The Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) Department has bagged e-Puraskar Award for the best performance in empowering panchayats by using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools, for 2016-17.
Kerala bagged the second prize, while West Bengal secured third prize in the category of ICT tools. The cash prize for the first position is Rs. 2 crore, Rs. 1 crore for second position and Rs. 50 lakh for third position.
RDPR Minister H.K. Patil and Department Principal Secretary Nagambikadevi received the award from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow on Monday.
The State bagged the award for its Ganshi Sakshi Kayak GPS-enabled ICT tool. Ministry of Panchayat Raj has been conferring e-Puraskar for bringing in transparency, efficiency and accountability in the functioning of panchayats through ICT tools.
The Kodagu Zilla Panchayat bagged the Deendayal Award for empowering panchayats.
In the taluk panchayat category, Sagar taluk of Shivamogga district and Puttur Taluk Panchayat of Dakshina Kannda district have bagged prizes.
In the gram panchayat category, the Malige Gram Panchayat of Theerthahalli taluk of Shivamogga; Siraguppi GP of Athani taluk in Belagavi district; Palibetta GP of Virajpet taluk in Kodagu; and Sampaje GP of Madikeri taluk, bagged the awards.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / April 25th, 2017
Following the many team’s of the T20 League celebrating their 10-year anniversary, Kolkata soon followed suit and threw a lavish bash for its players. Team’s co-owner Shah Rukh Khan was seen attending the event with his youngest son, AbRam.Robin Uthappa and Sheethal Gautham
While the party was attended by all the players of the Kolkata team, several took to attending the event with their better halves. Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa was seen alongside talented tennis star wife, Sheethal Gautham.
Sporting short hair, unlike her previous look, Sheethal was also spotted wearing the same attire that she wore on the day of the duos engagement in 2015. While Robin and Sheethal had a gala time at the event, cricket Umesh Yadav was also seen alongside his wife Tanya Wadhwa and SRK posing for the cameras.
Having finished in the top 4, Kolkata will be battling against the Hyderabad team on the 17th of May followed by a match with the first qualifier. Considering the team has proven its stand in the 10th season of the T20 league, their 10-year bash seemed well deserved.
source: http://www.daily.bhaskar.com / Daily Bhaskar / Home> News / by Jasmine Philip / May 17th, 2017
Regulating the indiscriminate use of chicory — used as an additive with coffee powder — is high on the agenda of the new chairman of the Coffee Board of India, M.S. Boje Gowda, a third-generation coffee planter from Chikkamagaluru district, who took charge on Wednesday.
“The farmer grows coffee in its pure form. But by the time it reaches the consumer, there is heavy addition of chicory deforming it. We don’t know how much chicory is added in the branded packaged coffee powder as well,” he said adding that he would discuss the issue with all stakeholders and even explore legal options to ban the addition of chicory to coffee powder.
“If the consumers want chicory let them buy it as chicory and add it. There will be choice for consumers as well,” he said.
When asked whether the Coffee Board of India had the teeth to enforce such a regulation, he said they would work with the Union government towards the end.
Mr. Gowda is the first coffee grower to become the Chairman of the Board after a gap of 70 years. In the past, the post was held by bureaucrats.
Coffee planters from across the State, who came to the city as he took charge on Wednesday, expressed immense hope of their problems being solved with a coffee planter as the chairman.
Apart from monitoring the use of chicory, Mr. Gowda said that his aim is also to increase domestic consumption of coffee while doubling the yield in the country.
“The per capita consumption of coffee is just around 200 grams and is mainly concentrated in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. We should work towards branding coffee and spread consumption to other parts of the country,” he said, adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had set a target to double the annual coffee production in the country from 3 lakh tonnes to 6 lakh tonnes.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / Staff Reporter / Bengaluru – May 18th, 2017
Chendanda rode on a brace from Olympian Nikkin Thimmaiah to clinch their maiden title in Kodava family hockey tornament on Sunday. In the finals of Biddatanda Cup held at Gen K S Thimayya Stadium at Cheriyaparambu, Chendanda recorded a facile 4-1 win against Paradanda.
Chendanda took an early lead with team India forward Nikkin Thimmaiah sounding the board in the fifth minute. Nikkin doubled the lead with a fine field goal in the 10th minute. Paradanda pulled one back after Dheeraj Muthanna converted a penalty corner. But Chendanda produced a clinical performance and sealed the deal with a goal each from Chirag and Sonu Ponnamma.
Chendanda, who lost in the finals of the 2015 edition of the tournament (Kuppanda Cup) against Palanganda, played a percentage game from the word go and made sure to end the title drought in thye coveted tournament. The winners took home a cash prize of Rs 2.5 lakh and a trophy while Paradanda pocketed a cash prize of Rs 1.5 lkah and Runners-up trophy. As many as 306 teams had enrolled for the 21st edition of the tournament. Of which, 301 teams featured in the hockey festival of Kodavas held for over a month. Six other teams which had made it to last-eight round – Palanganda, Anjaparuvanda, Koothanda, Nellamakkada, Mandepanda and Karineravanda were given Rs 25,000 each.
Biddatanda family Pattedar Prof Biddatanda C Ponnappa presided over the presentation ceremony. Earlier in the day, the title clash was inaugurated by Lt Col B K Subramani. District-In-charge Minister M R Seetharam, Rajya Sabha member B K Hariprasad, MLCs Veena Acchaiah, Sunil Subramani, MLAs K G Bopaiah, Appacchu Ranjan, Deputy Commissioner Dr Vincent D’Souza and others were present.
Pandanda M Kuttappa handed over flag to Kulletira who will host the 2018 edition of Kodava family hockey tournament. English Band team of Mysuru and the students of Ninada enthralled the audience with a fine performance. The bike stunts by the Yuvaka Sangha of Bittangala was another attraction.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / Napoklu – DH News Service / May 15th, 2017
Rashmika Mandanna is a Kannada heroine out to conquer the south Indian film industry. This model-turned-actress was roped in for the runaway hit Kirik Party, a college drama, after her photos caught the eye of producer and hero of the movie Rakshit Shetty and director Rishab Shetty. She played the teacher, Anannya.
Following the success of her first film, Rashmika became one of the most sought after actresses in the Kannada movie industry, and started getting offers from other film industries, including Telugu and Tamil. The actress, who is taking her first steps in Tollywood, has been offered movies with some of the top heroes of the Telugu film industry such as Prabhas, Allu Arjun and Nani.
The actress has picked a Naga Shourya-starrer for her Telugu debut, and is shooting for it. This will be followed with another Telugu project with hero Ram under Kishore Tirumala’s direction. Rashmika was also approached for Prabhas’ next film, Saaho, but she refused as it clashed with dates of her other movies. She is now busy shooting for Chamak with Ganesh, and is also working on Anjaniputra, directed by A Harsha, starring Puneeth Rajkumar in the lead.
Rashmika says acting was always on her mind, even when she started her career on the ramp. She learns the language before signing any movie. Her language classes come handy on the sets of her first film, a yet-to-be-titled one, with Naga Shourya.
“I have been offered movies from other industries. Most are from the Telugu industry. I have been going through a few scripts and I thought the best among them was the one with Naga Shourya. It should be great for a debut, and I will follow that up with a project with Ram, for which the shooting will start in September,” she says.
Although the young actress is excited to try other regional languages, she says Kannada movies will remain her priority. “I will never forget the overwhelming response I got for my first film in Sandalwood. Movies don’t have a language barrier, and good ones are remade for other regions. I will try to do good films in all languages,” she gushes.
Rashmika, who always scored a distinction percentage in academics, has to ensure that she completes her graduation and has just written her final year exams for BA in journalism. The Virajpet beauty credits her mother for helping with her career. “She makes sure that I devote all my energy to acting, which helps a lot. I can make a career in another field, besides acting simply by showing my marksheet,” she smiles.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Entertainment> Kannada / by A Shardhaa / May 22nd, 2017
The world No 14 recently beat her compatriot and doubles partner Dipika Pallikal Karthik to become the first Indian to win the Asian Squash Championship.
IANS
“It was special.”
Joshna Chinappa is on a high. Last month, she beat her compatriot and doubles partner Dipika Pallikal 13-15, 12-10, 11-13, 11-4, 11-4 in Chennai to achieve a significant milestone: the first Indian to win the Asian Squash Championship.
It’s an achievement she has eyed for a long time. “It was something I have wanted to win in my career,” Chinappa told Scroll.in. “There is always added pressure playing at home.”
Taking the squash world by storm
It has been an enthralling past 12 months for the 30-year-old. Chinappa broke into the top-10 in July last year and reached the quarter-finals of the World Championship, becoming the second Indian to do so after Pallikal. She lost 6-11, 12-10, 7-11, 11-8, 3-11 to world No 3 Camille Serme of France in the quarter-final. “My run in the World Championship was fairly good and each match was harder than the first,” said Chinappa. “However, I am really grateful to be doing what I do.”
In November 2015, Chinappa beat the world No 2 Raneem el Welily. Currently ranked 14th in the world, her recent win has given her the desire to get better. However, she feels that to beat the top players in the world, a lot of work has to be done. “It is not easy just breaking into the top-five,” she said. “We [Indians] can definitely do it. But for that we need more support from the time we start our careers and continued support till we our done playing. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been that way, though it has improved over the past few months.”
A coach does help
For a major part of her career, Chinappa travelled to tournaments without a coach. However, with Achraf El Karagui now in her corner, Chinappa seems to have taken her a game a notch higher. “I have worked with some of the best coaches at different stages in my career who have all contributed to my game,” she said. “My dad [Anjan Chinappa] and Ritwik Bhattacharya have been the biggest influences. It’s great to have Achraf as part of our team. He is very committed towards helping us and he understands the game really well. He has been able to add more to my game in the past six months.”
But has the move come a little too late? “It has been tough to play without a coach in my corner for the most part of my squash career,” she added. “Though, if my teammates are around we help each other. But it is something I got use too. However, it is always nice to have your team be there for your matches.”
Beating and also playing with Pallikal
Coming into the Asian Championship, Pallikal had a 3-0 win record against Chinappa. So, for Chinappa to beat Pallikal was an extraordinary feat. “Dipika and I are the only ones on tour from India in the women’s circuit, so it is natural to know each other well,” Chinappa said. “We know each other’s game inside out. We also train together most of the time. I enjoy playing doubles with her and we both love playing for India as a team. It works both ways.”
However, the duo will team up once again to defend their doubles gold at the Commonwealth Games next year and are also playing together for the Asian Games. “I look forward to playing with Dipika at the CWG and defending our gold medals,” said Chinappa.
The road ahead
Following her Asian Championship win, Chinappa is back to the grind and slogging it out as she prepares for the World Doubles Championship in Manchester in August. She is back to training and hopes to stay injury-free for the next two years at least. “I train six days a week, twice a day,” she said. “It is usually a combination of squash, weights and on-court fitness. I have an early start and my day usually ends around 7.30 pm after all the training. I have the world doubles in Manchester in the first week of August. I hope to be injury-free and healthy during the next season.” However, she did not reveal her ultimate goal in the sport. “There are certain things I would like to achieve in my career, but for now it is still a secret,” she said.
Growth of squash
Talking about the growth of squash in India, Chinappa, who idolises former athlete PT Usha, said that things are slowly but steadily changing for the better. “Squash has definitely grown a lot more in the past few years,” she said. “The Sports Authority of India, the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu, and the Squash Rackets Federation of India have been a lot more supportive in the past two years. There are so many juniors coming up. Of course we can improve the game further, so we can really reach the grassroot level and kids from smaller towns. We need to give them facilities and support their career financially if we want to see more results.”
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source: http://www.thefield.scroll.in / Scroll.in / Home> The Field / by Bibhash Chatterjee / May 17th, 2017
The manufacturers of Cycle pure agarbattis N R group are sponsoring a golf tournament, titled N R Golf open. The tournament will be held from June 4 at Mercara downs golf club of Madikeri.
More than 250 participants are expected to take part in more than 7 divisions. Executive Director of Cycle pure agarbattis Arjun Ranga will inaugurate the tournament on June 4. June 1 is the last date for the participants to enroll.
Registration is invited from the golfers of Mysuru, Bengaluru, Chikkamagaluru, Ooty, and Kodaikanal. (SH)
source: http://www.citytoday.news / City Today / Home> Mysore / by CT Bureau / May 17th, 2017
Specialist doubles shuttler Ashwini Ponnappa, who moved on from long-time playing partner Jwala Gutta last year to pair up with Sikki Reddy, suggested that her game was a lot more dynamic now.
“It’s good although it’s just been a few months,” said Ashwini, who reached the final of the Syed Modi international champion ship with the Hyderabadi early this year, after the pair finished runners-up in the Welsh Open late last year.
“It’s different because the two of us have similar games and like playing from the back. Neither of us like rushing to the net because we had partners who played well there. But with the realization that one of us had to take charge, we decided that if I move in, she moves back and vice versa,” the 27-year-old said on the sidelines of the 38th Petroleum Sports Promotion Board championship.
Ashwini, who also reached the mixed doubles final of the Lucknow event, said that partnering Sumeeth Reddy had sharpened her skills. “Playing mixed doubles was a confidence booster. I have been training for it in the past couple of months and I can see the difference it’s made to my net game. I have a better idea of where the shuttle is going to come from and where it has to be played. In the past, I never got into that area of thinking because Jwala was so good. It’s been a learning process combining with these players,” she said.
Ashwini said she was targeting improved performances in the Sudirman Cup (May 2128) and Super Series events in Indonesia (June 12-18) and Australia (June 20-25) before setting her sights on next year’s Commonwealth Games and world championships. She said the efforts of doubles coach Tan Kim Her – which included pushing her out of her comfort zone by switching her partners – had made her more determined.
“It’s important to have a doubles coach who knows his craft. I trust in him,” she said.
source: http://www.timeofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> Sports> Badminton / May 10th, 2017
Coffee Board seeks inputs from private players on new business modelA file photo of India Coffee House in Bengaluru
Bengaluru / Kochi :
The iconic India Coffee House is set for a makeover.
The state-run Coffee Board, which operates some 12 India Coffee House outlets in various locations including Parliament House, is exploring options to revamp and expand as part of its efforts to leverage the brand and promote coffee consumption across the country.
The board intends to go in for a revenue-sharing model and on a minimum investment basis for the proposed expansion.
It has initiated consultations with private players and has sought estimates on the capital expenditure and operational expenses for running a 1,000-1,500 sq feet store and smaller format kiosks of around 200-300 sq ft in 75-100 cities.
Pre-bid discussions
Confirming the development, Srivatsa Krishna, Secretary, Coffee Board, said the pre-bid discussions were still in the initial stages.
“We have two more rounds of consultations to go,” Krishna said, stating that clarity on the concept would emerge sometime in July.
Long before the advent of the café culture led by chains such as Coffee Day, Baristas, Costas and Starbucks, India Coffee House was synonymous with the growth of the coffee culture in the country. ICH has a significant brand recall, especially among the 40-plus generation. Red turbaned staff in white uniforms serving coffees and snacks at reasonably prices is a hallmark of ICH outlets.
ICH used to be a favourite hangout or adda for political activists, writers, government employees, small-time lawyers, sales executives and the unemployed: in other words, a curious mix of the eclectic and the mundane.
Its old-world and unpretentious ambience is welcoming of everyone, not least because of the affordable coffees. The impact of liberalisation, which brought about a change in the coffee marketing system in the mid-1990s, led to a downsizing of the Coffee Board workforce and the closure of a number of loss-making India Coffee Houses.
“Some of the outlets were taken over by co-operatives formed by the retireed employees of the Coffee Board and continue to be run by them,” said N Bose Mandanna, former vice-chairman of Coffee Board.
A welcome sign
Industry stakeholders see the renewed effort to revamp the ICH by roping in private players as a positive development.
“We welcome any efforts to promote coffee. The Board should look at the right vehicle to expand the ICH,” said Anil Bhandari, President, India Coffee Trust.
Interestingly, the Board, which started India Coffee House in the early 1940s, had shut down several coffee houses in the mid-50s in various cities and dismissed many employees. Following this, Communist leader AK Gopalan took over the leadership of the retrenched employees and organised societies under the name of India Coffee Board Workers Cooperative Society. The first society was formed in Bangalore in 1957; it opened the first Indian Coffee House in Delhi on December 27, 1957.
The Indian Coffee House, as distinct from the Board-run India Coffee House, is completely owned and managed by its employees.
The society now has a chain with over 51 outlets and associate canteens operating in all major towns and in government establishments, particularly in Kerala.
source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home> News / by Vishwanath Kulkarni – V. Sajeev Kumar / Bengaluru-Kochi – May 10th, 2017
What do you do when you have a long weekend at hand and you wish to escape from the hustle and bustle of the IT capital? Driving to Coorg, the ‘Scotland of India’, is definitely not a bad option. That’s precisely what we did on one such weekend that had a public holiday attached. We decided to make the most of it by driving to that part of the world, where one can be at peace at the Buddhist Monastery, be one with nature at the vast coffee estates sipping a hot cup of filter ‘kaapi’, play Peeping Tom to bathing elephants and relish some delicious local delicacies.
How did we go?
The drive from Bengaluru (Whitefield) can take around six hours with a couple of breaks, so we decided to leave office early post lunch on a Friday with the intention of beating the weekend traffic that piles up on Mysore Road. The drive from Whitefield until the Mysore Road exit can be taxing and no sooner had we entered Bidadi that we started our countdown to the restaurant. We regularly halted on Mysore Road for some nice ‘thatte idli’ and filter coffee. Post our refreshment break, we drove non-stop until we reached Aishwarya Suites (at New Bamboo Bazaar Road, Mysuru City) for our overnight stay. On day two, we got off at around 7 am and headed towards Coorg.
The stay
We stayed at the Leisure Vacation’s Brook Stone Villas at Thalatmane village on the Mysuru-Mangaluru highway. The location is around six km from Gen Thimmaiah Circle as one turns towards Mangaluru. One has to traverse through acres of coffee estates on a ‘kuccha’ road, giving the driver a semi off-roading experience.
What did we do?
Driving through the scenic road flanked by tobacco farms, we visited the Buddhist Golden Temple. After paying homage at the temple, our next port of call was Nisargadhama Island on the Kaveri river. Here one can visit the island via a hanging bridge, suspended over the river. Later in the day, we visited Abbey Falls and called it a day after visiting Raja’s Seat — a picnic spot that offers a West facing beautiful valley and sunset view, a nice flower garden and a musical fountain treat.We covered Talakad on the second day. At Talakad, one can visit the temple and the higher altitude offers some good sights of the valley beneath. On day three, post breakfast, we headed back to Bengaluru albeit with lots of lovely memories.
(The author can be contacted at srikanthmenon@yahoo.com)
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> MetroLife / by Srikanth Venugopal / May 11th, 2017
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