as 30 trees stand testimony to his steely resolve towards protection of the forest, which would otherwise have been stripped of greenery for creating a road diversion.

Braving immense political and official pressure, the gutsy forest officer saved several trees, thereby upholding the honour and dignity of his department. Not just that, he even demonstrated that damage to environment can be minimised if enough thought is given to the otherwise conventional idea of ‘development’.

The government has taken up the task of strengthening old bridges passing through KTR, mostly in Mancherial and Nirmal districts. It is alleged that the developmental work was taken up without due permission and a good number of trees were felled when new and large bridges until Jannaram from Luxettipet side were commissioned to create diversion from inside the forest.

Mr. Rao, who took over as FRO of Indhanpalli just six months ago, however, did not allow cutting of trees when R&B authorities wanted to create a diversion from the new bridge near the Anjaneya temple.

“I did not recommend felling of the 30 fully matured trees, 18 of which are teak, as it meant a lot of destruction just to create a diversion,” he says.

The not-so-busy Luxettipet-Nirmal road is 66 feet wide and the bridge needed to have a width of 10 metres. No tree was needed to be sacrificed for expanding the existing three-metre wide bridge, the FRO felt. “I wanted the R&B officials and the contractor to explore the possibility of a diversion without felling even a single tree. What I got instead of a plan was calls from various quarters to relent,” chuckles Mr. Rao.

Finally, the road authorities themselves relented and worked as per the plan shared by the forest officer. That included not just sparing the trees but setting up of the camp for the workforce away from the site of the bridge.

“I ensured that the camp was not set up at the place as wild animals criss-cross the area in the night. There would have been lot of disturbance in the forest due to movement of labourers,” the FRO signs off.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by S. Harpal Singh / Indhanpalli (Mancherial District) / March 17th, 2018

Boy uses feet to write test

Amazing Feats, Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features

Hyderabad :

Elluri Shankar, a student of a government school in Mancherial district, wrote his Class 10 board exam using his feet.

He lost his hands in an accident when hewas in Class6 but that did not stop the 16-year-old to pursue his education and set an example for fellow students.

According to Gampa Srinivas, headmaster of Nennel High School, Shankar lost both his hands after sustaining an electric shock when he was playing with his friends at an under construction site.

“The accident did not prove to be a deterrent for him. He learnt to write with his feet soon after the accident and never opted for a writer,” said Srinivas.

The student, who hails from Nennel mandal in Adilabad, sat on the bench and wrote the first language paper. The headmaster said that Shankar lost his father at an early age and his mother was forcedtowork as a labourer. “There was a phase when the student wanted to quit his studies and support his family by doing domestic work. However, we encouraged him to pursue his studies to support his family in a better way,” he said.

Shankar is the only son of his mother and has two sisters, who are married.

Shankar wants to become independent in life and master some special skills after scoring goods marks in SSC exams. “He is brighter in academics than his classmates and has a resilience to learn. He doesn’t want to be dependent on anyone,” Srinivas added.

A photograph of Shankar writing with his feet went viral on social media with many people lauding his efforts. “Student of a 10 standard from a government school of Mancherial district Telangana, Shankar is giving exams in spite of all odds& has set an examplefor all students (sic),” tweeted Shaikh Zeeshan.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> City News> Hyderabad News / TNN / March 16th, 2018

Women at the wheel drive change

Business & Economy, Inspiration / Positive News and Features

Wheels of change: Bleseena, a woman forklift driver, at IKEA’s Hyderabad store.

IKEA’s upcoming Hyderabad store has eight women forklift drivers
Bleseena and Sirisha may come across as ordinary young working women, but if you see them at work, your perception is bound to change.

For, their job is a little unusual — they are forklift truck drivers in what is a male-dominated field. Working in the logistics wing of IKEA’s upcoming Hyderabad store, they drive forklifts and operate them to carry material loads and stack pallets onto warehouse shelves or trucks. And in doing so with competence and ease, they shattered the myth that women shy away from taking up jobs that are ‘meant’ for men.

A forklift is a powered industrial truck used to lift and move materials over short distances as part of logistics operations. In a country where not many women are seen driving vehicles, Ikea Hyderabad store has eight women forklift drivers, and another 10 in its Pune distribution centre.

Impressed with them, the Swedish home furnishing and furniture major has more recruitments underway for its upcoming store in Hyderabad and distribution centres across India.

Family support

Sharing how they garnered support from their respective families and male colleagues who initially scoffed at them, they told The Hindu, “We convinced them to let us undergo training and after that, there was no looking back.”

What motivated the young women to break work barriers? City-bred Bleseena, youngest of four siblings, wanted to have a job before getting married.

After securing one in a private company as a packing co-worker, she saw male colleagues operating forklift trucks and wanted to try her hand at it.

After her manager reluctantly let her train, Bleseena surprised him by learning to operate forklift truck in just a week.

After joining IKEA that was looking to ensure gender balance in all its operations, she further trained to drive IKEA’s specialised forklift machine.

With a supportive husband, the mother of an 18-month-old girl says her ambition is to motivate more women to enter the field.

Sirisha, hailing from Addanki in Andhra Pradesh, had to persuade her husband to let her work as a forklift operator. “My proud moment was when my father, who could never learn driving, was happy to see me driving the big machine. My wish is now to train more women in rural areas to be forklift operators,” says Sirisha.

Globally, women constitute 55% of IKEA’s workforce and 49% of leadership roles were held by women.

In India, women constitute 48% of the workforce and the target is to achieve 50:50 in all levels and functions, says Anna-Carin Mansson, Retail Country HR Manager, IKEA.

“From accuracy to due diligence, women bring good skill set to the workplace. They are enthusiastic, ambitious and importantly have the values which IKEA swears by,” says John Achillea, MD, IKEA-Telangana.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by M.L. Melly Maitreyi / Hyderabad – March 07th, 2018

Telugu man in top Army post

Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Leaders, Records, All

Appointment Lt Gen YVK Mohan

Lt. Gen. Yenduru Venkata Krishna Mohan, senior most serving Lieutenant General amongst three services (Army, Navy and Air Force) from both Telugu states, has been appointed him as General Officer Commanding 9 Corps.

Presently, he is serving as the Assistant Chief Integrated Defence Staff (Joint Operations) at HQ Integrated Defence Staff, New Delhi.

Conferred with the Sena Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal, He is an alumnus of Korukonda Sainik School, Andhra Pradesh National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, Pune and was commissioned into 7th Battalion of 11th Gorkha Rifles in 1981 and had served in varied terrains like Siachen Glacier and Indo-China border at Sikkim, a press release said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Special Correspondent / Hyderabad – January 10th, 2018