Monthly Archives: July 2014

Hyderabad may be Wi-Fi enabled by December

Records, All, Science & Technology

Hyderabad :

If everything goes according to plan, Hyderabad is all set to be a 4G Wi-Fi enabled city by the year end.

Reliance Group officials including CEO K S Venugopal and company coordinator PVC Madhava Rao called on chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao following which information technology minister Taraka Rama Rao held a review meeting with them. Reliance officials explained the road map for enabling the entire Hyderabad with 4G Wi-Fi towards the end of the year.

According to a press release, Reliance officials assured the government that the 4G service would be commissioned in September in the western part of the city where IT companies are clustered and would be gradually expanded to the rest of the city by December.

“The 4G Wi-Fi service will be launched in a phased manner.

In the first phase, along with Hyderabad, six corporations and 37 municipalities would be covered. In the second phase, 220 mandals will get the service. And in the third and final phase, the entire Telangana will come under 4G cover,” said the release.

For the first six months the service would be free. Following Hyderabad, Warangal would be a Wi-Fi enabled city in the second phase. Hoping to complete the ongoing works within the specified time frame,

Reliance is investing Rs 4,100 crore on the venture which calls for 1,700 km of optical fibre cable network. So far, 500 km of cabling has been completed.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / TNN / July 18th, 2014

This ‘FAST’ one may stump students

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education

State working out modalities to ensure ‘Financial Assistance to Students of Telangana’ scheme benefits ‘genuine’ students

FASTtelengana19jul2014

Students can’t take the Financial Assistance to Students of Telangana (FAST) scheme for granted and they may have to continuously perform well in the annual examinations to gain eligibility for the next academic year apart from fulfilling the university-prescribed attendance norm.

Authorities are working out on the modalities to put several such riders to ensure that only ‘genuine’ students get the benefit while weeding out those joining the courses just because the Government pays the fee. Academic performance will be the main criterion apart from fulfilling other criterion like the parents’ annual income. Even the best students may not get the total fee reimbursed unless needy, senior officials, pleading anonymity said.

“Fee reimbursement scheme will see changes and a committee of IAS officers will decide on the new modalities. It is not free for all and more so, for the ineligible,” an official involved in the FAST scheme said.

“Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, wants engineers, who can meet the demands of the IT industry that will take a huge leap with the Information Technology Investments Region (ITIR) projects. Hence, he is serious about Telangana students benefitting from it,” the official said. He reminds that the employability of local engineers is just eight per cent compared to 47 per cent of Tamil Nadu. FAST will focus to create such serious professionals, he said.

The present scheme is grossly misused and funds are unevenly distributed, officials said. In the combined State, out of the Rs. 4,500 crore spent on reimbursement, 75 per cent was grabbed by students of engineering, MBA, MCA and Pharmacy, who are just 20 per cent of the student community. It means nearly 80 per cent of funds are going to just 20 per cent of students, officials claim.

Last year 28 lakh students benefitted from fee reimbursement of which 14.88 lakh were from Telangana. The number is likely to come down to just around 8 lakh this year due to the nativity factor being introduced. The Government said students whose parents were residents of Telangana region before November 1, 1956 will be eligible for the scheme virtually ruling out any scope for students from Andhra region to benefit.

Nativity issue

Officials say the reason behind designing the new ‘nativity’ norm is the large number of Seemandhra region students in Telangana. Nearly 39,000 students from Seemandhra districts are pursuing education in Telangana gaining admission through the 15 per cent non-local (open merit) quota.

Of this nearly 24,000 are in professional colleges, 6,000-odd each in Intermediate and Degree colleges. On the other side about 18,000 Telangana students are in Andhra Pradesh and majority of them have gone there to pursue education while their parents are still residents of Telangana.

However, number of students with Seemandhra ancestry will be much higher as thousands of students born in Telangana to parents from Seemandhra region are now technically considered as Telangana students only. The new norm plans to identify and make them ineligible for FAST scheme.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Andhra Pradesh / by R. Ravikanth Reddy / Hyderabad – July 19th, 2014

Young sailors bring glory to the city

Sports

The Yatch Club of Hyderabad members Rishab Prabhakar, Shivaram, Nikhil, Rajnikant, Yacht Club of Hyderabad president Suheim Sheik with Laser Yatch in Hyderabad. Photo: By Arrangement. / The Hindu
The Yatch Club of Hyderabad members Rishab Prabhakar, Shivaram, Nikhil, Rajnikant, Yacht Club of Hyderabad president Suheim Sheik with Laser Yatch in Hyderabad. Photo: By Arrangement. / The Hindu

The fact that some boys are from the economically underprivileged section shows that the sport is gradually losing its elite tag. Suheim Sheik, president of the Yacht Club of Hyderabad, has been coaching schoolchildren, some of who come from poor families and these boys seem have taken to the sport like a duck to water.

Although Hyderabad is located far away from the coastline, thanks to the presence of the Hussainsagar lake, the city has produced several talented sailors who have fetched medals for India in international competitions.

The most noteworthy among them are Arjuna awardees – C.S Pradipak and Rajesh Choudhary (originally from Bihar but learnt sailing on the Hussainsagar waters), and A.A. Basith, who represented India at the Munich Olympics.

Fortunately the flow of talent still continues and now there are a bunch of youngsters who are looking to follow in the footsteps of these achievers. The fact that some of the boys are from the economically underprivileged section of society shows that the sport is gradually losing its elite tag.

Suheim Sheik, president of the Yacht Club of Hyderabad, has been coaching schoolchildren, some of who come from poor families and these boys seem have taken to the sport like a duck to water.

Nikhil Kumar, whose mother is in the fish selling business, showed so much promise that he was sent for an advanced level coaching course conducted by Polish coach Marek Nostitz Kackowski in Hong Kong.

Ragi Rajnikanth is another young lad with tremendous potential. He has bagged the bronze in Topper class national championships twice. “Hussainsagar lake is a very good sailing venue in many ways,” says Lt. Col. M.P. Jaggi (retd), a former sailor.

“The lake has the requisite length and breadth to lay a full sized course. Two internationals were conducted here – the Four Square International in 1990 and the Asia Pacific Laser Regatta in 1991. Moreover, it is located in the middle of the city, which means less hassle in the transportation of boats, sailors and maintenance crew. Also, it allows more people to view the events. All these factors give Hyderabad an advantage and we are hopeful that this city will produce more top level sailors,” he says.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Abijit Sen Gupta / Hyderabad – July 18th, 2014

Hyderabad may go Delhi way

About Telangana, Business & Economy

Hyderabad :

After having come to power in Telangana, the TRS is now aiming to take control of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation. Towards that end, the TRS government is mulling trifurcation of the civic body into Hyderabad, Secunderabad and Cyberabad municipal corporations.

Such a trifurcation will ensure better administration and development in three core regions of Hyderabad, sources said. The proposal takes the cue from Delhi, where the Municipal Corporation of Delhi was trifurcated into North Delhi, South Delhi and East Delhi Municipal Corporations in 2012. Similarly, Mumbai city has two corporations, the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai and Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC).

Sources said initially, Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao was in favour of bifurcating GHMC into two entities, Hyderabad and Secunderabad municipal corporations.

However, some leaders reportedly suggested that Cyberabad should also be made a municipal corporation by merging it with some more surrounding villages. Following that, the TRS government is warming up to the idea of splitting GHMC into three entities.

TRS sources said the trifurcation of GHMC will not only pave the way for better administration and focused development, but will also help the party to capture power in the civic bodies. As of now, the TRS does not have representation in the 150-ward corporation and it is likely to contest the next election by allying with the Majlis-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM), which, incidentally, has been sharing power with the Congress for the past five years. The TRS may consult its new ally MIM before taking a decision on splitting GHMC into two or three corporations, the sources said.

“GHMC elections are due in December this year. If the bifurcation or trifurcation happens, the state government may have to postpone the elections for about six months for delimitation of wards and to complete other procedures,” a city TRS leader said.

Both Hyderabad and Secunderabad were separate municipal corporations till 1960 and merged later. The Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act, 1950, created two separate corporations for Hyderabad and Secunderabad and then merged the two bodies in 1960 and converted into Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) in order to ensure effective administration and financial strength. At that time, the MCH’s population was just 16 lakh spread over 73 sq kms and the corporation’s annual budget was just 1.5 crore per year.

In April 2007, the erstwhile MCH and surrounding 12 municipalities were merged and Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation was created covering an area of 625 sq kms.

Attempts were made by the previous Congress state governments to add another 36 villages into GHMC but they did not succeed due to resentment from the people’s representatives and court cases.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / by Konde Mahesh, TNN / July 13th, 2014

New Telangana State Ushers in Its First Bonalu Festival

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Hyderabad :

The annual Ashada Jatara Bonalu festival will be held at the Ujjaini Mahankali temple in Secunderabad on Sunday. After the formation of new Telangana state, this would be the first grand festival to be held in the new state. The state government has declared Bonalu it a state festival.

Bonalu is an important Hindu festival dedicated to the Goddess Mahakali and is held in the month of Ashadam. The festival is celebrated to ward off evil and usher in peace and harmony.

Apart from Ujjaini Mahankali temple, several Mahakali temples located in Secunderadad like Ramgopalpet, Pan Bazar, Mettuguda, Bhoiguda, R P Road and M G Road, Paradise, YMCA, Patny and Ranigunj will also be celebrating the festival on the same day. Meanwhile, preparations are under way in full swing for the festival.

Executive Officer and Assistant Commissioner of Sri Ujjaini Mahakali Devasthanam, Secunderabad, A Ashok Goud said Sri Ammavaru (Goddess Mahakali) darshan would will commence at 4 am on Sunday and go on till 2 am the next day.

Devotees will be allowed for darshan (prayers) of Goddess Mahakali through dharma darshanam entrance from 4 am. Lakhs of devotees are expected to visit the temple for darshan during this period.Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao along with family members, Ministers, MPs and MLAs would offer prayers to goddess Mahakali at around noon on Sunday.

Rangam tomorrow

The festival will conclude on Monday with ‘Rangam’, foretelling of the future by a young unmarried woman at 9 am followed by Mahakali procession on a caparisoned elephant. The procession with the Mahankali idol will begin at 10.30 am and culminate at Mettuguda.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express News Service / July 13th, 2014

Forum formed to help CM K Chandrasekhar Rao build Telangana

Business & Economy, Leaders

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (Photo: DC archives)
Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (Photo: DC archives)

Hyderabad:

In order to support Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and his plans to develop the state, a forum has been formed.

In a round table conference held at a hotel in the city, Deputy Chief Minister Mahmood Ali has thanked Mr Rao for giving him an opportunity to serve the people and a position in the government. Mr Mahmood Ali promised that he will help the minorities in solving their issues.

Former MLA Konda Lakshma Reddy, Telangana Muslims JAC president Mohammed Mushtaq Malik, TRS Nampally incharge Mohammed Raheemullah Khan Niyazi and former SAAP chairman Nawab Mir Hyder Ali Khan were among those present at the meeting. Shareef Abdul Raheem Yamani, chairman of two local channels, joined the TRS in the presence of the Deputy Chief Minister.

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Nation> Current Affairs / DC Correspondent / July 16th, 2014

Taking a tough stand

Sports

V.S. Hari Krishna, winner of the youth boys title at the recent St. Paul's Stag TT Academy state ranking tournament. / by Special Arrangement / The Hindu
V.S. Hari Krishna, winner of the youth boys title at the recent St. Paul’s Stag TT Academy state ranking tournament. / by Special Arrangement / The Hindu

Playing with senior players has helped paddler Hari Krishna chalk up victories

V.S. Hari Krishna preferred to punch above his weight right from an early age. Unlike several children who fake their dates of birth to play against younger rivals, he showed a penchant to take on tougher, if not older, opponents.

Such an approach stood him in good stead as the 14-year-old, who should be playing in the junior category, clinched the youth boys (under 21 years) title of the St. Paul’s Stag Table Tennis Academy state ranking tournament recently. All those training sessions at the aforementioned academy with former international G. Jitender and Shreyas Jagirdar, another senior player, had paid off.

Hari attributes his recent success to the 45-day national camp held at Lucknow in summer, where he learnt new techniques from the German coach Peter Angel. “This outing gave me a lot of experience and confidence,” says the youngster.

Setting out in the sport as an eight-year-old, the class X student of Gitanjali Devashray built up an impressive body of achievement. In March, he clinched a bronze double in the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Global Junior Circuit tournament at Panaji, Goa. After claiming the cadet singles bronze, he joined hands with another Hyderabad lad, Snehit Fidel Rohit, to corner the doubles bronze.

“It was a dream come true to wear India colours and play before the home crowd,” the teenager said of the Goa experience. Hari finished fifth in the Table Tennis Federation of India’s (TTFI) 2013 sub-junior boys rankings. In the singles of the said section, he claimed bronze at the National ranking championship at Ajmer in December last year.

With Chinese paddler Zhang Jike for role model, Hari embarked on the table tennis journey under the tutelage of Maduri Venugopal and is currently coached by Ibrahim Khan and P. Nagender Reddy.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by A. Joseph Anthony / Hyderabad – July 16th, 2014

Telangana Steals Show at Tourism Fair

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Travel

Hyderabad :

The Travel and Tourism Fair (TTF) travel show that got underway at Hitex in Hyderabad on Friday proved to be a big canvas for Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to promote their tourism in a big way.

Those who had visited the TTF trade fair, organised by Fairfest Media Limited in Hyderabad on previous occasions, would be now looking at two pavilions instead of one belonging to a composite state with the youngest state of India – Telangana – making its debut at the fair in a colourful manner. Its pavilion was artfully constructed based on Kakatiya theme. AP Tourism’s pavilion, simple yet elegant, catches the eye of the visitor with artfully decorated posters and wood carvings from Madavamala.

Beside the Telangana pavilion, Gujarat pavilion stands in all its glory with colourfully attired artistes playing dandiya raas. The three-day travel show, features around 200 stalls from across the country. Sri Lanka, Malyasia, Thailand and Oman also set up their stalls. In the middle of the expo, stands Kerala’s pavilion attracting the visitors.

Besides tourism departments and development corporations of states like Assam, Goa, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Jharkhand and others, several private players from hospitality industry have also set up stalls. “It is a platform for the who and who of tourism and hospitality industry to interact, share and collaborate,” Fairfest Medial Limited joint managing director Gazanfar Ibrahim told ‘Express.’

“Like previous year, this year too, there is a good participation from India as well as abroad,” he said. Ibrahim said the tourism sector is one of the top five priorities of the NDA government. “If there is no uncertainty, progress in tourism is possible,” he pointed out.

On the incentives announced for the tourism sector in the Union Budget, he said: “Much needs to be done for the sector, especially rationalisation of taxation, if we are to stand a chance with global tourism players like Malaysia, Singapore, among others.”

The travel show will be open for the general public from Saturday 3 pm. The show concludes on Sunday evening.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by S Guru Srikanth / July 02nd, 2014

Stars walk the ramp for education cause

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy

From Left: Shilpa Reddy, Lakshmi Manchu, event organiser M.R.S.K. Chaitanya, Dia Mirza and Saina Nehwal at a fashion show organised by the Teach for Change initiative (Photo: DC)
From Left: Shilpa Reddy, Lakshmi Manchu, event organiser M.R.S.K. Chaitanya, Dia Mirza and Saina Nehwal at a fashion show organised by the Teach for Change initiative (Photo: DC)

Hyderabad:

The who’s who of the city was present at a fashion show organised by the Teach for Change initiative at a star hotel here on Friday to raise funds for textbooks being sourced from Cambridge University. The initiative is supported by Deccan Chronicle. Hundreds of enthusiasts from different fields were present to support the cause for better education for the deprived children.

Badminton ace Saina Nehwal, actresses Dia Mirza, Lakshmi Manchu and Adah Sharma, theatre personality Dolly Thakore, IT minister K.T. Rama Rao, designer Shilpa Reddy, and Karuna Gopal of FFC walked the ramp with kids from 10 government schools.

Dolly Thakore also introduced the “Edu Beam” — a satellite-based educative link that is being tested in Mumbai’s municipal schools. “There is always a lacuna in what government does for its state. And such initiatives bring to light a few issues. The Telangana government will certainly give special attention to the field of education and will introduce innovation in learning,” said Mr Rama Rao.

“India must learn from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Finland and Taiwan, which have adopted groundbreaking techniques in the field of education — like using information communication technology, teaching life and nature, using iPads etc. — now that the World Bank has allotted a billion dollars for education,” said Ms Karuna Gopal, president, Foundation for Futuristic Cities (FFC).

In a bid to add a comprehensive value addition, the Teach for Change initiative has adopted 10 government schools across the city to provide critical inputs in the areas of English learning and leadership qualities.

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Nation> Education / DC / Bhagyashree Tarke / July 12th, 2014

Two city boys for Homeless World Cup!

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Sports, World Opinion

Simarpreet Singh and Tariq Ahmed from Hyderabad who have been selected to represent India in the World Cup football for Homeless to be played in Chile this October. PHOTO: V. V. Subrahmanyam / The Hindu
Simarpreet Singh and Tariq Ahmed from Hyderabad who have been selected to represent India in the World Cup football for Homeless to be played in Chile this October. PHOTO: V. V. Subrahmanyam / The Hindu

Soccer fever is reaching a climax in Brazil. But for two young footballers, Tariq and Simarpreet Singh from the city, it might just be the beginning of a journey to recognition. The two boys have been selected to represent India in the Homeless World Cup (for those who come from slums) in Chile in October.

“A World Cup is a World Cup. We are on cloud nine,” the delighted duo exclaimed. They are products of ‘Sports Coaching Foundation’ football camp where Hyderabad Sporting Club chief coach Mohd Saleh trains.

“This is a dream come true and we will try our best to make an impact in this event,” say the soccer duo. Nineteen-year-old Tariq is an engineering graduate from Hussaini Alam and Simarpreet is a commerce graduate from Zaranagar locality of Mehdipatnam. “This is nowhere near the real World Cup soccer but this is a sport that is played with great passion,” the duo says.

“These boys would not have made it to Chile but for the initiative of Kaarmic Education Services’ Dantu Kartik and Adithya Sanjay of Awakening Foundation who spotted talent and started grooming them. I am glad that Tariq and Simarpreet are from the SCF where they have been training under lights,” says a proud K. Sai Baba, general secretary of SCF.

SCF felicitated the duo.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by V. V. Subrahmanyam / Hyderabad – July 12th, 2014