Category Archives: Records, All

Nagarjuna and Amala announce Film Heritage Foundation’s Film Preservation & Restoration Workshop

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
Sudhanshu Vats, the group CEO and MD of Viacom18, Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Nagarjuna and Amala Akkineni   | Photo Credit:  Nagara Gopal

Announcing the Film Preservation and Restoration Workshop 2019 in Hyderabad, actors Nagarjuna and Amala underline the importance of film preservation

Hyderabad is home to one of the largest film industries in India. But how many of the old film negatives or contemporary films shot in digital mode, are being preserved for posterity? “My father (Akkineni Nageswara Rao) acted in more than 200 films but many of his films have not been preserved. I have acted in more than 90 films and realised that none of them have also been preserved well,” says Akkineni Nagarjuna, speaking on the sidelines of the announcement of the week-long Film Preservation and Restoration Workshop to be held in December in Hyderabad.

The actor admits that he wasn’t aware of film preservation methods, not only of the older ones shot on film negatives, also of the fickle nature of digital data, “We assume that since digital data is safe since it’s stored on hard disks, but we risk losing it if there’s a virus attack or a hard disk crash. Digital data needs upgradation to keep pace with technological advancements. We have lost all records of silent films and the earliest Telugu talkie. I’ve heard my father talk about silent films and how there would be narrators as the films were screened. We can at least do something to preserve what we have.”

Making preservation and conservation of film and allied material possible is the Film Heritage Foundation (FHF), founded by Shivendra Singh Dungarpur. From December 8 to 15, the FHF in partnership with Martin Scorsese’s The Film Foundation (TFF), the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF), Viacom18 and Tata Trusts, will conduct a workshop in Hyderabad. The faculty will include film conservation and archival experts from institutes across the world.

The workshop will be held at Annapurna Studios in classrooms of the Annapurna International School of Film and Media (AISFM). Extending her support, Amala Akkineni, the director of the institute added, “We look forward to hosting the hands-on sessions during the week-long workshop in 20 of our classrooms.”

In its previous editions, the film restoration workshops have been held in Pune, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. Shivendra Singh Dungarpur recalled how Mani Ratnam entrusted the FHF to preserve all his recent films. “But sadly, his films from the 80s and even Roja are in bad shape,” he shares.

Leading up to the announcement of the workshop, Shivendra had been in touch with directors, studios, producers and film labs in Hyderabad. Amitabh Bachchan, who is a strong support to FHF, sent out a video message to the Telugu film fraternity urging their support to preserve cinema.

The FHF’s workshop in Mumbai had the support of director Christopher Nolan and a one-of-its-kind round table featuring some of the most prominent members of Hindi cinema, to discuss film preservation. Taking a cue, Nagarjuna stated that he is keen to have a similar round table in Hyderabad.

The event witnessed the support of Sudhanshu Vats, Group CEO and MD, Viacom18 and Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary, Government of Telangana.

Applications for the workshop will be available from August 25, on www. filmheritagefoundation.co.in and fiafnet.org.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Entertainment> Movies / by Sangeetha Devi Dundoo / August 22nd, 2019

Now, an oral drug to treat deadly kala-azar — IIT Hyderabad says it’s faster, better

Education, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Researchers at IIT Hyderabad say the pills will ensure controlled release of the drug used to treat the disease, bettering a patient’s chance of survival.

New Delhi: 

Researchers at the premier Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, have formulated oral tablets that they say will ensure better and faster treatment of the deadly parasitic disease visceral leishmaniasis, commonly known as kala-azar or black fever.

Kala-azar is a fatal disease caused by the bite of a sandfly; it affects the bone marrow, spleen and liver. At present, the disease is treated through injection-based administration of the drug Amphotericin B but that leads to an uncontrolled release of the drug into a patient’s bloodstream, resulting in high toxicity.

The IIT researchers say their tablets will release Amphotericin B in a sustained and controlled manner over a period of 10 days, which is likely to increase the chances of a patient’s recovery.

The drug uses nanofibres, which are 1,00,000 times thinner than human hair, for the controlled release of drug molecules.

“In order to make controlled-release oral tablets, the drug molecules must be loaded onto a base that dissolves gradually to release the drug over a period of time,” said Dr Chandra Shekhar Sharma, associate professor, creative and advanced research based on nanomaterials (CARBON) laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT Hyderabad. Sharma led the research along with professor Saptarshi Majumdar.

“The development of oral, controlled-release tablets for fatal fungal infections and leishmaniasis, will help in better management of the disease burden in the country,” IIT Hyderabad said in a statement Thursday, adding that “the team’s work has been published in the July 2019 issue of the reputed peer-reviewed journal Nano-Structures and Nano-Objects”.

“Many attempts have been made earlier to make oral medication to control the delivery of the drug and bring down costs,” the statement added.

Status of kala-azar in India

In India, malaria, dengue and kala-azar are the top three vector-borne diseases.

According to the latest data by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India registered over 5,700 cases of kala-azar in 2017.

Often referred to as a ‘disease of poverty’, the maximum number of cases were found in the economically underprivileged sections of Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.

India had missed the 2017 deadline set to eliminate the disease. This was blamed on the absence of concrete or pucca houses in most infected areas and the issue was raised with the rural development ministry.

“As the endemic blocks (states) have a majority of houses made of wood, it is very difficult to eliminate the vector as it (the parasite) dwells in the wooden structure and escapes various measures to kill it,” reported  The Financial Express last year. “Hence, to stop the transmission of infection, pucca houses need to be built.”

source: http://www.theprint.in / The Print / Home> Health / by Himani Chandna / August 22nd, 2019

Amazon opens its largest office building globally in Hyderabad

Business & Economy, Records, All, World Opinion
A view of Amazon’s largest campus building anywhere globally at Gachibowli in Hyderabad, a facility spread over 9.5 acres and comprising three million square feet of built up area.   | Photo Credit:  Nagara Gopal

Its largest campus building anywhere globally which can seat 15,000 people.

E-commerce giant Amazon formally opened on Wednesday its largest campus building anywhere globally in Hyderabad, a facility spread over 9.5 acres and comprising three million square feet of built up area.

The new campus is Amazon’s first owned office building outside the U.S. and is the single largest building globally. The office space of 1.8 million sq ft can seat 15,000 people.

“We have room both for growing [new hires] and consolidating” operations at the campus, Country Head Amit Agarwal said.

Amazon currently has eight office spaces in Hyderabad and “it is natural for us to bring people together in one place. This large building also gives us enough space to grow… we will do that in phases. Already 4,000 employees have moved in [to the new campus] from other locations [in Hyderabad].”

On the work that will be undertaken at the campus, Mr. Agarwal, in a media interaction after the inauguration of the facility, said Amazon has over 60,000 employees in the country “serving our global market places, including India”. A third of the employees are housed in Hyderabad. “This is the largest employee base and technology employee base outside of Seattle,” he said, adding software development engineers, machine learning scientists, product managers, finance and many other involved in various functions will be based out of the campus.

Room to grow

Asked on the economic slowdown and the likely impact on the business plans of Amazon, he said, “We haven’t seen any slowdown yet. One reason is e-commerce is very small portion of retail consumption in India, probably less than 3%. When it is that small, there is so much room to grow.”

Macro conditions are unlikely to seriously impact the e-commerce growth, he said, adding Amazon is committed to long term and “does not get distracted by what’s happening in short cycles. We continue to invest, add more selection, continue to make things more affordable, more faster… growing at a very heavy rate,” he said, without sharing numbers.

About investments made in India, he said: “We publicly announced $5 billion of investment so far and another $500 million in food retail. Outside of that we continue to invest in across our businesses.”

$1 billion exports

The company, Mr. Agarwal said, is registering “tremendous growth not just in our national business but also export business [with] 50,000 sellers now using the services to export to many countries outside where Amazon customers are based. That business has actually crossed $1 billion and we expect it to grow to $5 billion in next three years.”

Amazon vice-president (Global Real Estate and Facilities) John Schoettler said Amazon has roughly 40 million sq ft of office space globally across 300 different locations in over 40 countries. “In Seattle [headquarters] we have approximately 12 million sq ft, half of it owned and the rest leased. Hyderabad is the second location where we have our corporate office outside of the US.”

Telangana Home Minister Mohammed Mahmood and Industries and IT Secretary Jayesh Ranjan participated in the inauguration. Besides offices, Amazon in Telangana has three fulfilment centres offering more than 3.2 million cubic feet of storage space to sellers, two sort centres with 100,000 square feet of processing capacity and 90 delivery stations.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by N. Ravi Kumar / Hyderabad – August 21st, 2019

IIT-Hyderabad researchers develop method to make biofuel with sugar and salt

Education, Green Initiatives / Environment, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

The researchers described the novel process that can produce carbon catalysts at room temperatures using sugar, sulphuric acid and salt in the journal ‘ACS Sustainable Chemistry and Engineering’.

Hyderabad : 

Researchers  at IIT Hyderabad have developed a simple and innovative method to synthesise a catalyst that can convert chemicals derived from biomass into a precursor to diesel and jet fuel, the institute said on Tuesday. This catalyst showed better efficiency and selectivity than commercial catalysts to produce C15 oxygenated hydrocarbon, a biofuel precursor.

The researchers described the novel process that can produce carbon catalysts at room temperatures using sugar, sulphuric acid and salt in the journal ‘ACS Sustainable Chemistry and Engineering’. “The dehydration of sugar by concentrated sulfuric acid is high-school chemistry. But the intense heat released is not well-controlled,” explained Dr Atul Suresh Deshpande, assistant professor at IIT-H.

In order to control the exothermic dehydration of sugar, the researchers add common salt. Salt helps in controlled dehydration of sugar, which leads to formation of the desired carbon nanoplates. “Due to the low cost of precursors with practically zero energy input and simplicity of reaction, this process of producing carbon nanoplates can be easily adapted for large-scale commercial production,” added Prof Sunil Kumar Maity.

This development is important for States such as Uttar Pradesh and the two Telugu states which are the largest producers of corn in India. The large amount of corncob waste can now be converted into fuels and allow additional income for farmers of corn, provide a sustainable energy source and reduce carbon footprint in the automobile/ aviation sector.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express News Service / July 31st, 2019

Space Museum opens at Birla Science Centre

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All, Science & Technology
Children having a look at an exhibit at the Space Museum at Birla Science Centre in Hyderabad on Friday.

‘Museums are mirrors which reflect the country’s heritage’

The city got its first private Space Museum at Birla Archaeological and Cultural Research Institute, which celebrated its 50th anniversary on Friday.

Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan inaugurated the museum. The museum is associated with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Addressing the gathering, Narashimhan said that museums are mirrors which reflect the country’s heritage. “They are reminders of where we come from and a visit to the museum gives us immense pleasure which also satisfies our inner urge to see what we are missing in this modern era,” he said.

The Space Museum has a host of exhibits including replicas of satellites such as Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment (APPLE), Chandrayan-1, Mangalyan and launch vehicles like GSLV MK III and others. As part of the 50-year celebrations, the BACRI will invite Nobel laureates, organise symposiums, seminars, workshops and exhibitions.

ISRO lauded

Speaking at the event, Nirmala Birla, president, BACRI said: The Space Museum that has been inaugurated today is a big step forward in this journey. I hope that everyone who visits the museum enjoys the experience and are inspired by newer horizons that the ISRO through space science is opening for India.” She pointed out that BACRI has a strong record for excavation, conservation of temples, publications, numismatics, museums and promoting science. She said that so far 30 Nobel laureates had delivered lectures.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Staff Reporter / Hyderabad – July 27th, 2019

Incubated in IIT-Hyderabad, start-up PURE EV raises VC Nannapaneni’s funding

Business & Economy, Education, Green Initiatives / Environment, Records, All, Science & Technology, Travel, World Opinion

PURE EV has also been developing a prototype of HVDC electric truck/bus lithium battery modules and intends to showcase them in 2020 for potential collaborations.

VC Nannapaneni is working on the development of high-speed and long-range scooters and motorcycles

Hyderabad :

Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad-incubated startup PURE EV has raised venture capital funding from Hyderabad-based pharmaceuticals visionary VC Nannapaneni, in his personal capacity. The funding is coming at an opportune moment for the company with its plans for expansion of its manufacturing capacity and R&D initiatives. It is working on the development of high-speed and long-range scooter and motorcycle, which are scheduled for commercial launch in October this year and early 2020 respectively.

PURE EV has also been developing a prototype of HVDC electric truck/bus lithium battery modules and intends to showcase them in 2020 for potential collaborations. PURE EV is now looking to ramp up its EV manufacturing capacity to 2000 units per month by October 2019.

The company was founded in 2016 by Dr Nishanth Dongari, Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, IIT Hyderabad, and is led by Rohit Vadera, an alumnus of IIT Bombay. The startup will continue to collaborate with R&D laboratories of IIT Hyderabad.

PURE EV recently launched four two-wheeler models – ‘EGNITE,’ ‘ETRANCE,’ ‘EPLUTO’ and ‘ETRON’. It aims to deploy over 10,000 electric vehicles on the road during 2019-20. It has established an 18,000-sqft state-of-the-art facility, co-located with IIT Hyderabad, for cutting-edge research and development and for large-scale production of electric vehicles and electric batteries.

The company had also recently launched its CMVR-exempted electric vehicles commercially in the market and is actively working on building strategic partnerships for vehicle financing and branding collaboration. Nannapaneni, speaking about his reasons for the investment, said, “We hope they are able to succeed in their vision to promote usage of electric vehicles amongst the masses.”

“The funding will be primarily utilised for expanding the manufacturing capacity by installation of an automated assembly line,” said Rohit Vadera, CEO, PURE EV.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express News Service / July 11th, 2019

INCOIS Director elected to UNESCO body

Amazing Feats, Green Initiatives / Environment, Leaders, Nature, Records, All, World Opinion

The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) Director Satheesh Shenoi has been unanimously elected Vice-Chair (Group IV), of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission for 2019-2021. Group IV encompasses the countries of Australia, China, India, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Japan, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea and Thailand.

UNESCO-IOC has around 150 member States and promotes international cooperation and programmes in marine research, services, observation systems, hazard mitigation, and capacity development in order to understand and effectively manage the resources of the ocean and coastal areas. Representatives of the member states are currently meeting at UNESCO Headquarters, Paris, France for the 30th session of the IOC Assembly (26 June – 4 July 2019).

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Special Correspondent / Hyderabad – July 05th, 2019

The Hindu lensmen bag prizes

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
This photograph has been selected second prize in the Press Club Hyderabad Photo contest this year. Women from a nearby village walk between huge pipes used in the construction activity at Mandadam in the core capital region near Vijayawada of AP,   | Photo Credit:  CH _ VIJAYA BHASKAR

The Hindu photographer at Vijayawada, Ch.V.S. Vijaya Bhaskara Rao, won second prize in the third edition of photo contest for photo journalists conducted by the Press Club of Hyderabad on the occasion of the club’s foundation day celebrations.

The first prize went to Sakshi Nalgonda photographer K.B. Prasad and the third to Bhaskar Reddy of V6 Velugu daily in Siddipet.

The first three prizes carry cash award of ₹ 15,000, ₹ 10,000 and ₹ 5,000 respectively.

The consolation prize winners were K.V.S. Giri (The Hindu – Hyderabad), A. Ramachandra Rao (Andhra Bhoomi – Vijayawada), V. Peddi Raju (The Hindu – Vijayawada), G. Ramu (Eenadu – Hyderabad), Gunti Vinod (Namasthe Telangana – Wanaparthy), J. Azeez (Sakshi – Machilipatnam), N. Rajesh Reddy (Sakshi – Hyderabad), K. Bajrang Prasad (Sakshi – Nalgonda), A. Yakaiah (Sakshi – Suryapet) and S. Ravinder (Eenadu – Suryapet).

All of them will get ₹ 2,000 each.

The prize distribution will be held at Press Club Hyderabad on June 9.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Telangana / by Special Correspondent / Hyderabad June 01st, 2019

TSSPDCL bags ‘Smart Cities India Award’

Business & Economy, Green Initiatives / Environment, Nature, Records, All, Science & Technology

The award recognises pioneering projects that aim to make cities more liveable, sustainable and economically viable by honouring best practices and models, said a release on Friday.

Hyderabad : 

The Southern Power Distribution Company of Telangana limited (TSSPDCL) has bagged the prestigious ‘Smart Cities India Award’ for solar rooftops under the category of ‘ Clean & Green City’ at the 5th Smart Cities India 2019 held in New Delhi, for achievements in adoption, promotion & integration of renewable energy under distributed generation model. G Raghuma Reddy, chairman & MD of TSSPDCL received the award.  

Smart Cities India Awards is an annual event designed to felicitate, recognise and encourage individuals, policymakers, companies, government bodies and associations working behind the successful execution of the huge dream of developing 100 smart cities & rejuvenation of 500 cities in India.

The award recognises pioneering projects that aim to make cities more liveable, sustainable and economically viable by honouring best practices and models, said a release on Friday. 

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express News Service / May 25th, 2019

Former NCC cadet from State scales Mt. Everest

Records, All, Sports, Travel, World Opinion
Tukaram Amgoth  

He took the challenging South Col route to the summit

Tukaram Amgoth, a former NCC cadet and hailing from Telangana State, scaled Mount Everest from the most challenging South Col route on May 22 after he had started his climb from Nepal on April 6.

Mr. Amgoth of 2 (T) Bn NCC, Secunderabad Group, had been a cadet from 2015 to 2017 and had attended basic mountaineering course at Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, Uttarkashi through the NCC and secured ‘A’ grade. He was further selected in advance mountaineering course at Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering & Sports, Jammu and secured best technique award from the institution.

In 2016, Brigadier Abbay (Commandant, High Altitude Warfare School) had encouraged him to scale Mt. Everest from the South Col route and from then on he made up his mind to scale Mt Everest. Cadet Amgoth had scaled Mt Norbo (17,145 ft) in June 2016 scaled on Telangana Formation Day and hoisted Telangana Flag.

In June 2017 he had scaled Mt Rudragaira Peak (19,091 ft) on Telangana Formation Day in adverse climatic conditions. In the same year on July 2017 he has also scaled Mt Stok Kangri (20,187 ft) along with four other friends who had sponsored him.

Thereafter, he scaled the highest mountain peak of Africa Mt Kilimanjaro (19,340 ft) in July 2018 and hoisted the National flag. He was also honoured by President Ramnath Kovind and Governor of AP & Telangana State E.S.L Narasimhan, a press release said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Telangana / by Special Correspondent / Hyderabad – May 24th, 2019