Nidhi gets nostalgic

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg
(Nidhi Subbaiah More Pics )
(Nidhi Subbaiah More Pics )

Sandalwood actress Nidhi Subbaiah, who is making her mark in Bollywood, seems excited to watch Bombay Talkies. “Waiiiting to watch bombay talkies!Never been this excited for a film for a long long time!What was the last film you were excited to watch?” tweeted the actress.

Nidhi, who has acted in Kannada movies such as Pancharangi, Krishnan Marriage Story and Anna Bond, after talking bout Bombay Talkies, could not resist sharing some of her Bangalore memories. “I remember Sarfarosh, with dad-for someone who hated standing in long queue’s in d theatre,he actually bought tickets in black!Lido theatre!” she tweeted.

The actress, who featured in the 2012 Hindi film Ajab Gazabb Love opposite Jackky Bhagnani, is likely to return to the Sandalwood screen with the film Vara that’s likely to release sometime this year.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Entertainment> Regional / by Parinatha Sampath, TNN / May 04th, 2013

Kodagu all set for V-day, security stepped up

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Uncategorized

There are 4.02 lakh voters in the district,

Kodagu district administration has made preparations for webcasting facilities in five selected booths in each of the two Assembly constituencies during the May 5 elections, Deputy Commissioner, N.V. Prasad has said.

Addressing presspersons at the Old Assembly Hall in Madikeri on Friday, Mr. Prasad said webcasting would be done on the day of mustering and de-mustering — at the St. Joseph High School in Madikeri and Government Junior College in Virajpet — as also the day of counting at the St. Joseph’s High School. Steps had been taken to deploy police, paramilitary forces, videographers and micro-election observes to the sensitive and hyper-sensitive polling booths in the two constituencies, Dr. Prasad, said.

Vehicles

As many as 71 buses, four mini-buses, 34 maxi-cabs, 80 jeeps, have been hired for election duty in the district. There are 87 vehicles in Madikeri constituency and 102 in Virajpet taluk.

There are 4.02 lakh voters in the district. In Madikeri there are 2.02 lakh voters —1, 00,235 men and 1, 01,839 women — and in Virajpet there are 2, 00,259 voters —1, 00,290 men and 99,969 women, Dr. Prasad said.

Steps have been taken to distribute voter slips to the voters through the booth-level officials. Those who had not received the slips could call the helpline located at the Deputy Commissioner’s office. Besides, voter facilitation centres would be opened on May 5 to distribute voter slips to those who have not received it, Dr. Prasad said.

Only two candidates of each political party would be allowed to set up booths at a distance of 200 meters from the polling booth on production of permission letters issued by the panchayat development officers and officers from the urban local bodies.

Sale of liquor has been banned in the district from 5 p.m. on May 3 to midnight of May 5 in all bars and restaurants, hotels, resorts, clubs as a precautionary measure, Dr. Prasad said.

Officials deputed for election duty could cast votes at the centre opened at the office of the Assembly Election Officer. If not, they could send the votes through post before 8 a.m. on May 8, the day of counting, to the counting centre at the St. Joseph’s High School, he said.

Counting

Dr. Prasad said that as many as 14 counting tables had been allocated to each of the Assembly segment. A supervisor, group ‘C’ employee, one Central government employee as the micro-observer and a counting agent representing the contesting candidates would be present. A media centre had been opened near the counting centre.

He appealed to the owners of the plantations, industrial units, shops and commercial establishments to give e a one-day leave to workers and employees on May 5 to facilitate voting. Police have made elaborate bandobast to maintain law and order during the elections by deploying more than 1,000 personnel and officers drawn from the paramilitary, district armed reserve, police. There will be special vigil at the booths identified as naxal-affected, he said.

Slips distributed to voters through the booth-level officials

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> National> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Mysore – May 04th, 2013

Uthappa slams team management

Sports

UthappaKF05may2013Close on the heels of Angelo Mathews stepping down as the captain of the Pune Warriors for the rest of this IPL season, their opener Robin Uthappa slammed the team management for frequent change of personnel at the helm.

Since their inception in 2011, the troubled Warriors have had six captains with three of them being named this year alone. While Yuvraj Singh led them in their first year of IPL, Sourav Ganguly and Michael Clarke skippered the side the previous season. Mathews led in the first four matches this year before Ross Taylor captained them to their second and last win against Super Kings in Chennai as the Sri Lankan wasn’t allowed to play in the Tamil Nadu capital. Mathews took over in the next match in Pune against Sunrisers Hyderabad but after that game was replaced by Australian batsman Aaron Finch who has continued since then.

“I have to be honest here and that’s (captaincy) definitely one of the issues (bothering us),” remarked Uthappa, whose bruising 45-ball 75 threatened to pull off a rare win for the hosts. “We have never stuck to a winning combination. It’s a bit disappointing for me as a player to see the winning combination change. We beat Super Kings, a very strong team, at their home ground and we came back and changed that combination. I have never seen that happen and I think that kind of shook things little bit for us,” revealed the opener when asked if frequent changes at the helm affected their performance.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> ipl / Pune – DHNS / May 03rd, 2013

First national coffee museum on the way

Coffee News

The construction of the first national coffee museum is nearing completion despite lagging behind its schedule in Bonga town with a budget outlay of 32 million birr.
ethiopiacoffeemuseumKG04may2013

The initiative had originally come from the National Millennium Festival and Celebration Secretariat Office five years ago.

The then secretariat handed over the initiative first to the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Regional Administration and then the latter handed it over to the Bonga Zonal Administration to carry out the construction of the museum.

Kifle Gebremariyam, head of Bonga zone administration, said that though the budget was supposed to be financed by the federal government, as it is a national museum, it’s covered by both the SNNP and the Bonga zone.

If all goes according to plan, after a few months, the museum will open its door. The design of the museum depicts traditional rural housing of Ethiopian.

The zone administrator also said that the construction is lagging behind its original schedule due to the delay of budget supply and lack of construction material.

He told The Reporter that the decision to make it at Bonga is because Bonga is the birthplace of coffee.

The museum is also intended to show the tie Ethiopians have with coffee.

The internal part of the museum consists of both permanent and temporary exhibition areas. It will also have the Ethiopian cultural coffee ceremony.

Upon completion of the construction, the museum is going to be handed over to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, according to Kifle. So far the zonal administration has paid over 22 million birr to the contractor.

By Yonas Abiye
Source: EthiopianReporter

source: http://www.diretube.com / Home> Ethiopian News / November 19th, 2012

Former athletes urge IOC to sort out India mess

Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg, Sports

New Delhi :

A group of prominent athletes fighting for better administration of sports in India has asked the International Olympic Committee to send a team to resolve the country’s suspension.

“We’ve written to the IOC about the latest developments and requested them to send a team to assess the situation,” Clean Sports India vice president Ashwini Nachappa told The Associated Press on Thursday. “Officials here are trying to mislead the IOC and there is no justification in what they say. They’re only employing delaying tactics.”

(The IOC suspended the Indian…)
(The IOC suspended the Indian…)

The IOC suspended the Indian Olympic Association on Dec. 5 for conducting illegal elections and the election of tainted officials.

It then asked the IOA to liaise with government officials and set a meeting date with the IOC, but the proposed meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, has not materialized.

Former IOA acting president Vijay Kumar Malhotra, who has been corresponding with the IOC since the new body was not recognized, wrote to the world body last week saying the government did not seem interested in a solution.

“While we endorsed your move for a dialogue involving the government, it has gone ahead and constituted a committee to re-draft the controversial sports bill, which is in total breach of the Olympic charter,” Malhotra wrote to the IOC.

Sports minister Jitender Singh reacted with disappointment on Wednesday, saying Malhotra was only trying to delay the meeting with IOC.

“I will appeal to the IOA to quickly fix the dates. If they are not going, then (someone from) the ministry will or I will personally go there and speak to the IOC,” Jitendra said.

The sports code puts an age restriction of 70 years on officials while Malhotra is already past 80. It also puts a cap of three tenures for the main office-bearers but Malhotra has been the president of the Archery Association of India for more than three decades.

Nachappa said the sports bill was inevitable and that long-serving officials should look beyond their personal interests.

“I think the ministry is clear about having the code. That code is being drafted out with good representation from all stake holders. I feel the IOC has taken cognizance of that and trying to give them a wrong impression will not help,” Nachappa said. “This is the only time to do it right. Even if it takes a long time, it will be good for Indian sports.”

The IOA had cited a Delhi High Court order in conducting its polls according to the sports code even though the IOC had asked it to follow its own constitution while meeting an election deadline. Though the IOC does not want government interference, it is not opposed to the Indian body re-drafting its constitution in line with the code, which is based on the IOC’s own constitution.

The IOC’s ethics commission had also advised that tainted officials shouldn’t hold administrative posts, but Lalit Bhanot was declared elected unopposed as the new secretary-general despite spending 11 months in jail for corruption cases related to the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

Suresh Kalmadi, who headed the IOA for 16 years, decided not to seek re-election after graft charges relating to the Commonwealth Games but backed new president Abhey Chautala and Bhanot.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Sports> More Sports / by AP / April 11th, 2013

Harshika celebrates her big day

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg

(Harshika Poonacha )
(Harshika Poonacha )

Harshika Poonacha turned a year older on May 1. And the actress was in great spirits, starting her big day at midnight and having cut three cakes already by the morning, when we at Times of India called the actress to wish her.

Her plan of action for the day, she told us, was to spend time at home with family and friends, and then head out in the evening for the launch of a fashion event company that she will be a part of, which will culminate in her birthday celebrations. Her involvement in a fashion event firm does not come as a surprise, given that Harshika has, in the recent past, been a judge on a talent hunt show exclusively for the Kodava fraternity.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Entertainment> Regional / by Prathibha Joy, TNN / May 01st, 2013

Brewed on this

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg)

The Kapi Trail, a joint effort by the Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), Thomas Cook, Karnataka Ministry of Tourism and Coffee Board of India, is a unique tourism experience that allows travellers to experience coffee plantations of the South, in a different way.

Caffeine kick

“Our idea was to use the flavours of coffee and the whole coffee tourism experience as a trigger point to encourage people to explore South India,” says Rene Baumann, vice president, BIAL. “And since the airport brings in people from all over the world. This initiative would spotlight south India in a different way,” Baumann explains.

The big picture

The trail offers packages that cover Bangalore, Mysore, Coorg and Chickamagalur. One can learn about the history of coffee and the processing of the bean; engage with the local culture, traditions and cuisine or stay in ancestral homes and plantations. For the sporty holiday maker, there are scenic mountain treks and cycling tours.

Culture vultures can opt for heritage walks with visits to ancient temples and palaces – the 18 m tall Gomateswara statue, the largest monolithic in Asia at Sravanbelgola, to the only Hoysala temple still active at Belur. Wild life buffs are definitely spoiled for choice. They can get a taste of the wilderness via jeep safaris or visit The Tholpetty and Bhadra sanctuaries in the region. The Tholpetty forest, part of the Nagarhole wildlife sanctuary, is also a tiger reserve. One can go on a guided forest trek or understand where your bean really comes from, with a visit to a plantation pulp house and drying yard.

The Namdroling monastery in Bylakuppe, Coorg and the coffee museum in Chickmangalur are also worth a visit.

Packages start at `26,400 upwards.

Details: bangaloreairport.com; kaapi.trail@in.thomascook.com

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express Features – Hyderabad / May 02nd, 2013

Priyanka, Kulkarni win

Records, All, Sports

Belgaum’s Manoj B Kulkarni and Kodagu’s Priyanka Narayan claimed the boys’ and girls’ titles respectively in the State under-11 championship held at the Sri Siddivinayaka Residential School in Kundapur.

Manoj scored 8.5 points out of the possible nine while Priyanka scored 6.5 points out of seven to be crowned champs.

Results (final round): Boys: Aditya B Kalyani (6.5) drew Manoj B Kulkarni (8.5); Shreyash A Kulkarni (7) drew Shaunak Geetprasad (6.5); Rishab Banthiya (5.5) lt to Adithya Joshua D’Silva (7); Chandan AS (5.5) lt to Shreyas Pavan (6.5); Avi Jaiswal (6) bt Niranjan Rajeev (5); Chaithanya Ganesh (6) bt Mihir Shettigar (5); Siddharth Beedu (5.5) drew Partithosh Ramesh (5.5); Sishir B (6) bt Chandramouli Koushik SB (5); Akash Somasundaram (5) lt to Varun V Navali (6); Dhanush MD (5.5) bt Atharva Abhijit Barve (4.5).

Girls: Ashwija Bharanya (4.5) lt to Priyanka Narayan (6.5); Prachi Bharti (6) bt Diya James (5); Khushi M Hombal (5) bt Varshitha SP (4.5); Anusha T (4) lt to Ojasi Gopikrishna (5); Ananya R Patel (4) lt to Shridevi Kote (5); Yashaswika IV (4) lt to Prathvika JR (4.5); Chrisel Anthea Fernandes (3.5) lt to Nagasshree Aaraga (4); Aditi B Rao (3) lt to Chaithra R Rao (4); Bhoomika K (4) bt Panchami Sarpangala (3); Vidisha V Bhat (4) bt Manya Hegde (3).

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Sports / Bangalore, DHNS – April 30th, 2013

Decoding California

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg

The Silicon Valley, a rough triangle that stretches from San Francisco and Oakland in the north to San Jose in the south, could be mistaken for an extension of an Indian city.

From streets with names such as Gurudwara Road to Indian restaurants and even a store named The Love Of Ganesha, the area is home to thousands of Indians, many of them techies. And first-time filmmaker Rucha Humnabadkar, who has assisted Nagesh Kukunoor on his films Hyderabad Blues (1998), Rockford (1999) and Bollywood Calling (2003), is looking to capture the journey of these people in her new film, For Here Or To Go?
“It’s the story of every Indian who comes to the Bay Area with dreams of making it big,” says Rucha. The script is written by Rishi Bhilawadikar, who is actor Atul Kulkarni’s nephew, and is based on posts from his blog, Stuff Desis Like. “I met Rishi about a year ago and we got talking about this script that he’d written. I was interested in making the film right off the bat,” she says.

Actor Gulshan Devaiah, who was last seen in Hate Story (2012), is playing the lead character, a first-generation immigrant from Mumbai. “He is a loner who likes western culture. He wants success and goes to America in search of it,” says Gulshan. “However, he soon finds that he’s facing the age-old dilemma of migrants, where do I belong?” he adds. Although the actor hasn’t had a similar experience himself, he will be meeting techies in the States and hopes to draw inspiration from their lives.

The film, which goes on the floors by July, will be shot in the Bay Area and Mumbai. “It’ll be nice to have a wide release,” says Gulshan. “This is a story that needs to be told, especially with the spotlight on immigration reform right now,” says Rucha, referring to the Mark Zuckerberg-led initiative FWD.us (pronounced forward US).

source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> Movies> Entertainment> bollywood / by Sumedha Deo, Hindustan Times / Mumbai, April 30th, 2013

For these migratory tribals, livelihood, not voting, counts

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg)

Thousands of tribals in HD Kote and Hunsur haadis are likely to ignore the May 5 Assembly election as they have temporarily migrated to Kodagu and Wayanad to work in coffee estates. It is unlikely that they will come back to vote as there is a strong feeling that their exercising franchise has helped little in bettering their lives.

There are 115 haadis in H D Kote and about 30 in Hunsur with a total population of about 30,000.

The tribals here are predominantly agricultural labourers and with the region facing severe drought and agricultural activities still to resume, there is hardly any job on offer for them. Even forests are almost shut for them and they are hardly able to lay their hands on minor forest produce.

With no other choice, a majority of young and middle-aged men and women have left in search of greener pastures, leaving elderly parents at home to take care of their children. The tribals say that despite them casting their votes in successive elections, not much has changed in their lives. “Moreover, it’s a matter of bread and butter. We cannot give up a day’s wages and come just for the sake of voting,” said Raja from D B Kuppe haadi.

While many tribals have shifted their base to coffee estates as early as December and will return on May, those located on the borders of Kerala and Kodagu travel to their work places daily. Tribals are preferred for weeding and tree pruning as they are experts in it and get wages ranging from `150 to 300 daily.

Srikanth of the Tribal Joint Action Forum said that the tribals’ long-pending demands like title deeds for their cultivating lands, places of worship and graveyards, better health facilities and quality teachers who can bridge language barriers of their children among others are still to be met.

Most importantly, the poor tribes are upset over a series of attacks on fellow tribes by forest staff while collecting minor forest produce and over the problems they face in burying dead bodies. Graveyards of tribal clans are located inside forests and they have to brave deep trenches to carry dead bodies for burial. However, he feels that most tribals may not stay away from voting as they are conscious about voting rights and will find their way to polling booths if they have encouraging employers. Sources in the district administration said they are trying their level best to convince tribals to vote by holding talks with community leaders.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Vincent D’Souza – Mysore / April 30th, 2013