Cheshire Homes India Coorg president Geetha Chengappa was presented the Kannada Vikasa Rathna award by Rajya Vokkaligara Vikasa Vedike recently.
The award was given away at a programme in Mysuru, after recognising her service towards the welfare of physically challenged people.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State> Mangaluru / by DHNS, Ponnampet / December 21st, 2020
Sanjana Kattera, a corona warrior who was part of the Oxford COVID-19 vaccine trial team, is ‘Coorg Person of the Year, 2020’, according to a release.
Kodagu-born Dr. Sanjana was involved in treating COVID-affected children. A paediatrician, she was part of the vaccine trial team at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in the United Kingdom. The release said Dr. Sanjana served patients selflessly by risking her life, especially when PPE suits were in short supply initially.
Dr. Sanjana was selected ‘Coorg Person of the Year’ in a poll conducted by www.coorgtourisminfo.com, Kodagu’s first news portal, promoted by senior journalist P.T. Bopanna.
She worked with phase I/II of the trial with the age group 18-55 years by initially screening and recruiting patients as part of the eligibility criteria.
Dr. Sanjana, daughter of Suresh Kattera and Smitha Suresh, did her schooling in the United World College South East Asia (UWCSEA) in Singapore.
She studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh in the U.K. After completing her medicine, she specialised in paediatrics in a hospital in the U.K, and is currently training in NHS, Liverpool. She will be completing her Membership of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (MRCPCH) early next year.
The corona warrior had a tough competition for the ‘Coorg Person of the Year’ title from M.A. Ganapathy, IPS, director-general of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), the release added.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Mysuru – December 21st, 2020
Madikeri:
The Union Government yesterday approved the appointment of IAS Officer S.S. Nakul as Private Secretary to the Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MoCA) at the level of Deputy Secretary. Incidentally, Nirmala Sitharaman is a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka.
According to an order from the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT), Nakul has been appointed as Private Secretary to Nirmala Sitharaman for a period of five years with effect from the date of assumption of the charge of the post or on co-terminus basis with the Minister or till he ceases to function as Private Secretary to the Minister or until further orders, whichever is earlier.
Nakul is a 2010-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) Officer of Karnataka cadre. He is currently serving as Deputy Commissioner of Ballari District. An Engineering Graduate (BE in Electronics & Communications) from Mysuru, he joined civil services in 2010.
Nakul hails from Kushalnagar in Kodagu district and is the son of well-known entrepreneur Rotarian S.K. Satish and Shobha Satish. He has served as Deputy Commissioner and Zilla Panchayat CEO in many districts. Nakul is married to Poojita and they have a boy child.
Nakul had secured an all-India rank of 31 in USPC Civil Services exam. He is known for his efficient handling of administration and has made a mark in deft handling of COVID-19 situation in the State. He is known for utmost transparency in handling of administrative matters. In his tenure, Ballari became the first district in the country to prepare and upload an audit report of COVID expenditure in the district.
He has shown exemplary uprightness and efficiency in the use of Ballari district’s mineral fund and State disaster management fund for COVID relief such as setting up special wards in hospitals, construction of oxygen tanks, procuring masks, PPE kits, medicines and equipment.
On his deputation to Central service, Nakul said “The PMO had sought my opinion two weeks back. I couldn’t say no… It’s an opportunity to learn new lessons of public administration. I will join the Central service after the completion of Gram Panchayat election process.”
Nakul’s wife delivers first child at Govt. Hospital
When he was the CEO of Ballari ZP, Nakul had emerged as a trend-setter by getting his wife’s maiden delivery done at the district hospital in Ballari at a time when it has become common even for the economically weak to prefer private hospitals or nursing homes for deliveries.
“The district hospital has experienced doctors, performing over 10 deliveries daily. The hospital has almost all the facilities and above all it is clean and tidy which made us prefer Government Hospital,” Nakul had told reporters then.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home>News / December 18th, 2020
Joshna’s contemporary Dipika Pallikal has competed in 297 PSA Tour matches. England’s Alison Waters (487) and Camille Serme (France, 439) have topped the list in the women’s category.
India squash player Joshna Chinappa became the first Indian female player and second (male and female) to play 400 PSA Tour squash matches.
The 34-year-old achieved the unique feat in the CIB-Black Ball Squash Open in Cairo (Egypt).
The Indian, seeded 10, defeated Julianne Courtice of England 10-12, 11-6, 11-9, 12-10 in the women’s first round.
Only Saurav Ghosal (444) has played more than Joshna.
Joshna’s contemporary Dipika Pallikal has competed in 297 PSA Tour matches. England’s Alison Waters (487) and Camille Serme (France, 439) have topped the list in the women’s category.
source: http://www.sportstar.thehindu.com / SportStar / Home> Squash / by Team SportStar / Chennai – December 09th, 2020
Madikeri:
With the works on Kodava Heritage Centre near Vidyanagar on the outskirts of Madikeri having resumed recently, Madikeri Kodava Samaja President Konganda S. Devaiah and Field Marshal K.M. Cariappa – General K.S. Thimayya Forum Convenor Col. Kandrathanda C. Subbaiah visited the site on Monday and inspected the ongoing works.
The two received inputs on the design of structures coming up at the site, the architectural outlook of Ainmane and the nature of works in progress.
The contractor said that the works have been taken up at a cost of Rs.1.56 crore and the collapsed walls of structures are being rebuilt.
Pointing out that red stone pillars, which do not have the capacity to bear the roof load are being replaced with concrete pillars following directions from the PWD, the contractor said the roof for Ainmane is being designed with the concept of Mundmane. Also the repair works of steps leading to the overhead tank is underway and a View Point is being built atop the water tank. The View Point will have iron canopy instead of jungle wood roof-cover as it was found that the iron cover was better considering the geographical location of the site.
Continuing, the contractor said that the Heritage Centre will have two Ainmanes, with the first one being built now and the other later. The PWD has give nine months time to complete the works, the contractor said and added that he was hopeful of completing the works by March 2021 itself.
After receiving inputs from the contractor K.S. Devaiah and Col. Subbaiah went through the blueprint of the project and took note of the roof design, amphitheatre, View Point, Mundmane, water pond and other features. Devaiah asked the contractor to build the structure strictly in accordance with the characteristics of Ainmane and to maintain quality in works.
Col. Subbaiah asked the contractor to get a blueprint of the complete project from private agencies. Asking the contractor not to deviate from Kodava customs and traditions in the construction of structures, he said that the contractor too must have the self-satisfaction of having executed quality works.
Speaking to Mysooru Mithra, the sister publication of Star of Mysore, Col. Subbaiah said that he inspected the works and interacted with the contractor.
Noting that more inputs on the project will be sought from PWD and Tourism Department officials following which the project will be discussed in detail with Kodagu Deputy Commissioner (DC), he said that he will hold talks with Kodagu District In-charge Minister too later. Thereafter, the DC will be appealed to convene a meeting of officials of all concerned departments and efforts will be made to ensure that all works on Kodava Heritage Centre are wholly completed, he added.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News / December 08th, 2020
The houses built for flood victims of the 2018 calamity at Biligeri in Madikeri taluk are almost ready for distribution to eligible beneficiaries.
In total, 22 houses have been constructed at the village at a cost of ₹3.96 crore. These houses will be allotted to those whose houses were fully damaged in the floods and landslips two years ago.
On Thursday, Deputy Commissioner Annies Kanmani Joy, along with a team of officials, inspected the newly built houses and other amenities provided at the colony. The officials told the Deputy Commissioner that the works were almost done and the houses were ready to be handed over to the beneficiaries identified.
During the visit, the officials said that Minister for Housing V. Somanna, who is also the Minister in charge of Kodagu district, was expected to hand over the keys of the houses to the flood victims and the date of the function would be finalised soon.
Assistant Commissioner Eshwar Kumar Kandu, in-charge Additional Deputy Commissioner Srinivas, and Madikeri tahsildar Mahesh were present.
Heritage village
The Deputy Commissioner also inspected the Kodava Heritage Village, a project for showcasing the culture of the Kodavas coming up at Madikeri. Work on the project has resumed. Accompanied by tourism and other department officials, Ms. Joy examined the works. Laterite stones are being used to build the building.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Mysuru – November 28th, 2020
A bride came directly from the marriage hall to the Junior College in Madikeri to write a competitive examination, after completing her wedding rituals, on Sunday.
Swathi, a resident of Ashokapura, is the bride. The competitive examination for the selection of DCC Bank staff had coincided with the date of her marriage with Suresh from Madhuramma Pattana in Suntikoppa.
The marriage was held at Ambedkar Bhavan in Madikeri. The auspicious timing was fixed so that it did not clash with the timing of the examination.
Swathi and Suresh entered into wedlock between 6.30 am and 9 am on Sunday and Swathi later came to the exam hall in the Junior College in Madikeri directly, in her wedding attire.
Swathi Suresh said that she had been preparing for the competitive exam from the past several months.
The marriage rituals were performed in short, so that she did not lag behind the schedule of the exam.
Swathi expressed her confidence in clearing the exam.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State> Mangaluru / by DHNS, Madikeri / November 22nd, 2020
With selfless contributions from the donors and members, the corpus of the fund currently stands at Rs 9.88 crore even as members are hopeful that the amount will touch Rs 10 crore by the end of year.
The Coorg Education Fund, a trust incorporated in 1919 in Kodagu, is extensively promoting education among the Kodava community. With over 450 members in the trust and numerous other donors, the trust has succeeded in providing scholarships to merit students and students from financially backward families.
This year, the education fund has handed over scholarships to 855 Kodava students amounting to a total of Rs 47.43 lakh. “The Coorg Education was founded in 1863 and it started providing scholarships to merit students from 1916. It was, however, formed into a legal corporation in 1919,” explained KP Uthappa, present president of the trust. While an average of 450 to 500 students receive scholarships every year, over 800 students have been benefited by the trust this year. “Priority is given to merit students and the students are required to possess 75% and above results in the academic and competitive exams. Nevertheless, students from financially backward families are also provided with scholarships based on recommendations. We are stressing the community students to opt for medical, dental and engineering courses. Apart from this, we are extensively encouraging students to take up defense and IPS courses and an increased scholarship – up to Rs 50,000 for each student is being offered to students who opt the same,” explained Uthappa.
With selfless contributions from the donors and members, the corpus of the fund currently stands at Rs 9.88 crore even as members are hopeful that the amount will touch Rs 10 crore by the end of this year. Meanwhile, a contribution of Rs 75 lakh was made to the trust this year by benefactor Raghu Madappa in the memory of his department sons.
“This year, a youngster B Rachith Aiyappa received a maximum donation of Rs 5 lakh. The youngster has opted to pursue PhD in Informatics & Data Science and this impressed the donors resulting in such a huge scholarship,” confirmed Uthappa. The trust, in its annual ceremony, encourages and motivates Kodava students to work with “dedication, concentration and efficiency,” as explained by Uthappa.
source: http://www.edexlive.com / EdEx, The New Indian Express / Home> News> Kodava Community / by EdEx Live / November 19th, 2020
Madikeri:
Channayanakote village is turning into a mannequin village in cleanliness in Kodagu.
Panchayat president, panchayat growth officer, ladies organisations have succeeded in creating consciousness amongst individuals to maintain their environment spick and span.
PDO Rajan and panchayat president Geetha have set up a scientific waste administration unit within the village.
They bought a car beneath Swachh Village challenge to make sure trash reaches the dumping centre. Initially, the residents had been stunned to see the PDO himself attain their doorways within the car throughout morning hours to organize them to domesticate a routine behavior of cleanliness.
“Our village should look beautiful and attractive. We have even cleared the garbage around the village, and we are developing a garden for the villagers,” disclosed president Geetha.
Indira, an activist, appreciated the work by the panchayat crew. “Approaching people door to door by the PDO and creating awareness for cleanliness is a welcome step.
Woman organisations will also join hands with the panchayat in their endeavour,” she introduced.
source: http://www.thegreatrindia.com / The Greater India / Home> States / by TGI News / November 13th, 2020
Gonikoppa:
If carried out with hard work and passion, farming will not only bring satisfaction but will also support the livelihood, opined Podamada Mohan, a progressive agriculturist from Balele Devanuru village.
Mohan has been cultivating paddy on only two hectares of land. However, he has been able to harvest an average of 62 quintals of paddy per hectare, annually. This is made possible owing to the innovative methods of irrigation, pest control and so on.
For his commitment towards agriculture, he has been awarded the taluk-level progressive farmer award in Virajpet, for the year 2015-16.
Mohan has been cultivating Atira and Tunga varieties of paddy. Now, both the varieties are almost ready for harvest. He has maintained cleanliness in the paddy farm by removing the shrubs.
Manure
He said that a mixture of DAP, Urea and Potash are provided to the crops in the quantity of 20 kg per acre, at the time of transplantation. This will help in the faster growth of paddy sheaths.
The process of providing fertiliser is repeated twice, with a gap of one month. The high-lying area of the paddy farm, which is known as ‘Nippuni’ is provided with 100% manure while the low lying ‘Kippani’ area is provided with 20% of manure.
The paddy farm has not been affected by any disease. Mohan has made sure to spray insecticide 15 days before the transplantation.
This will control the disease at the initial level, he said.
No takers
Mohan lamented that 45 quintals of unsold rice from last year, is remaining at his house. Even though the rate is Rs 1,125 per quintal, there are no takers.
No suitable market price is available at the APMC as well. The low price is discouraging for many farmers, said Mohan.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State> Mangaluru / by DHNS, Gonikoppa / November 10th, 2020
