Daily Archives: August 3, 2015

Karimnagar: Guru Purnima celebrated

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education
Girls offer abhisekam with milk to Saibaba at Tapovanam temple on the occasion of Guru Purnima in Anantapur on Friday. (Photo: DC)
Girls offer abhisekam with milk to Saibaba at Tapovanam temple on the occasion of Guru Purnima in Anantapur on Friday. (Photo: DC)

Karimnagar/Warangal:

Guru Purnima was celebrated with religious fervor across the district on Friday. People, in a large numbers, thronged temples of Sri Sai Baba to mark the occasion. Special prayers were held in the temples. Guru Purnima is a sacred day to commemorate ancient sages and spiritual teachers of Hindu religion such as Vyas who edited four scriptures and authored 18 epics, Maha Bharath and Srimadbhagavatham. Feeding poor programmes were also organised on this auspicious occasion.

People from all walks of life made beeline to nearby temples of Sri Sai Baba from early morning and performed prayers.Thousands of devotees visited Sai Baba temple in Sainagar of the city. Special programmes were held on the premises of government and private educational institutions as part of the celebrations. Students greeted their teachers and sought blessings.

Similar celebrations were conducted across the district. Devotees flocked the Sai Baba temple in Hanamkonda in large numbers. Temple authorities performed special prayers and conducted annadanam to over 5,000 people. Temple trusty Srinivas said the special prayers began with harathi early in the morning and then mangala snanam was conducted. Devotees formed beelines for darshan of Sai Baba.

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Nation> Current Affairs / Deccan Chronicle / August 01st, 2015

Paints soon that can generate electricity

Science & Technology
Representational image
Representational image

Hyderabad:

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, have developed a smart coating technology that is self-healing, hydrophobic and hydrophilic, eco-friendly, resists corrosion and more. Surfaces requiring these properties need only be coated by the polymers and their hybrids.

Scientists at the Polymers and Functional Materials Division of the IICT said projects on different types of coating materials were underway and could be altered as per the requirements of the user.

Smart coating polymers are under development around the world which respond to an external stimulus. “Self-healing property can be invoked with a small amount of heating. If there is a scratch, it can be removed just by applying heat from a hair dryer,” said Dr Ramanuj Narayan, senior scientist, Polymers and Fun-ctional Materials Division, IICT said.

Another kind of material being developed is transparent and hydrophobic which repels water so there is no wetting or blurring of the surface. Researchers have also developed an eco-friendly polymer paint with anti-microbial properties that is devoid of additives. Paint and coating uses many additives which may contain toxins and could even emit them apart from odours. “Additives also go away after some time, degrading the quality of the paint coat. But there is no degradation in our eco-friendly paint,” said Dr K.V.S.N. Raju, head of the Polymers and Functional Materials Division of IICT.

IICT researchers have also developed a self-recoverable polymer coating that can recover its original shape on slight heating. “Scientists were working on the development of composite materials but observed a self-recoverable behaviour. It will regain its original shape like rubber. We are thinking what kind of applications it can have,” Dr Narayan explained.

IICT is also working on developing a solar paint and ink that will completely do away with the need for solar panels and will directly generate electricity from the coated walls.

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Nation> Current Affairs / Deccan Chronicle by Amar Tejaswi /July 30th, 2015

Festive Air as Women Throng Secunderabad Bonalu Fest

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Hyderabad :

An air of festivity swept through the streets of Secunderabad as thousands of devotees thronged the streets to celebrate Bonalu at the Sri Ujjaini Mahankali temple. Devotees prayed and offered bonams at other Mahankali temples in the city on the occasion of Secunderabad Mahankali Bonalu Jatara, popularly known as Lashkar Bonalu.

The ‘Rangam’ (forecasting the future) will be made by a young unmarried woman at 8.30 a.m. on Monday.

The colourful Bonalu festival started from early hours of Sunday with a large number of devotees, especially women and young girls gaily dressed in traditional attire carrying ‘Bonam’ (pot containing rice, turmeric powder, jaggery and curd covered with neem leaves with a lamp placed on it) on their heads to offer Goddess Mahankali. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao along with his family members offered ‘pattu vastralu’ (silk clothes) and other items to Goddess Mahankali. Ministers T Srinivas Yadav, T Padma Rao, Nayini Narasimha Reddy, A Indrakaran Reddy, MPs, MLAs, MLCs, senior Government officials and others also offered prayers at the temple.

It is expected that over five lakh devotees would participate in Bonalu till Monday evening.

TRS MP Kavitha carrying a ‘Bonalu’ to Ujjaini Mahakali Temple on the occasion of Bonalu festival in Secunderabad on Sunday | A Radhakrishna
TRS MP Kavitha carrying a ‘Bonalu’ to Ujjaini Mahakali Temple on the occasion of Bonalu festival in Secunderabad on Sunday | A Radhakrishna

Central Ministers M Venkaiah Naidu and Bandaru Dattatreya also visited the temple and performed puja, while Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu offered prayers at Ujjaini Mahankali Temple on Saturday.
The lanes of Secunderabad were filled with procession of devotees carrying ghatams. Whip weilding ‘potharajus’ with ‘ghatams’ followed by ‘teen maar’ drumbeat reverberated in the lanes and bylanes of Secunderabad.

The Mahankali Temple was beautifully decked up for the festival with illumination, flower arrangements, buntings and festoons.

Apart from devotees of Secunderabad and Hyderabad, devotees from surrounding districts including Rangareddy, Medak and Nalgonda too thronged the temple and offered prayers. Separate queues were made for the convenience of devotees carrying bonalu, and handicapped and aged persons. The devotees also visited Mahankali temples located in Pan Bazar, Regimental Bazar, Ramgopalpet, Mettuguda, Bhoiguda, RP Road, Marredpally, Paradise, Ranigunj, YMCA, SD Road, Seethaphalmandi, Chilkaguda and other temples.

Several devotees offered a ‘thottela’ (a small colourful, paper structure supported by sticks). Police made elaborate security arrangements for smooth conduct of the festival.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Telangana / by Express News Service / August 03rd, 2015