Category Archives: Science & Technology

KAAPI LEKKA (kaapilekka.com) – For the FIRST-TIME, a user-friendly FREE App (kaapilekka.com) has been created in both Kannada and English. Exclusively built for the benefit of Coffee Planters of Kodagu (Coorg) by a native-generational Kodagu Planter

Agriculture, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg), Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Science & Technology, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

by Abdul-Aleem

This Free and easily accessible new product is being introduced for the First time in Kodagu (Coorg) District, Karnataka . 

Karnataka produces over 70% of India’s coffee and Kodagu accounts for roughly 50% of the state’s production.

For ease of the reader/user, the following information is divided into 3 (three) parts. 

First a simple profile and easy to understand communication on the new App www.kaapilekka.com.  Second a brief interview with the App creator, to better understand the App www.kaapilekka.com.  Thirdly thumbnail notes on the Ammathi (Virajpet District) Kodagu native ,whose idea it was to benefit the planters of Kodagu with FREE access.

Part 01 (One)

About Kaapi Lekka (www.kaapilekka.com)

A free digital ledger built for Kodagu coffee planters

In one sentence Kaapi Lekka helps a coffee planter keep labour, advances, expenses, harvest and sales in one private ledger, so the year’s real cost and cost per kilogram become easier to understand.

From one estate ledger to a community tool


Seventeen workers turn up today. Four have advances. One worked a half-day. The brush cutter needs maintenance. Fertilizer must be paid for. Pepper is harvested and coffee goes for curing.

A coffee year advances through hundreds of such entries – each ordinary on its own, but difficult to reconstruct later.


Most planters keep records, but those records are often split between a labour book, diary, spreadsheet, messages and memory.

By the end of the year, one practical question can be surprisingly hard to answer:
what did the year really cost, and what did each kilogram of clean coffee return?


Kaapi Lekka began as a personal estate ledger built to answer that question. It was not conceived as a startup or a commercial accounting package.

The aim was simpler: keep the everyday plantation record in one place and make the running picture of the estate easier to see.

Once the tool proved useful in day-to-day estate work, it was opened to fellow planters as a free community project.


Built around the way an estate actually works

Kaapi Lekka is designed around routine estate decisions rather than formal accounting terminology. It keeps people and payments, estate activity and the running financial picture connected without asking a planter to learn a conventional accounting system.


a. People and payments — daily labour by worker, block and work type; reusable wage rates; receiver grouping; and visible advances and settlements.
b. Estate activity and costs — expenses such as fertilizer, spray and transport, together with harvest and sales recorded as the season progresses.
c. The running picture — a dashboard that brings cost, output, settlements and cost per kilogram together for review.

Especially useful for small and medium planters

Large estates often have established systems, dedicated staff or people assigned to accounts. On a smaller or family-run holding, the planter may be the owner, supervisor, record keeper, buyer and seller at once.


Important information can remain scattered simply because there is no separate person available to organise it.

Kaapi Lekka is intended especially for that situation: discipline without complicated paperwork, and a clearer view of labour, advances, expenses, harvest, sales and profitability while the season is still in progress. It supports the planter’s judgement rather than trying to replace it.


A simpler first-time experience

The current sign-in experience is direct. A new user visits kaapilekka.com, chooses English or Kannada, signs in with a Google account and can start immediately. There is no access request form and no waiting period for manual approval.


A short guided setup then helps the user name the estate, add the first block, optionally add a worker, and optionally record a first activity such as a workday, expense, harvest or sale. The Home screen keeps a simple getting-started checklist so the user can return to unfinished steps later.

Designed for phones, field conditions and local use

Kaapi Lekka works in a web browser on Android phones, iPhones and laptops, and it can be added to a phone’s home screen like an app. The interface is available in English and Kannada. It uses large, direct actions and a guided setup intended to reduce the learning burden for users who do not work with conventional accounting software.


Connectivity on estates is not always reliable. After a successful online sign-in and load, the app can cache work on the device while offline and resume synchronization when connectivity returns. The screen shows whether entries are saved, queued or synchronized so that a planter is not left guessing.

FREE-to-Use & privacy-conscious


Kaapi Lekka is currently offered free of charge as a community project. The Kaapi Lekka Team bears the hosting and maintenance costs and intends to continue doing so in support of the community.

The service has no advertisements, paid tier or sale of planter data. The application uses Google sign-in, Firebase Authentication and Firestore. Security rules separate each signed-in member’s ledger from other members, while the member can use the same Google account across devices.

The current public experience is August 28th, 2026

For more information : contact the Kaapi Lekka Team : email:kaapilekka.support@gmail.com

__________________________________________

Part 02

An INTERVIEW with the idea and product creator of www.kaapilekka.com – Makeen Khan

” Kaapi Lekka applies the discipline and clarity I learned in large organisations to a very practical problem at home. The aim is not to replace a planter’s judgement, but to make the year’s real costs easier to understand. “ says Makeen

Makeen Khan – Founder, Creator & Project Steward – KAAPI LEKKA – kaapilekka.com

Interview in Q & A format to address specific issues, one-by-one :

1. What specific problem prompted you to build Kaapi Lekka?

The immediate problem was fragmented estate record-keeping. Labour might be in one notebook, advances in another, expenses in messages or bills, and harvest and sales in separate sheets. That makes it difficult to know the estate’s true running cost or cost per kilogram of clean coffee. Kaapi Lekka began as a practical ledger for one estate and was later opened to other Kodagu planters.

2. How did you validate that a digital app was the right solution?

The first validation came from actual use on the creator’s own estate. The test was not whether it looked modern, but whether it reduced reconstruction at the end of the season and made everyday figures easier to retrieve. A phone-based ledger was useful because the phone is already present when labour, payments and field activity are being recorded. The project is still learning from real use; it does not claim a formal market study.

3. Were local growers or cooperatives involved in design and testing?

The product grew from a planter’s own workflow and early informal feedback from a small number of Kodagu planters, rather than from a formal cooperative-led design programme. That feedback reinforced the need for simplicity, local terminology, clear payment handling and a low-friction first-time experience. Wider planter feedback is now important, but we prefer to describe that process honestly rather than overstate the scale of testing.

4. How does the app handle weak connectivity and synchronization?

After a successful online sign-in and load, the app uses local browser storage and Firestore offline persistence to keep entries available when signal drops. Pending changes synchronize when connectivity returns, and the interface shows whether data is saving, queued offline or synchronized. An internet connection is still needed for the initial Google sign-in and first load.

5. How did you address language and accessibility for non-technical users?

The interface currently supports English and Kannada. A new user chooses a language before sign-in and can change it later. The app uses a guided first-time setup, direct action labels, large tap targets, helpful empty screens and an always-available quick-add action. Kodava Takk is not currently supported, so we would not claim that it is.

6. What technology stack keeps the app affordable enough to remain free?

Kaapi Lekka is a lightweight progressive web app built with web technologies and hosted through Firebase. Google sign-in handles authentication, Firestore stores and synchronizes data, and the app can be installed from the browser without an app-store distribution layer. This serverless approach keeps infrastructure and operational complexity low for a small community project.

7. What metrics are you tracking to measure real-world impact on yield or income?

We do not currently claim a measured improvement in yield or income. The first useful indicators are simpler: whether a member completes setup, returns to the ledger, records activity consistently and can use the resulting cost and settlement information. Administrative monitoring is deliberately limited to activation signals rather than private ledger values. Any future impact study should rely on voluntary, consented feedback rather than inspection of members’ financial records.

8. Since the app is free, how will it remain sustainable?

Kaapi Lekka is maintained as a small community project, and its serverless architecture keeps operating costs modest. The Kaapi Lekka Team currently bears the hosting and maintenance costs and intends to continue doing so in support of the community. No paid tier is planned; the intention is for Kaapi Lekka to remain free and ad-free, without selling planter data.

9. How do you protect privacy and prevent commercial exploitation of planter data?

Members sign in with Google, and Firestore security rules separate each member’s ledger from other members. Data synchronizes only for the signed-in account, and users can export a JSON backup of their own records. Kaapi Lekka does not sell planter data or use it for advertising. Support and activation monitoring are designed around account and onboarding information, not the member’s detailed labour, expense, harvest or sales values.

10. Does Kaapi Lekka address white stem borer, monsoon variation or other local crop challenges?

Kaapi Lekka is not an agronomy or pest-diagnosis app. It does not predict weather or prescribe treatment. What it can do is help a planter record the labour, inputs, dates, blocks and costs associated with estate work. For example, spray-related labour can be recorded against a block and the related expense recorded by date and category, creating a clearer history to discuss with a qualified agronomist. Specialist crop advice should continue to come from qualified agronomists and local institutions.

11. Will the app expand to Chikmagalur, Wayanad or crops such as pepper?

The present focus is Kodagu coffee estates. The ledger can already accommodate mixed-estate activity and planter-defined work or expense categories, but the product has not announced a broader regional rollout. Expansion should happen only if the current Kodagu experience remains simple and dependable and if growers elsewhere confirm that the workflow fits their needs.

Important and Beneficial Facts of kaapilekka.com for the Users:

  • Kaapi Lekka is a free, ad-free community ledger for Kodagu coffee planters.
  • It covers labour, workers, advances, expenses, harvest, sales and cost-per-kilogram reporting.
  • The current interface supports English and Kannada.
  • New users can sign in with Google and start immediately; there is no request form or approval wait.
  • The app can be added to a phone’s home screen and can queue entries during poor connectivity after an initial online sign-in/load.

EASY ILLUSTRATION FOR FIRST-TIME USERS :

Important and easy technical ‘Qualifications & Information’ for the Users :

  • Proven yield or income gains — no formal impact study has yet established this.
  • The app can be added to a phone’s home screen and can queue entries during poor connectivity after an initial online sign-in/load.
  • Agronomy advice — the app records estate activity but does not diagnose pests or recommend treatment.
  • Always works offline — the initial Google sign-in and first load need connectivity; offline work follows a successful online load.
  • Gmail-level security — say that the app uses Firebase Authentication, Firestore and per-user security rules instead.
  • Formal cooperative validation — describe the present evidence as own-estate use and early informal feedback from a small number of Kodagu planters.
  • Website: kaapilekka.com
  • Support contact: kaapilekka.support@gmail.com

_____________________________________

Part 03 (Three)

THUMBNAIL BRIEF on Makeen Khan – the Creator, Founder and Project Steward of App – Kaapi Lekka

Makeen’s roots are in Ammathi (Virajpet Taluk), Kodagu, where his family has been landholders for generations. After a long international career in technology and digital transformation, he returned to Coorg following his retirement from Coca-Cola and brought that experience back to a practical challenge at home: helping planters understand the true running picture of their estates.

Professional journey

Across more than four decades in technology, Makeen worked on enterprise systems, data and analytics, cloud technology, cybersecurity, automation and large-scale digital transformation. He spent nearly three decades with Coca-Cola and served as Chief Information Officer. His leadership responsibilities extended across the Middle East and South West Asia, bringing together technology, people and business priorities across different countries and cultures.

He is currently Senior Vice President at eBest Mobile, where he contributes to the company’s growth. His professional background is relevant to Kaapi Lekka not because the project is intended to become a large commercial platform, but because it brings disciplined systems thinking to a familiar local problem.

From Ammathi roots to Kaapi Lekka

After returning to Coorg, Makeen saw how estate information could remain divided between labour books, diaries, messages, bills, spreadsheets and memory. Kaapi Lekka began as a personal estate ledger to connect labour, advances, expenses, harvest and sales in one place and make the cost per kilogram easier to understand. Once the approach proved useful in everyday estate work, it was opened to fellow Kodagu planters as a free community project.

Makeen currently bears the hosting and maintenance costs and intends to continue supporting the service for the community. Kaapi Lekka has no advertisements, paid tier or sale of planter data. The public support channel remains Kaapi Lekka Support, allowing the project to be accountable without exposing personal contact information.

After returning to Coorg, Makeen saw how estate information could remain divided between labour books, diaries, messages, bills, spreadsheets and memory. Kaapi Lekka began as a personal estate ledger to connect labour, advances, expenses, harvest and sales in one place and make the cost per kilogram easier to understand. Once the approach proved useful in everyday estate work, it was opened to fellow Kodagu planters as a free community project.

Makeen currently bears the hosting and maintenance costs and intends to continue supporting the service for the community. Kaapi Lekka has no advertisements, paid tier or sale of planter data. The public support channel remains Kaapi Lekka Support, allowing the project to be accountable without exposing personal contact information.

At a glance

  • Roots: Ammathi, Kodagu; from a family of landholders across generations.
  • Career: More than four decades in technology and digital transformation; former Coca-Cola Chief Information Officer.
  • Current role: Senior Vice President at eBest Mobile, supporting the company’s growth.
  • Community work: Founder and project steward of Kaapi Lekka, built by a Kodagu planter for fellow planters.

For more detailed information: Website: kaapilekka.com

Support contact: kaapilekka.support@gmail.com

Disclaimer :

Editorial use: Name and the biographical facts in this approved profile may be used with agreed coverage. Personal phone, personal email, home or exact estate location, relatives’ identities, and any photograph require separate approval. Coca-Cola and eBest Mobile are biographical references only and do not imply organisational endorsement of Kaapi Lekka.

(Abdul-Aleem the interviewer, is the founder/creator of the News Aggregators www.karnatakafirst.com (also available on Whats Ap) and www.kodagufirst.in amongst others. He maybe contacted at : aleem.ilmcity@gmail.com).

A journey to an ancient underwater world

Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg, Nri's / Pio's, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion, , , , , , , ,

Alpena :

What can Lake Huron tell us about early life on Earth? Join a live streamed exploration today at 11 a.m. of one of the Great Lakes’ most extraordinary underwater environments and discover a world that resembles the Earth as it was years ago.

The backup dates are Sept. 17-18.

Hidden beneath the waters of Lake Huron lies the Middle Island Sinkhole. Formed over thousands of years as groundwater dissolved the limestone beneath the lakebed, the sinkhole plunges 80 feet below the surface into a colorful ecosystem unlike anything in the Great Lakes. This rare environment attracts researchers from around the world seeking clues about early life on Earth.

Freshwater explorers and filmmakers Zach Melnick and Yvonne Drebert are teaming up with Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Great Lakes Now for the first-ever livestream from this underwater time capsule, providing an up-close look at an area that, until now, has only been experienced by advanced divers. Using a high-tech remotely operated vehicle (ROV) equipped with high-resolution cameras, the team will descend into the sinkhole, following divers as they collect samples from the remarkable microbial mats that carpet the bottom.

Viewers will get an up-close look at the sinkhole’s colorful bacterial communities, vast carpets splotched with shades of purple, brown, and white. Scientists believe this globally significant ecosystem can provide insights into how life evolved on early Earth and how the planet’s first oxygen-producing organisms transformed the atmosphere. While beautiful to look at, the sinkhole is deadly to most other lake lifeforms due to the water’s lack of oxygen.

Along for the journey will be Dr. Bopaiah Biddanda from Grand Valley State University, an Aquatic Microbial Ecologist who has spent years studying the sinkhole’s unique ecosystem. Sarah Morrison, Media Specialist at Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, will share how the sanctuary supports researchers looking to uncover the secrets of the sinkhole.

Biddanda, Morrison, Melnick, and Drebert will answer audience questions in real-time during the dive.

The date and time are subject to last-minute change due to weather conditions. Follow Great Lakes Now and Hidden Below: The Great Lakes on social media to stay updated about the expedition.

Hidden Below: Live is a collaboration between Great Lakes Now and Inspired Planet Productions to bring real-time, interactive explorations of the Great Lakes to audiences around the world. Previous expeditions have included the deepest part of the Great Lakes and the fish-filled warm waters surrounding North America’s largest nuclear power plant

source: http://www.thealpenanews.com / The Alpena News / Home> Lifestyles / by The Alpena News / September 15th, 2026

Kavery Nambisan’s Rising Sons Is a Witty, Tender Portrait of India in Transition

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg, Records, All, Science & Technology, Women/Girls (wef. Sept 03rd, 2022), , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Kavery Nambisan’s Rising Sons traces generations, identities and a changing India through humour, tenderness and sharp social observation.

“At times, we observe a change in a person when, in actual fact, it is the situation that has changed. At other times, we fail to see the transformation, perceiving instead that the varied situation makes it appear so.” Our narrator in Rising Sons — an omniscient, non-bodied voice which carries the keen intelligence and wry sensibility of the book’s accomplished author Kavery Nambisan — knows the universal complexities of person and situation. There are other eternal truths observed by this narrative voice too, which occasionally address the reader directly and thus bring us into the story as characters produced by similar contexts of a country changing over a century.

Mud is life for the fifty-seven families in the village of Kesarugattu, and the rain-fed rivers are the water which sustain life. “We romanced the outside world through the newspaper. Knowledge burnished our rustic minds,” informs the narrative voice. “One day, we read the scandalous writings of a young wife of a Brahmin from Poona, about the plight of women,” and though the words of Tarabai’s letter resonated with our own book’s protagonist Gowru, who was also the young wife of a Brahmin, we will refrain from further description of her and instead move forward a couple decades to her titular sons. The eldest was Nanju, who dreamed of greatness, and “thought of himself in the guise of Vivekananda, of Aurobindo, of Tilak, but never as Gandhi. Personality and image mattered. His admiration settled on Naoroji, the elegant Parsi gentleman who had performed the unique feat of opposing the British while being friends with them.” The younger was Anna, who went to see owls with the Ai people at night, and spoke at a Congress rally in Mysoor “about growing up, his schoolboy dreams, his college days, the gradual understanding of how we were being ruled by a race of people from a faraway land and about the sure and steady swell of opposition to their rule”.

The father of these sons — and the husband of Gowru — is the twice-born Devaraya. He is a protagonist too. There are other fathers and sons, like Keshava Pujari and Vibhushana. There are also daughters: most notably Chinni, born to Gowru’s childhood friend Bhagya and her Malayali husband Dharma.

Chinni, who understood early that the world is tilted because people hide their real selves, had written a two-page letter to Bhagat Singh in prison expressing both her admiration and displeasure: “Displeasure about the way the shooting had been done, without careful planning. If I had been there, I would have helped, I wrote. I added that I was ready to marry him, in prison, and carry out the unfinished work. It was a serious proposal of marriage.” She had her reservations about Gandhi and the ideals of sacrifice which he advocated. Wearing khadi whilst privileging the language of the colonizer seemed like contradictory swadeshi to Chinni. Could simplicity of clothes genuinely lead to a corresponding transformation as simplicity of spirit? An ascetic is ascetic regardless of what they wear; external image is only one thread of internal coherence. But enough about Chinni — we must get back to the sons now.

These are the main characters we are introduced to in the novel, but there are many other fishes we meet in the pond of Kesarugattu, and in the rivers which bring them there. There are Ai tribals, Brahmins, Chandals, Mussalmans. There is Shantadevi, Muduki, Uzman and Maimoona, Sumana, Hanumantha, Gagana, Vaidehi… and even if we visit these others only briefly, their essential contours reveal themselves to us clearly through the narrative voice, which gives even minor characters the dignity of keen attention. When the scene shifts to Delhi, there is “the old mother of the driver Karthab Singh and the roasted mutton pieces she fed him while crooning love songs about the longing to shield her beloved from all danger by enfolding him in her long hair. Her husband was long dead, and she had short, wispy hair that could not protect an ant. But singing love songs gave her pleasure.”

There is also another protagonist from the village who may be listed here last but in no feasible circumstance could be considered the least, and that is Kuppu the dog: “He is still there, our beautiful all-black Kuppu — at times he is a playful little pup, at times an adolescent, and, at other times, an aged, lumbering, peace-loving fellow. Which is why people say, Kuppu is forever.”

The eternal archetypes which our transient human and non-human characters embody are depicted with such genuine tenderness that even if the book were indeed re-titled Ondu Kaththeya Atma Kathe or ‘Memoirs of a Donkey’ (as one protagonist suggests grimly), it could still trace many of the same waves of supple affection and insightful censure which characterize Rising Sons.

Donkeys do not seem to have pride or prejudice, however, which are among the main themes of this book. Character decides destiny because it shapes our choices, but a bruised ego leads to reaction rather than choice — the spirals which emerge from wanting to be seen in certain ways can extend to dangerous shadows. Nambisan is an observer of individual tendency as much as of the social structures of family and village and politics which shape new citizens of a new country, which have shaped us..

Humans have a deep desire to ease each other’s pain, and a difficulty in balancing that against the restoration of their own selves. Idealism fights the cynicism of reality and sometimes stumbles so frequently that it becomes entirely unsteady. In India, virtues of Brahmin non-covetousness and Gandhian restraint were unable to stem the blood-dimmed tide of greed and vanity which too are fundamental human vices. This slow percolation of a self-serving culture in the outward guise of piety pushes the Ai people – rooted to the earth and all her creatures – into wearing “half-pants” and “proper saris” instead of the simple lengths of cloth which they traditionally used to wrap around their bodies. There is also the implicit bleakness of rural India becoming urban in the strange erosions and sediments which have metamorphosed Bengloor into Bangalore. Much is found, much is lost. Yet despite the fact that this pace of change is almost tragic when viewed as a generational saga, it is delivered through an authorial voice so deft and irreverent that this reader found herself smiling often, and on more than one page even laughing out loud.

Rising Sons is a story on fertile ground and rich soil, with much to recognize in the moments it portrays, as a missive which illumines the heart. It weaves its chapters in leisurely visits to the interior lives of its characters and their contexts in a manner which justifies the Irawati Karve quote with which the book begins: “Human toil, expectations, hates, friendships—all seem puny and without substance, like withered leaves eddying in the summer wind. But the people who toiled and dreamed and loved seem unforgettable…”

source: http://www.indianmasterminds.com / Indian Masterminds / Home> Book Reviews> Features / by Yauvanika Chopra / September 05th, 2026

Brothers with Kodagu roots make their mark in American Ice Hockey

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Mysuru :

Two brothers with family roots in Kodagu and Mysuru have made their mark in American Ice Hockey after earning selection to competitive teams of the Frisco Hockey Association, Texas, USA.


While 15-year-old Mayon Machaiah Merianda has been selected to the Frisco Varsity Team, his 13-year-old younger brother Krish Machaiah Merianda has secured a place in the Frisco Varsity Junior Team for the Summer 2026 season.


Mayon, a Grade 10 student at Independence High School, Frisco, earned promotion to the Varsity squad following his performances in previous seasons. Krish, who recently completed Grade 8 at Nelson Middle School, secured his place in the Junior Varsity team after consistent performances at the developmental level.


The brothers belong to the Meriyanda family of Kodagu, with their ancestral roots tracing back to the historic Meriyanda Ainmane. They are the sons of Srikanth Thimmayya, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SHIRO Technologies and Dr. Gangamma Chenenda, a Physician based in Dallas, Texas.


Their late grandfather Merianda K. Thimmayya, was an advocate, who had settled in Mysuru after moving from Kodagu several decades ago while their grandmother Sharada Thimmayya, continues to reside in Mysuru. Despite growing up in the United States, Mayon and Krish maintain close ties with Karnataka through regular visits to Mysuru and Kodagu.

Their success stands as an inspiring example of how young people with roots in Kodagu and Mysuru are making their presence felt in diverse fields and sporting arenas across the world.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News / June 03rd, 2026

Grieving wife’s decision gives new life to many, ‘walk of honour’ for donor

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Madikeri:

In a touching act of humanity, a grieving wife chose to give life to others by consenting to donate her husband’s organs after he was declared brain dead at Kodagu District Hospital, Madikeri, managed by Kodagu Institute of Medical  Sciences (KIMS).

Dalu, 46, a resident of Aravathokkalu village in Ponnampet taluk, had suffered severe head injuries after falling at his house on May 17. Despite treatment, he succumbed to his injuries, following which his wife Rajeshwari agreed to donate his organs.

The donation marked the first organ retrieval procedure in the history of Kodagu District Hospital. Doctors retrieved his heart, kidneys and corneas, which were later transported under ‘zero traffic’ arrangements to hospitals in Mysuru and Bengaluru for transplantation.

Dalu was initially treated at Gonikoppal Government Hospital before being shifted to Madikeri District Hospital on May 19 after his condition deteriorated. A CT scan revealed critical internal head injuries.

Family consent, procedure

On May 22, doctors confirmed brainstem death after two rounds of examinations by a medical board and mandatory observation procedures under Indian law. The family was subsequently counselled on organ donation and Dalu’s wife, Rajeshwari, gave her consent.

The organ retrieval surgery was carried out in the early hours of May 23 under the guidance of Kodagu Medical College Dean Dr. A.J. Lokesh and Senior Surgeons Dr. Somashekar and Dr. Nanjundaiah.

ICU Specialist Dr. Nishid Joseph and Nursing Officer Pavan continuously monitored and stabilised the donor’s condition ahead of the procedure.

Nursing staff Jayashree,  Anil and Manjunath, along with Senior Nursing Officers Vasanth and Mahesh, assisted  through the night.

To Mysuru and Bengaluru hospitals

By 2 am, Surgeons had successfully retrieved the two kidneys, heart and corneas. Medical teams from Mysuru and Bengaluru, including specialists from JSS Hospital and Narayana Hrudayalaya, participated in the procedure. The organs were dispatched to recipient hospitals by 6 am. The hospital later held a solemn ‘walk of honour’ for Dalu. Rajeshwari was also presented with an official organ donation certificate in recognition of the family’s decision.

Speaking emotionally, Rajeshwari said, “We wanted his death to give life to others, so we agreed to donate his kidneys, eyes and heart,” she said.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News / May24th, 2026

Brain-dead man saves four lives as first organ donation performed at Karnataka’s Madikeri district hospital

Amazing Feats, Records, All, Science & Technology

Following the consent by the victim’s family, the management at the hospital contacted several other hospitals and made a list of the recipients.

Dalu (46), a resident of Arvathoklu near Gonikoppal, was admitted to the District Hospital aka Kodagu Institute of Medical Sciences (KoIMS) after he suffered severe head injuries in an accident. Photo | Special Arrangement

Madikeri :

A 46-year-old man, declared brain dead, gave a new lease of life to over four people after his family donated his organs. In a landmark achievement, the organ donation procedure was conducted for the first time at the District Hospital in Madikeri.

Dalu (46), a resident of Arvathoklu near Gonikoppal, was admitted to the District Hospital aka Kodagu Institute of Medical Sciences (KoIMS) after he suffered severe head injuries in an accident. However, Dalu was not responding to the treatment, and after 48 hours of observation, a two-stage medical committee conducted the examination and confirmed loss of brain stem functions. The hospital declared him brain dead.

While tragedy struck the family of Dalu after he was declared brain dead on May 19, Dalu’s wife Rajeshwari, took a bold step. Following counseling by the medical experts at the District Hospital, Rajeshwari agreed to donate the organs of her husband.

“My husband suffered continuous epilepsy attacks on May 17 and he was shifted to the District Hospital. After several tests, the doctors at the hospital confirmed that my husband was brain dead on May 19,” recalled Rajeshwari. An estate worker who also works as domestic help to run her family, Rajeshwari decided to donate her husband’s organs after she learnt that it would help many patients.

Following the consent by the victim’s family, the management at the hospital contacted several other hospitals and made a list of the recipients. As Dr Nanjundaiah, District Surgeon, explained, “We are intimidated about the organ donation to Jeevasarthakathe (state government body that coordinates organ transplantation) and hospitals that were in need of organs were recognized.”

The kidneys of Dalu were donated to recipients registered with JSS Hospital in Mysuru even as expert doctors Dr Vijay and Dr Manjunath Shetty, who visited the District Hospital to retrieve the kidney conducted the transplantation in Mysuru. Further, corneas were transplanted to registered recipients at Mysuru Medical College.

Since the functioning of the heart of Dalu was slow, the heart valves were retrieved and the transplant was done at a private hospital in Bengaluru. “However, we could not find a recipient for lungs and hence we did not remove Dalu’s lungs,” Dr Nanjundaiah confirmed. He added that since Kodagu Institute of Medical Sciences has already been accredited by SOTTO and NOTTO, the case was reported to the State Organ and SOTTO. The organ procurement process was carried out under the guidance of SOTTO.

The operation was carried out under the leadership of KoIMS Dean Dr Lokesh AJ., Hospital Superintendent Dr. Somashekar and District Surgeon Dr. Nanjundaiah. ICU team Dr. Nishid Joseph and Nursing Officer Pawan worked tirelessly to keep the patient’s condition stable.

In the surgery that began at 2 am on Saturday, two kidneys, heart valves and eye corneas were successfully harvested. Neurosurgeons Dr. Sachin Dharwadkar and Dr. Vijayakumar, who arrived from Mysore, carried out the kidney harvest. Dr. Abhinandan and Dr. Chandrashekar collected the heart valves, and Dr. Shruti and the team collected the corneas. Nursing staff Jayashree, Anil and Manjunath and senior nursing officers Vasanth and Mahesh performed the task efficiently.

Meanwhile, Dalu’s remains were handed over to the family through a ‘walk of honour’ after the medical experts honored the donor’s service.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Karnataka / by Express News Service / May 23rd, 2026

Institute of Dental Implants Offers Advanced Education Program May 15-16

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Dr. Aeklavya Panjali conducting hands-on courses throughout the year in Cicero, New York.

The New York Implant Institute has provided excellence in dental implant education since 2007 at its dental implant institute in Cicero, NY, and the next course will take place May 15 to May 16 with limited seats available.

Aeklavya Panjali, DDS, MS, FAGD, DICOI, who is an international speaker on dental implants, teaches the courses. He is certified in IV sedation dentistry, invisalign, dental implants and cosmetic dentistry. 

Prof. Dr. Al Panjali earned his DDS at NYU College of Dentistry and went on to complete a Master’s in Oral Implantology at Goethe University in Frankfurt, Germany—one of Europe’s leading implantology programs. He holds Diplomate status with the International Congress of Oral Implantologists (ICOI)—a credential held by fewer than 3,000 dentists worldwide. He serves as a Clinical Professor at the Coorg Institute of Dental Sciences and has lectured on 4 continents.

The New York Implant Institute offer hands-on implant training through its dental implant CE courses and live surgery courses that stay with you for life. Join these seminars and take the next step in advancing your skills with implant courses for dentists.

The May 15-16 course is a Level 3 two-day hands-on course worth 16 CE credits, titled “Platelet Rich Fibrin (PRF), With GBR (Guided Bone Regeneration) and Ridge Augmentation.” This is an advanced course for implant site development with autologous growth factors.

Other courses later this year include:

• LEVEL 4 – Live Patient Surgical Course – 5‑Day Intensive Program Overview

July 1–6, 2026 – 2 seats available

August 9–14, 2026 – Weekday – (Monday–Friday) November 4–9, 2026

• LEVEL 5 – IMPLANT PROSTHODONTICS

• LEVEL 6 ALL ON “X” – The Workflow with Hands on Clinical Sessions. June 12 – 13, 2026

• LEVEL 7 – LIVE SURGERY FOR ALL ON “X” WITH SAME DAY CONVERSION

August 28 – 29, 2026

DIGITAL WORKFLOW FOR FULL ARCH WITH NEODENT – A HANDS ON COURSE

October 10 – 17th, 2026 

For more information call (201) 381-7990 or visit nyimplantinstitute.com

source: http://www.dentistrytoday.com / Dentistry Today / Home> Dentistry Today > Industry News / Todays Dental News / May 06th, 2026

From Darkness to Opportunity- Aahwahan Foundation’s Solar Initiative Brings Light to Remote Kodagu Villages

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Karnataka : 

In the remote villages of Karnataka’s Kodagu district, nightfall once meant darkness, uncertainty, and limitation. For hundreds of families, kerosene lamps were the only source of light, children struggled to study after sunset, and women faced safety concerns while completing daily chores. That reality is now changing with the launch of Project Chirag – Solar Village Initiative by Aahwahan Foundation.

The initiative is being implemented across 17 villages, including Nittur, Ponnappasanthe, Balele, Balyamandur, Nalkeri, and Kirgur, reaching 630 households and benefiting a population of 2,243 people. Designed to address energy poverty in underserved rural communities, Project Chirag provides clean, reliable solar-powered electricity to homes that previously had little or no access to dependable lighting.

Each household has been equipped with a comprehensive solar lighting system consisting of a 150Wp solar panel, a 120Ah solar tubular battery, and a 10A charge controller. The system powers four energy-efficient LED lights—two 10W and two 5W—along with an 18W pedestal fan and a mobile charging facility. With up to 48 hours of backup, families now have access to 3–4 hours of lighting and up to 8 hours of fan usage per cycle, depending on sunlight and consumption patterns.

The impact of the initiative goes beyond illumination. With safer, brighter homes, children are able to study in the evenings, women can carry out household activities without fear, and families feel more secure after dark—an important change in villages located near forest areas with frequent wild animal movement. The availability of electricity has also enabled small business owners and home-based entrepreneurs to extend their working hours, contributing to improved household incomes.

Reflecting on the transformation, Mr. Braja Kishore Pradhan, CEO & Founder of Aahwahan Foundation, said, “When I first visited these villages, darkness wasn’t just about the absence of light—it reflected a lack of opportunity, safety, and dignity. Through Project Chirag, we are seeing children study without fear, women move freely after sunset, and families reclaim their nights. Solar energy has restored not just visibility, but hope and independence.”

Residents across the villages echo this sentiment. “Before Project Chirag, studying and working after sunset was extremely difficult. Now our homes are bright, and life feels safer and easier,” said a resident of Nittur. A villager from Ponnappasanthe added, “Solar lights have changed everything for us. Children can study, women feel safer at night, and small businesses are growing.”

By replacing kerosene lamps with renewable solar power, Project Chirag is also delivering environmental benefits, reducing indoor air pollution and dependence on fossil fuels. Built with durable components and secure wiring, the systems are designed for long-term reliability and sustainability.

Project Chirag demonstrates how clean energy can become a catalyst for social development, combining safety, education, livelihood enhancement, and environmental responsibility. In the villages of Kodagu, electricity is no longer a luxury—it is becoming the foundation for opportunity, dignity, and a brighter future.

source: http://www.thecsruniverse.com / The CSR Universe / Home> Article / by The CSR Universe Team / February 05th, 2026

Colorectal Cancer: A silent killer that can be stopped

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Colorectal Cancer (CRC) is a common and deadly disease that affects the colon and rectum. It can cause bleeding, pain, weight loss and fatigue. It is often mistaken for piles and not diagnosed early enough. CRC can be prevented by screening and through healthy habits.

CRC is the seventh most common cancer in India, with over 27,000 new cases and 19,000 deaths in 2018. It affects both men and women, mostly after 50 years of age.

Causes

The exact cause of CRC is unknown, but some factors increase the risk:

Age: Older people are more likely to get CRC.

Diet: Eating too much red meat, processed meat and fat can raise the risk.

Obesity: Being overweight or obese can make CRC more likely.

Smoking: Smoking can damage the DNA of the colon and rectum cells.

Alcohol: Drinking alcohol can affect how the body works.

Inactivity: Not exercising can increase the risk.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Having long-term inflammation of the intestines, such as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.

Family history: Having a relative who had CRC or polyps can make CRC more likely.

Polyps: CRC usually starts from a benign growth called a polyp on the colon or rectum lining. The most common type of polyp that can turn into CRC is an adenoma.

Diagnosis, Screening & Staging

The best way to prevent CRC is to find and remove polyps before they become cancerous. This can be done by regular screening tests that check the colon and rectum for any problem.

Diagnostic and screening tests

Consult colorectal surgeon: This is the first and best step. A colorectal surgeon is a specialist who has extensive training and experience in diagnosing and treating CRC.

Colonoscopy & biopsy: This test uses a tube with a camera to look at and remove any polyps or tumours in the colon and rectum. It is usually done under sedation or general anaesthesia to make it comfortable for the patient.

Screening tests can lower CRC cases and deaths by removing precancerous polyps and finding early-stage tumours that are easier to treat.

Treatment

The treatment of CRC depends on many things, such as the type, grade, stage, location, and features of the tumour, as well as the patient’s health and choice. A team of colorectal experts is needed to ensure the best result. Each tumour is different and each patient is unique, hence an individualised treatment plan is chalked out by a robust multi-disciplinary team led by colorectal surgeons is vital.

A colorectal surgeon is a specialist who has extensive training and experience in performing surgery for CRC.

Treatment options

Surgery: This is the main treatment for most CRC cases. It involves removing the tumour, lymph nodes and some normal tissue around it. It can be done as open or laparoscopic and robotic methods. Minimal invasive techniques when carried out by specialists result in better patient satisfaction, early discharge, improved quality of life, lower blood loss, less pain, shorter hospital stay, faster recovery, lower risk of infection, lower risk of bleeding, lower risk of recurrence, lower risk of complications, etc.

Radiation therapy: This can be used before or after surgery to kill any cancer cells left behind. It works by using high-energy rays or particles to damage DNA. It can also help radiotherapy work better.

Chemotherapy: This is used for advanced or spread CRC that has reached other parts of the body. It works by using drugs that kill cancer cells or stop them from growing. It can also help radiotherapy work better.

Targeted therapy: This is by using drugs that target specific genes involved in CRC. They work by blocking or interfering with how these genes function. They can also help radiotherapy work better.

The five-year survival rate for CRC in India was around 50% in 2018. There is evidence that sub-specialisation in colorectal surgery improves outcomes.

By Dr. Nikhil Nanjappa, Consultant Surgical, Gastroenterologist & Colorectal Surgeon, Aceso BKG Health Care, Mysuru

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / by Dr. Nikhil Nanjappa / September 23rd, 2023

10-cm-long worm lodged in man’s eye removed through surgery in Madikeri

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The worm was removed through surgery.

Madikeri :

In a curious case, a 10-cm-long worm was surgically removed from a man’s eye. The 66-year-old man, a former soldier from Cherambane in Madikeri taluk, had been experiencing persistent itching in his left eye for a month.

He visited the Iksha Super Specialty Eye Hospital in Madikeri on the September 12, where Dr A G Chinnappa examined him.

Upon examination, Dr Chinnappa found a swelling on the conjunctiva (the white part of the eye) that was moving. A scan revealed a long worm inside the swelling.

An emergency surgery was performed, and the worm was removed. The worm measured 10 cm in length. Further microscopic examination confirmed that the worm was a Loa loa, a type of parasitic worm commonly found in Africa. If left untreated, the man could have suffered from blindness. The successful surgery has saved the man’s vision, and he is receiving further treatment.

“We could see some movement on the eye ball and subjected him to a scan which revealed the presence of a worm. We immediately performed surgery under local anasthaesia. We were surprised that the worm was still alive and was 10 cm long”, said Dr Chinnappa.

source: http://www.english.public.tv / Public TV / Home / by Public TV English / September 20th, 2025