Category Archives: Business & Economy

Tata Global launches instant coffee brand to compete with Nescafe, Bru

December 2, 2015Business & Economy, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg), World Opinionadmin

Tata Coffee Grand was jointly developed by Tata Global Beverages and group firm Tata Coffee , which manufactures the product, TGBL said.

Mumbai :

India’s second largest tea maker Tata Global Beverages has forayed into instant coffee business in the country by launching Tata Coffee Grand, which will compete with Nestle’s Nescafe and Hindustan Unilever’s Bru.

The instant coffee brand was jointly developed by Tata Global Beverages (TGBL) and group firm Tata Coffee, which manufactures the product, TGBL said on Monday.

The coffee beans will be primarily sourced from Tata Coffee’s plantations in South India, popular for producing Arabica and Robusta blends.

At present, the maker of Tata Tea and Tetley brands earns over 70% of its sales from tea brands while coffee business accounts for 20% through brands like Eight o’clock and Grand outside India.

source: http://www.retail.economictimes.indiatimes.com / ETRetail.com / Home> Food & Entertainment / ET Bureau / November 30th, 2015

4 City designers to present Khadi creations in Jaipur

November 29, 2015Business & Economy, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorgadmin

Four designers from Bengaluru will present their Khadi creations in Jaipur at the first edition of the Rajasthan Heritage Week, which was launched in the City on Friday.

The event, intended to promote traditional textiles, is being organised by Bengaluru-based Prasad Bidappa Associates, the Government of Rajasthan and the Khadi Board. It will be held from December 3 to 5 in Jaipur.

Pavithra Muddaya, Tara Aslam, Manish Saksena, Jason and Anshu are the Bengaluru-based designers who took part in the ‘Handmade in Rajasthan’ project. Along with designers from other parts of the country and abroad, they worked closely with traditional handloom weavers in interior villages in Rajasthan.

What started as a pilot project with Bangladeshi designer Bibi Russell was taken forward on a larger scale after the Chief Minister of Rajasthan Vasundhara Raje was impressed with the collection she created. At the event on Friday, models showcased Russell’s colourful and fresh creations.

“The intention of the project is to revive our country’s traditional fabric and make it more appealing to the younger generation and for a foreign audience,” Prasad Bidappa, the organiser and chief creative director of the project, said. “Through this initiative, eight national award-winning weavers have been elevated to the status of designers with their creations being exhibited at the Rajasthan Heritage Week. That, according to me, is our biggest achievement,” he added.

Pavitra Muddaya, who runs Vimor, along with her mother Chimi Nanjappa, talked about the challenges she faced in the project. “My Hindi is very poor so communicating with the weavers was a problem.”

Muddaya has been working as a textile revivalist, documenting techniques and providing training to traditional weavers. “The way they work there, the processes, the terminology is very different from how it is in South India. It was an eye-opener for me though I have been working in this field for 40 years,” she added.

“In the past I have worked with Pethanis and Maheshwaris but this was the first time that I worked with something from Rajasthan,” said Manish Saksena who worked with traditional weavers in Kaithoon village in Rajasthan’s Kota district to create 18 sarees.

Produced entirely by hand, it took him and the weavers two months to complete them.

“Two of the people I collaborated with were master craftsmen and it was very humbling to work with them.” he added. His sarees will be sold for Rs 10,000 to Rs 50,000 a piece.

Tara Aslam, who has a Khadi store in Bengaluru called Nature Alley, created designs for modern travellers inspired by the tribes of Rajasthan, and Jason & Anshu of the label ‘smallshop’ designed eclectic menswear and womenswear.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> City / DHNS – Bengaluru, November 28th, 2015

M.C. Nanaiah seeks Rs. 100 Cr. for development of Kodagu

November 16, 2015Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg, Green Initiatives / Environment, Leaders, Nature, Sportsadmin

Former Law Minister M.C. Nanaiah enjoying a ‘JUMBO’ ride sitting on the tusk of an elephant at the Aane Utsava held at Dubare Elephant Camp in Kodagu yesterday.

Kushalnagar :

Former Minister M.C. Nanaiah has urged the Government to release Rs. 100 crore for overall development of Kodagu district.

Speaking after inaugurating the 61st wildlife month and elephant day celebrations at Dubare Elephant Camp, near Kushalnagar yesterday, Nanaiah asked the State Government to take Cauvery River cleaning on the lines of Ganga River cleaning taken up by the Prime Minister.

Urging the Government to announce a special package for Kodagu, Nanaiah stressed on the need for initiating appropriate measures for ending man-animal conflict across Malnad region, which has seen an alarming rise over the past few years.

Calling for installation of solar fencing and construction of trenches in order to prevent elephant intrusions into farm lands and human habitats, he urged the Government to move the Supreme Court for taming wild elephants, which are causing havoc across Malnad region.

The former Minister then urged the government work towards conservation of Western Ghats, preservation of forest wealth and water bodies. He also urged the Govt. to regularise the services of Dubare Elephant Camp Mahouts who have been serving for years.

Karnataka Forest Industries Development Corporation Chairman T. Eshwar, in his address, said that the Corporation has sent a proposal to the Government on setting up a mega Bamboo Industry at Kushalnagar at a cost of Rs. 100 crore. Madikeri Division DFO Yedukondalu called upon the involvement of everyone in putting an end to man- elephant conflict.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Monday – November 16th, 2015

‘102-acre land to be converted into 2,000 sites near Madikeri’

November 10, 2015Business & Economyadmin

Karnataka Housing Board Chairman Nanjayanamata has said that 2,000 sites will be developed on 102 acre land at K Nidugane on the outskirts of Madikeri.

The sites will be developed on PPP mode, he added. Briefing mediapersons on Thursday, he said that the Board had laid a layout on survey number 87/1 on 4.6 acre land at K Badaga.

“The Housing Board will construct Zilla Panchayat Bhavan at a cost of Rs 18.25 crore and mini Vidhana Soudha at a cost of Rs 5 crore.

Tenders will be invited shortly. The Housing Board has constructed 1,17,693 houses and has developed 59,814 sites so far,” he explained.

He said that of the 100 housing projects of the Chief Minister, 97 have been completed. “The work on three projects is in progress and is likely to be completed by February. It has been decided to distribute 3,000 sites in different parts of Karnataka.

The decision on the same will be taken in a meeting scheduled to be held in the third week of November,” Nanjayanamata explained.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / DHNS – Madikeri, November 07th, 2015

The Tamara Carnival – music, dance and culture this Christmas

October 23, 2015Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economyadmin

The Tamara Hotel in Coorg, has launched a new product for this festive season, The Tamara Carnival, a fusion of food, music, dance and drama events taking place from 21st December 2015 through to 4th January 2016.

This event promises to be a one-of-a-kind global festival to showcase India’s great social and cultural heritage through music and dance. Not only will Indian culture be showcased, Western music and entertainment will also be catered for through a Blues Band and even a stand up comedian.

This is intended to be the first Tamara Carnival and a signature event of The Tamara prior to taking the carnival forward as a brand to be held accross its other properties in the future.

Speaking on The Tamara Carnival, Mr. Senthil Kumar N, Director and CEO of The Tamara said “The Tamara Carnival is a signature offering of The Tamara and is aimed at elevating and enriching guest experience. The festival has a signature activity daily so that not one day during the festival is the same. Whilst staying at The Tamara Coorg, every guest can enjoy live performances from artists across the country in addition to the treks, coffee plantation visits yoga sessions, and spa treatments already avilable at The Tamara Hotel.” Mr.Kumar added, “The idea is to create this festival franchise, grow it organically and collaborate with the best international and domestic partners to create a niche in enriching guest experience.”

www.thetamaracarnival.com

source: http://www.sourcewire.com / SourceWire, News Distritbution / Wednesday – October 21st, 2015

The Timeless Allure of Kodagu

October 22, 2015Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Natureadmin

Dubare Reserve Forest is a great place to ride on elephants | Manjusha Naik

Kodagu, also known as Coorg or Kodava Nadu, is undoubtedly one of the best places I’ve visited. It is Karnataka’s well-known tourist attraction and known for it’s coffee plantations, oranges and various spices. Kodavas are the most dominant community at Kodagu.

Kodava cuisine is famous for its bamboo shoot curry, rice rotti and Kadumbuttu-rice dumplings, usually consumed with Pandi (pork) curry. It is also known for its homemade wines made of grapes, sugarcane, beetel nuts, orange, chikoo and gooseberry. These wines are made out of carefully handpicked fruits and are available at the local stores. Homemade chocolates are quite famous too. Honey and Kachampuli (vinegar) are the favourites of the locals.

I loved visiting the Dubare Reserve Forest and Elephant Camp and running into over 150 elephants. The Buddhist temple and monasteries at Bylakuppe was another delight. I loved photographing the cheerful monks, the multi-coloured Tibetan flags strung across the sky and the detailed murals.

The serenity here evokes within a sense of stirring spirituality and the feeling of being above it all continues when you visit Abbi or Abbey falls, located amid the lush coffee plantations. This place is best visited during monsoon. As I walked across the bridge near the falls for a better view of the scenic beauty, I was mesmerised.

Raja’s seat, located in Madikeri, is known for it’s beautiful view of the valleys that are covered by mists early in the morning. Sunsets here are worth watching too.

I clicked a lot of pictures too at the Nagarhole National Park with the beautiful Kabini lake. There was much to photograph here, including tigers, leopards, wild boar and deer. For a better visual access to the national park, visit it in the summer as during monsoon this place is overgrown by lush forests.

Talacauvery, located in the Brahmagiri hills, is a sacred place where River Kaveri originates. It attracts tourists from all over the world. During the Kaveri Sankramana festival, there are hundreds of people here, trying to collect holy water.

I also visited the Kandi Makki Devastana at the Arji village, Virajpet, in the month of March. A special pooja was held here for about three-and-a-half days for the deities Murthillu, Muthappan, Puakka, Korathi, Potathere and so on. It has been about eight months now since my visit and I am still overwhelmed by the way I felt when I stepped into this sacred place.

Kodagu has a pleasant weather throughout the year. Between June and August, there is heavy rainfall. There are plenty of homestays and resorts. The most recommended ones are The Orange County in Virajpet, Tamara in Yavakapdi village and Amanvana and Honey Pot in Madikeri.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Manjusha Naik / October 22nd, 2015

India’s biggest IPO in 3 years fully subscribed

October 22, 2015Business & Economy, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg), Records, All, World Opinionadmin

Girls sit at the window of a Cafe Coffee Day outlet in Mumbai, February 25, 2015. The firm behind Cafe Coffee Day, India’s biggest homegrown coffee chain, is set for a market debut that could value it at almost $1 billion, even as the country’s burgeoning cafe culture draws global giants Starbucks and McDonald’s. Cafe Coffee Day, a cafe pioneer in India, aims to list a 20 percent stake, raising roughly $200 million, within the next quarter, sources with direct knowledge of the plans said. Picture taken February 25, 2015. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade / @ Reuters

New Delhi (NewsRise):

The owner of India’s largest coffee chain received bids for 1.2 times the shares it offered in the nation’s biggest initial public offering in three years, indicating that investors remain bullish on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s efforts to revive economic growth.

Coffee Day Enterprises, which runs the Cafe Coffee Day outlets, received 31.3 million bids for the 25.8 million shares it offered, according to provisional data on the National Stock Exchange. The company aims to raise as much $176 million via the IPO.

A slew of companies, including India’s largest discount airline, have filed for IPOs this year, betting that Modi’s reforms and easing interest rates will revive growth in Asia’s third-largest economy. As many as 16 companies filed their draft prospectus with markets regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India between July and September, the highest quarterly filing in four years, Business Standard newspaper reported.

“Improvement in the economic situation means that the appetite will pick up,” said Deven Choksey, managing director at K.R. Choksey Shares and Securities. “If quality papers come at a reasonable price, investors will be more than happy to purchase.”

Until Thursday, Coffee Day Enterprises had received bids for 75% of its shares on offer. Demand picked up after a lukewarm response on Wednesday, the opening day for subscription, led by bids from the so-called Qualified Institutional Buyers that included local banks and insurance companies.

Discount carrier IndiGo’s parent InterGlobe Aviation is likely to open the 25 billion rupee ($385 million) initial public offer on Oct. 26, Economic Times reported. Mumbai-based L&T plans to sell 17.5 million shares, or nearly 11% of outstanding stock of unit Larsen & Toubro Infotech. L&T, which currently holds 161.25 million shares in the unit, plans to raise around 15 billion rupees via the share sale.

Coffee Day Enterprises has been expanding outlets in recent years, betting that rising disposable incomes and increasing coffee consumption in the world’s second-most populous nation will boost revenues.

Analysts had largely advised investors to be cautious about the company’s financials and its complex structure, which includes a range of businesses from real estate to software services. Coffee Day’s other businesses have a history of weak returns on capital, they said.

From January to September this year, 15 companies had raised $992 million through IPOs in India, compared with $197 million last year and $235 million in 2013. The market is still a fraction of what it was in 2010, when 64 firms raised $8.34 billion, according to Prime Database.

source: http://www.asia.nikkei.com / Nikkei Asia Review / Home> Markets> Equities / October 16th, 2015

‘Use Indian coffee products to promote local growers’

October 2, 2015Business & Economy, Coffee Newsadmin

The Indian coffee would get a better price if we stop depending on foreign countries and start using more coffee products of Indian origin, said Central Coffee Research Centre Director Dr Y Raghuramulu.

He was speaking at a programme organised at the Navodaya Vidyalaya in town as part of the International Coffee Day celebrations on Thursday.

“In America, the average consumption of coffee by a person is four to five kg a year. In India, however, it is barely 100 gm. The consumption is increasing by six per cent every year,” he said and added that Brazil had created awareness among children about use of coffee about 10 years ago. “As a result, Brazil stands second in the list of countries that are the highest consumers of coffee in the world,” he said.

The International Coffee Organisation (ICO) has called upon all coffee-growing nations to celebrate Coffee Day on October 1 every year, to protect the interest of coffee growers and nations. “From next year onwards, the day would be celebrated with road shows and various other programmes,” he said.

‘Chicory is good’
Dr Raghuramulu claimed that chicory is good for health and a maximum of 49 per cent of chicory can be added to the coffee powder.

“The carbohydrate content of chicory makes the coffee a bit thicker. Chicory is usually grown in some parts of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and few other states. It is also used in the production of biscuits,” he said.

In his inaugural speech, Sahyadri Coffee Growers’ Association President M S Sundaresh Gowda said that the imagination behind Coffee Day would help the growers. The market for coffee can be extended by creating awareness about the drink in North India, he added.

Meanwhile, ‘Coffee Karma’, a 20-minute documentary on the birth of coffee was screened at Navodaya Vidyalaya hall. An exhibition was held as a part of Coffee Day on different coffee species, possible diseases, pesticides and other things. More than 1,500 people watched the documentary and free coffee was served to all.

Balehonnur JCI President Dayakar N Suvarna, Navodaya Vidyalaya Principal K Rameereddy, Coffee Board scientists were present.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / Balehonnur / DHNS – October 02nd, 2015

From Assam to Hassan in search of work

September 30, 2015Agriculture, Business & Economy, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg)admin

More than 5,000 people from Darang and neighbouring districts of Assam have found work in plantations of Belur and Sakleshpur taluks.— Photo: Prakash Hassan

Assam may be famous for its tea gardens, but a good number of Assamese workers have found employment in the coffee estates of Chikkamagaluru and Kodagu.

More than 5,000 people from Darang and neighbouring districts of Assam have come to work in plantations of Belur and Sakleshpur taluks. Many more work in estates spread over Chikkamagaluru and Kodagu districts.

“We hardly find jobs in our hometown. If we get work for a week, we remain jobless for next few weeks,” said Habizur Rahman (25), who has been working in Hasurugudda Estate of IBC company near Arehalli in Belur taluk for the last four years. Both men and women are enrolled as contract workers in estates for a daily wage of Rs. 228. In Assam, women hardly get the opportunity to earn in fields, he said.

The wave of migration started five years ago, when a manager of an estate in Belur taluk came in contact with planters in Kodagu, where workers from Assam had begun to arrive. “Those days we were struggling to get local people to work. We were looking for people who could work. The first batch of 25 people came from Assam five years ago. As they got work for the entire year and wages were better than what they got in their homeland, they brought more people from their State,” said Fazlur Rahman, manager with IBC estate.

Election trips

The manager pointed out that many planters have employed Assamese as they are hard workers, though they are not well-versed in the skill of maintaining coffee. These workers have brought their family and all of them make a trip to their homeland during elections. “Voting is significant as there is a serious issue of illegal migrant voters from Bangladesh,” said Shwahidul Islam, who always keeps his voter’s identity card in his pocket.

However, the workers are unhappy with the poor facilities provided in the estates. Around two or three families are forced to settle in one house with plastic sheets to separate them. For over 80 families there is only one toilet, in one of the estates visited by The Hindu .

“We repeatedly demand for proper facilities, but our cry does not reach the people concerned. If anyone falls sick, we neither get paid holiday nor medical expenses reimbursed,” said Habizur Rahman.

The district administration has set up a tent school for children of migrant workers, but they find this of no use. “We need a proper school where our children can get education from teachers who know Hindi,” said Marina Khatun, one among the women workers in the estate.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Karnataka / by Sathish G.T. / Hassan – September 27th, 2015

Power line through Kodagu is ready

September 30, 2015Business & Economyadmin

Madikeri :

The Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCI) has completed the project to supply power from Kaiga to Kozhikode in Kerala amid protests. The 400kV transmission line was opposed in Kodagu on grounds that it would damage forest cover. Due to opposition from environmental organizations and farmers’ association and court cases, work had been halted for some time in Kodagu.

While the line was in place in Kerala, the missing link has now been completed. PGCI warned people that it’ll charge the line and residents of the area should be careful.

The 120-km high-tension wire from Mysuru to Kozhikode passes through 55km in Kodagu. Of this, 4.45km is forest land, while the remaining is private land and plantations. The lines in Mysuru and in the opposite direction between Manandavadi and Kozhikode were completed two years ago.

Workers on coffee plantations and school children would face the maximum threat. Following protests, the Kodagu district administration distributed compensation to land owners where power lines passed. The PGCI completed the project with police protection and many cases were booked against agitators.

The corporation said the wire through Kodagu was laid 15 metres above the ground and would not harm elephants.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Bengaluru / TNN / September 29th, 2015

Kodagu First

a Celebration. Positive News, Facts & Achievements about Kodagu, Coorgs and the People of Kodagu – here at Home and Overseas