Category Archives: Education

Hyderabad girls outshine boys in CBSE exams

Education, Records, All

Hyderabad :

City students performed exceedingly well in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) class XII results that were announced on Monday with most institutes securing 100% pass percentage. Incidentally, the overall pass percentage in the state stood at 92.96%, higher than that of neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, which stood at 87.84%.

The top score in the Science stream was achieved by Pranjal Pathak from Delhi Public School, Nacharam, with 98.6%, whereas in Commerce, the top scorer was P Amukta from P Obul Reddy School with 96.8%. Many students from Chirec Public School, Meridian School, Silver Oaks, Kennedy High School, etc., crossed the coveted 90% mark.

“Almost 32% students in our school have scored 90% and above. Although the papers were a little application-based this year, our students performed well,” said Iffat Ibrahim, principal of Chirec Public School in Kondapur.

According to students, the question paper for Maths, English and Chemistry were tougher this year. “The English and Chemistry papers were lengthier this time. However, I am glad I scored well in both the subjects,” said Yadavalli Susan, who scored 81 in Chemistry and 80 in English.

Among the high scorers in the Science stream were GS Satwik from P Obul Reddy School with 96.8%, Naila Fatima from Meridian School in Banjara Hills with 95.8%, Dhruvika Sahni from Chirec Public School with 95.8%, Arica Moirancthem from Kennedy High School with 94.6%, Yadavalli Susan from Silver Oaks with 92.5% and B Simren from Jubilee Hills Public School with 91.8%.

In the Commerce stream, Vishesh Agarwal from Meridian School with 96.4%, Mahitha Samyukta from Chirec Public School with 96% and Ankita Agarwal, Sharath Sonti and Utsav Badra from Delhi Public School with 95.8% were the top scorers. A total of 3,856 students from Telangana appeared for the exams conducted from March 2 to 26 this year. The pass percentage of girls in the state was higher than boys at 94.8% as compared to 90.93%.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / TNN / May 26th, 2015

Doon’s bonds with Hyderabad

Education, Historical Links / Pre-Independence, Records, All

The Nizam was one of the principal donors to the school prior to Independence, and it continues to have a house named after the city

One Prime Minister, several Chief Ministers and prominent politicians, exponents in art, drama, film and literature, sporting icons and top bureaucrats and militarymen – The Doon School has all of them and more on its list of alumni.

Interestingly, the prestigious Dehradun-based school has a Hyderabad connection. The Nizam was one of the principal donors to the school prior to Independence, and the school continues to have one its houses named after Hyderabad.

Students from Hyderabad were a prominent presence till the 1960s, while now the school has only a dozen students who hail from the city.

However, Doon is now trying to reconnect with students from the Telugu-speaking States. “We find that students from AP and Telangana flourish and thrive with us intellectually, creatively and sportingly and we want to further strengthen it,” the school’s headmaster Peter Mclaughlin told The Hindu .

Headmaster Peter Mclauchlin says the prestigious school is trying to reconnect to students from theTelugu-speaking States.– Photo: Special Arrangement
Headmaster Peter Mclauchlin says the prestigious school is trying to reconnect to students from theTelugu-speaking States.– Photo: Special Arrangement

Dr. Maclaughlin, who was in Hyderabad to speak to parents and students on the education Doon offered, said efforts had been made to make the school more democratic and meritocratic.

“The educational landscape is changing dramatically in India, and historic schools cannot sit on past glory. Such an attitude is a great enemy,” he said, revealing that school has students from diverse social and economic background.

To maintain such diversity, the school has consciously made efforts to admit meritorious children from economically backward sections of society. Around 40 per cent students get some scholarship, including a 100 per cent concession on fee. After the Central Government discontinued its scholarship scheme, it is the school’s alumni who are supporting such students.

‘An all-India school’

Dr. Maclaughlin reminds that India is fractured by regional, religious and ethnic mindset.

“They take pride in their identity, but are rooted to their Indianess. An all-India school like ours offers precisely such an atmosphere, where students thrive on learning from each other and respect other’s values.”

Dr. Maclaughlin felt students from southern India gravitate more towards science and math, while those from the north have interests in commerce and economics. Southern students also show a keen interest in creative arts like music and dance. They are more focussed too, he said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by R. Ravikanth Reddy / Hyderabad – April 06th, 2015

Telangana govt to fund Old City woman’s pilot training

Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Science & Technology

Hyderabad :

The Telangana government is all set to give wings to a girl from the Old City. Poised for flight, Salwa Fatima, who is the first pilot from purana shahar, will be given Rs 35.5 lakh so as to enable her to soar the skies, this time, in a multi-engine aircraft.

Highly placed sources told STOI on Saturday that the chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has sanctioned the funds. A government order (GO) will be issued to the effect next week.

“Taking a keen interest, the CM has treated the case of Salwa Fatima as a “special case,” said Syed Omar Jaleel , special secretary, minorities welfare department. Describing Salwa as a “young girl who shows immense promise”, he added, “The funds will be released in two instalments. They will be given directly to the aviation school where Salwa will be studying. The GO will be released soon.” There exists a precedent of the government granting aid to an individual – to a boy from the SC community, Jaleel observed.

Thanks to the large heartedness of philanthropists, family and her own unbending resolve, Salwa, who already has a commercial pilot license to fly a single engine aircraft, has already clocked over 200 hours of flying. And as a logical conclusion, she wants to upgrade her flying skills to multi-engine aircraft. “In order to do this, I will have to take two courses: the multiengine rating and a specialisation course called type rating. For the former, I will need to have 15 hours of flying in a multiengine aircraft and 10 hours of simulation. The latter will enable me to fly an airbus,” she says. She is still unaware of the CM giving his assent to the release of funds.

The girl, who is a healthy blend of the traditional and the modern, says that she has shortlisted the GMR Aviation Academy and the Telangana State Aviation Academy as her preferred flying schools. “Both courses put together will entail expenses of around Rs 35 lakh,” she says.

Positive about support from her in-laws, she continues, “My husband and in-laws are in fact supportive of my aspirations. There is a tradition of women working here. In fact, my parents wanted me to go to a family which encourages me to work.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / by Syed Mohammed, TNN / March 22nd, 2015

Multifaceted techno kid

Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Science & Technology
The young genius Ballakur Vivek Kiran is involved in many projects.-PHOTO:Mohd Arif
The young genius Ballakur Vivek Kiran is involved in many projects.-PHOTO:Mohd Arif

The amazingly talented seventeen-year-old Ballakur Vivek Kiran is a student of Kendriya Vidayalaya located at Hyderabad Central University (HCU). The young genius is involved in many projects and he is in the team of Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad (IITH) students, who have developed Dexter Assistant useful for doctors. He has taken care of android application of Dexter.

While studying 9th standard in 2012 Vivek developed herbal dictionary on Visual Basic Dot Net (VB.NET). Sanjay Enishetty, founder of IM GEEK, and Vineel Nalla, chief executive officer of NBOS Technologies, are his mentors and they are incubating his project Colorspace under Wave Labs, an angle investor forum, by extending financial assistance and providing work space at their office in the city.

Colorspace is a business module developed by Vivek, through which customers would be offered two photo prints free of cost by Kodak, an internationally reputed photo film production company.

Vivek is also part of a team that has developed an internal communication application for Cyberabad police in 2014.

An Accidental Detection and Rescue System is being developed by Udit Gangwal of SISCO, Manish and Devanjan – students from RV College, Bengaluru, along with Vivek.

“This works with geo-fencing and reverse geo-coding. We are using Kookoo, third party software.

The electronic embedded gadget that would be fixed in the vehicle will respond and send alert message to the nearest hospital from the accident spot based on the Google Maps. While I and Udit are working on software part both Manish and Devanjan working on hardware part,” Mr. Vivek told The Hindu.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National / by R. Avadhani / Sangareddy – March 26th, 2015

IIT Hyderabad emerges joint winner in hacking contest

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

Students from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Hyderabad, emerged winners along with two other teams from Amrita College of Engineering, Bangalore and IIT Mumbai in the recently concluded Microsoft’s national college hacking contest ‘Build the Shield’, a statement said.

The Microsoft contest provided students a competitive hands-on experience on information security and risk management coupled with real-life scenarios, wherein the team defends attacks from servers of competitors to emerge as the winner. Close to 290 teams and over 1,000 students participated in the online qualifiers stage in January 2015.

Nearly 50 teams were shortlisted for the national finale at Hyderabad who battled for the top three positions. The winners received pre-placement interview offers from Microsoft along with Xbox One and Lumia phones.

“The contest was quite competitive and a great learning experience for all of us,” said Agam Agarwal from IIT Hyderabad.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Special Correspondent / Hyderabad – March 26th, 2015

Lecturer Eyes World Record with Non-stop 150-hr Lecture

Education, Records, All, World Opinion

Sangareddy :

A lecturer from Zaheerabad Degree College, B Maruthi Rao Patil is eyeing World Record by teaching Taxation and Accounts non-stop for 150 hours from morning of March 9 to afternoon of March 15.

The earlier record is that of a person from Haryana for 139 hours continuous teaching. So to break the old record and create the new record, Maruthi Rao decided to teach continuously for 150 hours.

He had previously taught for 17 hours continuously. According to the rules of the Guinness World Records, five minutes rest will be given after every one hour.

Thus one gets almost two hours rest in a day and he wants to use that time for his daily activities like food and other things. Avadhuth Maharaj from Bardipur Ashram is going to inaugurate this programme.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Telangana / by Express News Service / March 09th, 2015

One step short of making history

Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Science & Technology

CaptFathimaTELANGANA07mar2015

Capt. Fatima, the only Muslim woman in India to hold commercial pilot’s licence, needs financial help for additional training

She looks the typical Muslim woman next door – plain, timid and hesitant. It will be a surprise if she can drive a four-wheeler. Hold your breath – she can even fly an aircraft. Meet Capt. Syeda Salva Fatima, the only Muslim woman in India to hold the commercial pilot’s licence.

She is the shining example of Muslim women’s empowerment. What makes her ascent interesting is that she hails from the poverty-stricken old city of Hyderabad where life is a continuous struggle. Even more surprising is her decision to step into a domain which is predominantly male. But her black burqa and red scarf doesn’t betray her accomplishments.

Right from her school days, Fatima used to collect newspaper articles about aviation and pour over pictures of aircraft for hours. Her father, Syed Ashfaq Ahmed, a bakery worker, never imagined that his daughter would become a pilot one day. The dice was cast when she took admission in an institute which offered free EAMCET coaching. “What would you like to become,” the instructor asked. Pat came the reply, “Pilot”. It was a pleasant surprise to everyone present, more so to her father who struggled to make the ends meet. Seeing her determination, Zahid Ali Khan, Editor, Siasat daily, who was present at the time, asked Fatima to meet him later. “I couldn’t believe my ears when he offered to support me financially to undertake the pilot training,” recalls an overwhelmed Fatima.

After five years of rigorous training at the Andhra Pradesh Aviation Academy, Fatima obtained Commercial Pilot’s Licence, Private Pilot’s Licence and Flight Radio Telephone Operator Licence on March 11, 2013. She has logged in a total of 200 hours of flying on Cessna 152 and172, including 123 hours of solo flight. Now she has hit a rough weather. She needs to undergo Type Rating, an additional training beyond the scope of the initial licence and aircraft class training, on Air Bus A-320 or Boeing to be able to fly any aircraft. The training costs about Rs. 30 lakh which the 26-year-old couldn’t think of. But having come this far, she doesn’t want to give up. The Captain courageous has sent an SOS to the Civil Aviation Minister, Ashok Gajapathi Raju. She can be reached on: 9966073368.

Capt. Fatima, the only Muslim woman in India to hold a commercial pilot’s licence, needs financial help for additional training

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Swathi V / Hyderabad – March 07th, 2015

Woodcut from close quarters

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education

A mix of young and senior artists from Baroda and Hyderabad share their experiences at a one-of-its kind woodcut camp at DHI Art Space

OF WOOD AND COLOURS Professor Vijay Bagodi Photo: K. Ramesh Babu / The Hindu
OF WOOD AND COLOURS Professor Vijay Bagodi Photo: K. Ramesh Babu / The Hindu

As one walks pasts the flowy curtains, a woodcut zone awaits art lovers at DHI Art Space at Dharam Karan Road in Ameerpet. A group of young artists, Gayathri, Jagadeesh and Kiran are casually chatting away. In front of them are a bottle of linseed oil, wooden blocks and colours against a background that blares the number Apologise. One can spot Vijay Bagodi, professor of MS University, Baroda sitting with a wooden block and Hyderabad artists Srikanth Kuruva and Sajid Bin Amar sharing nuances of woodcut techniques. While T. Sudhakar Reddy, (retd) professor of AU University watches the proceedings, artist Rajeshwar Rao is busy poring over on an image on the block at his worktable. But the real sight is to see veteran artist Thota Vaikuntam turn a student to learn the basics of woodcut painting!

OF WOOD AND COLOURS Artist Thota Vaikuntham Photo: K. Ramesh Babu / The Hindu
OF WOOD AND COLOURS Artist Thota Vaikuntham Photo: K. Ramesh Babu / The Hindu

It is a one-of-its kind week-long woodcut camp at DHI Art Space with a mix of young and senior artists from Baroda and Hyderabad. It is a delectable hub of all things arty and wooden at the camp with the gallery exhibiting artists’ previous works. Besides interactions and observing each other’s style of working, the artists, who are staying on the first floor of the building, also participate in talks and sessions over cups of black coffee and chai. “The unlimited scope of woodcut is at the core of the camp,” informs Bhargavi. “The work is too intricate and the whole process is quite laborious. Most of them do not know about it and artists who know do not practice it. We wanted to bring woodcut and non-woodcut painters under one roof and create a platform for interaction. There are veterans, middle aged and younger artists who share and exchange their ideas and experiences.”

While in Hyderabad Vijay Bagodi was at JNTU, attending a lecture by Tushar Gandhi. The professor says by the end of the session, he knew the theme for his woodcut painting as he shows us a block with Mahatma Gandhi’s image. “Being a small city, Baroda is a great place for artists. One can just call Mani sir (K.G. Subramanyan) or Jairam Patel and they will meet you. The place is buzzing with art,” he smiles as he talks about Baroda.

OF WOOD AND COLOURS Artists Pratap Modi and Rajeshwar Rao Photo: K. Ramesh Babu / The Hindu
OF WOOD AND COLOURS Artists Pratap Modi and Rajeshwar Rao Photo: K. Ramesh Babu / The Hindu

There is a sense of palpable excitement as artist Rajeshwar Rao walks around with wooden blocks. “It is a new thing and I am learning how it works,” says Vaikuntam with a smile. “Wood is a totally different media and the colours are different. It is good for artists like me as it is a break from the usual and getting to know about textures. I have seen my friends and great masters at work. I have realised it is a very challenging process,” he adds.

OF WOOD AND COLOURS Artist Karuna Photo: K. Ramesh Babu / The Hindu
OF WOOD AND COLOURS Artist Karuna Photo: K. Ramesh Babu / The Hindu

As the artists are busy on their worktables, one cannot miss a two-and-half-year old girl running around. Artist Karuna has brought along her little daughter as she participates in the camp. “Wood cut painting is like doing meditation — one goes into a different world of wood and colours. I work on the natural wood and this is compressed wood,” she says while displaying a block. With a laugh she looks at her daughter and adds, “She piles up the dust and makes a rangoli of the chipped out parts.” The camp is also a different experience for artists like Prathap Modi who is used to working on large scale projects. “It is a challenge to work on small wooden blocks and also I like to work alone. This is a new experience as I am trying to mingle with other people,” he says.

Art lovers and budding artists can drop in before February 27 at the Art Space to discover the world of woodcut.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by Neerja Murthy / Hyderabad – February 25th, 2015

Awesome ‘Eightsome’ Do ALC Proud

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All
NCC cadets of Andhra Loyola College, who participated in the Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi, shares a light moment before being felicitated by Krishna district collector Babu A on the college premises in Vijayawada on Tuesday | Express Photo
NCC cadets of Andhra Loyola College, who participated in the Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi, shares a light moment before being felicitated by Krishna district collector Babu A on the college premises in Vijayawada on Tuesday | Express Photo

Vijayawada :

Pride of achievement was writ large on their faces and their demeanour spoke of confidence. They were eight NCC cadets engaged in a banter while waiting outside the auditorium in Andhra Loyola College (ALC) on Tuesday to be felicitated by the district collector for representing the state in Republic Day parade.

ALC had achieved a rare distinction of being the first college to have eight NCC cadets selected to participate in Republic Day parade. Sharing their experiences and future plans with Express, the cadets expressed their joy and pride of being able to participate in Republic Day parade.

‘Awesome’, ‘Most cherished moment of life’ were their immediate response, when asked how they felt being part of such a momentous occasion. Many of those cadets want to join civil services and become IPS officers while some want to pursue their career in defence services.

Senior Under Officer D Venkata Krishna, pursuing BSC (MPC) second year, was the contingent commandant from the state. It was a proud moment when he got selected for the RD and had seven members of his own group also getting selected for the event.

Venkata Krishna, the only cadet from Andhra and Telangana to get selected for the All India Guard of Honour – 2015 at RD camp, said it was one of the best moments of his life. “I had been able to perform cultural programme in Teen Murti Bhavan in the presence of the Prime Minister,” he said. He along with another cadet R Divya Sai got selected for Youth Exchange Programme (YEP) for 2015. They will be visiting a foreign country, yet to be finalised, in March.

Cadet Captain R Divya Sai was part of the Prime Minister’s rally and bagged All India second best cadet award (silver medal). She also won the Governor’s gold medal for excellence in RD camp 2015 along with Chief Minister’s gold medal at state level. “It was one of the most cherished moments of my life ,” she said. Sergeant M Vikram, who too was part of the PM Rally, said he is proud of his achievement.

Cadets S Naga Balaji and Tijo Thomas said they were excited to march along the Rajpath on Republic Day.

Cadet Shaik Riyaz, who got 3rd place in static model presentation ‘Eurofighter’ explained how he workedhard to prepare for RD camp and the stages he had to cross to get qualified.

Corporal P Gayatri got selected for RD contingent and secured All India fourth place on Gold Star and she was the only girl who could complete the novice show jumping arena with two different horses.

Junior Under Officer Meer Akbar Basha was part of Swachh Bharat Ballet presented by the AP contingent in PM’s house.

“I am proud that I got an opportunity to show culture of both AP and Telangana through my cultural programme,” he said.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Andhra Pradesh / by S. Guru Srikanth / February 25th, 2015

Hyderabad Girl Sets World Record in Mid-brain Activation Technique

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

Hyderabad :

Ten-year-old Gade Parineetha seems to have a special ability. She can identify or read from flash cards when blindfolded, by smell and sense. She has set a world record by doing so with as many as 101 flash cards in a matter of 60 seconds and entered the Limca Book of World Records, Unique World Records, Wonder Book of Records and four more book of records.

She set these world records, a couple of days ago, in front of a full house of guests and luminaries like justice Challa Kodanda Ram of Hyderbad High Court; GD Priyadarshini, director of department of agriculturem S Kumar, BJP Telangana state secretary and several others at Ravindra Bharati here. The technique is simply called Mid-Brain Activation. “Mid-brain activation gurus Hitesh Satara and Dr B Sai Kiran have been training over 5,000 students in this technique. They realised that Parineetha has special talent. She has been training only for about three weeks,” says her father Pawan Kumar Gade, who is a High Court Lawyer.

G Parineetha performing mid-brain activation skills blindfolded while her father G Pawan Kumar looks on at a function in Hyderabad | NEERAJ MURALI
G Parineetha performing mid-brain activation skills blindfolded while her father G Pawan Kumar looks on at a function in Hyderabad | NEERAJ MURALI

A class 5 student of Johnson Grammar School in Habsiguda, Parineetha says the new found ability has helped her in her studies too. “What I do now is only a first level. In a few months, I should be able to identify a card from a distance, without touching or even summarise a book by just flipping through it,” says Parineetha who aspires to become a scientist.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express News Service / February 23rd, 2015